I did not expect to enjoy this book so much. I went in thinking it was a psychological thriller for it to turn into a full-blown ghost story wrapped in a mystery wrapped in what I think was alternate dimensions and so much more.

We follow the main character Eve, who I really liked, her and her partner Charlie have just moved into their new home with all their savings with the intent to flip it. One evening there is a knock at the door and when Eve answers there is a family of four on her step, the father claims he lived in the house as a child and would like to look around, Eve is reluctant but after feeling awful for turning the family away relents. Just fifteen minutes the father, Thomas promises … and this is when things take a turn.

As someone who has crippling anxiety, I could see how Eve got led into the situation she does, like Eve I also have a partner who I rely on to help me navigate setting boundaries and saying no. Many people might not like Charlie, but I really liked her. She was so matter of fact and I feel she was perfect for Eve, as she knew where she stood with Charlie.

I felt so much pain for Eve during this book because from the moment she invited the family in she never knew where she stood again, her whole life is tipped upside down.

The horror elements of this book were amazing, I am so happy I do not know of anybody having dumbwaiters in any homes I visit. The snippets of newspaper clippings and transcripts drew me in further making me feel like I was reading a case file on the events.

I wanted to give this book five stars, but I just had so many unanswered questions at the end. Then again Eve would have had a lot of unanswered questions so maybe we are meant to feel like her at the end, I don't know but it just felt like a cliff-hanger, and if it were I would devour another instalment.

We Used To Live Here by Marcus Kliewer is exactly my kind of horror story. Eve and her partner Charlie are renovating an isolated and dilapidated old house when they get a visit from a family who claim ‘we used to live here’. That's really all you need to know going into the story, it’s far more fun to know as little as possible and just enjoy the wild ride. The scene setting is vivid and atmospheric, Kliewer really paints a picture and it is easy to get swept up in the story and almost feel like you can see the events unfolding as though in a movie. The writing and pacing is so well done, creepy and claustrophobic, and I thoroughly enjoyed the wide range of mixed-media scattered throughout. I couldn’t put this book down, I was captivated from start to finish. While the horror in this book is more psychological than ‘jump scary’ there are some scenes involving body horror, these were sparse and spread out so well that they added an extra horrifying element to the story without becoming grotesque or silly. I will say that there are some elements of this story which may put off some readers, towards the end the narrative gets a little confusing. For me this added to the unsettling feeling of dread but I can see that it could also be a little frustrating. I would also say that this may not be the book for you if you like your stories to tie up nice and neatly at the end with no loose threads. I really enjoyed my time reading this book and look forward to reading from this author again in the future.
Thanks to Random House Uk, Transworld Publishers/Bantam and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this amazing debut in return for an honest review

Wow.....
I LOVED this book.

I was gripped at the first page until the last and I felt like I could barely breathe throughout.

This book is sooo good. I don't scare easily and I can't remember the last time a book scared me but this did, repeatedly.

Eve and her partner Charlie move into to an isolated house hoping to flip it. One night a family knock asking if they can look around as the father used to live there and things start to get strange...that's all you need to know!
From that moment it gets totally wild!

I loved Eve, Charlie and Shylo and I now have new fears unlocked that I had no idea about. I will think about this book everytime someone knocks on my door!

My only criticism would be, the cover and blurb heavily indicate a psychological thriller which this book is not.
People looking for a thriller might be disappointed they get pure horror and those that enjoy horror might not pick this up.
It's also not for anyone that doesn't like loss ends!
However I loved that it and I will be thinking about it for a long time!

Well written, creepy, and intriguing.
It's full of answered questions and it kept me on the edge.
Excellent storytelling.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Eve and her partner Charlie purchase an old house as a renovation project in a secluded area.
When Charlie is away, Eve gets a knock on the door one evening and is met by a family on the doorstep claiming he used to live there and would like to show his family around. A bit wary at first, Eve calls Charlie for advise but you guessed it, it goes straight to voicemail. Being told it would only take 15 minutes, Eve decides to let them have the tour.
That one action changes her life as she knows it.

What. A. Book!
I really loved this debut novel from Marcus Kliewer, and if what im hearing is true, I can absolutely see why Netflix has picked this up!
A psychological horror, with the right amount of creepy to stop me reading this in the dark!
I'm not usually a fan of books that leave me with questions, so I'm semi hoping this invites a sequel, however it also adds to the psychological aspect of the plot. Are we going as mad as Eve?

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I read this over a couple of days and still can’t tell you what genre it was meant to be thriller, horror, physiological, fantasy? Throughout the book it went off on a tangent in a different font and not always connected to the story that I couldn’t figure out if they had been accidentally included or if we were meant to read them, I skipped the majority as they were gobbledygook. Finally, it just ended! No ending just a final page that left me not knowing what the final outcome was, who was everyone? What year were we in? What happened to the house? The children? Eva/Emma?

Thank you to NetGalley, Transworld Publishers, and Bantam for an advance copy of this book prior to its release. This novel had me captivated from the very first page.

Wow, I absolutely loved this book! The vivid descriptions and imagery transported me into Eve’s world, making me forget I was even reading!

This novel is psychological, haunting, and eerie. Throughout the story, I felt tense and unsettled. Kliewer’s ability to create a sinister atmosphere is excellent; I was on edge throughout the book. The narrative switch between present day and documentation was so interesting, building up the tension right to the climax.

I loved Eve’s development throughout the novel and how she gradually grew out of her people-pleasing tendencies. Her relationship with Charlie was beautiful, and they balanced each other out perfectly. By the end of the novel, I found myself, along with Eve, second-guessing everything. Kliewer does an outstanding job of creating doubt in a reader.

While I was left with some unanswered questions, the ambiguity ultimately deepened the impact of the story.
This novel is a must-read for lovers of psychological thrillers; anyone who enjoyed ‘The Haunting of Bly Manor’ will love this book. Furthermore, I’m thrilled for Netflix’s adaptation and cannot wait to watch it!

Firstly thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the advanced copy of this book in return for my honest opinion .

Part horror part mystery this book was extremely creepy and kept me on my toes throughout . You never really knew which side of the story to believe and definitely makes me want to avoid basements and attics .

Thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend to anyway who wants a bit of a fright .

Eve Palmer and partner Charlie buy an old house to renovate and sell in secluded area from their nearby neighbours. When one night when Charlie is away. She gets a knock on the door to find a family on her doorstep. The man says he once used to live there and has come from far away and can he show his family a tour of the house, it will only take 15 minutes. She is apprehensive at first. She rings Charlie for advice, but it goes straight to voice mail. As it won’t take long, she invited them in. Little does she know her actions will change her life for ever.
So, the family are in, one of the children goes missing and a snowstorm starts blocking the roads. Eve has no option but let them stay the night. But things start to go weird in the house and things start appearing in the house that weren’t there before, and Charlie is nowhere to be seen.
I heard good things about this book on social media that I had to have a read and I am so glad I did this is a creepy very good horror and debut story. The author is a great storyteller, and this story is not only creepy as hell but very imaginative. I really enjoyed this horror story. The only thing that concerned me in this story is regarding the documents that aided the story. Sometimes they did add extra insight in the story but they was also some where a bit confusing. 5 stars from me.

This story messes with your head big time, I can see why it's been hit up to become a Netflix series. It'll be great visually if they can capture the sense of menace and the off kilter world the characters inhabit.

From start to finish this is underlying creepy and cleverly disturbing. The main protagonist Eve lives in a half state of panic anyway, a worst case scenario flitting through her head with every passing event but even she could never see this coming.

An intelligent psychological horror that does require some suspension of disbelief to engage with the ending, an edgy, ambiguous finale that, if you examine it too closely, somewhat falls apart. Just go with it.

Embrace the madness. This is a superb novel. If you loved "I'm Thinking of Ending Things" you'll likely love this too.

Recommended.

a haunting sapphic horror which I found actually really scary. it's creepy and eerie and unsettling and everything I want in a horror - gay & terrifying!

eve and charlie move into a house in much need of renovation in the middle of a forest. then a family come to the door, saying the dad used to live there and they want to have a look around. reluctantly, eve let's them in, but it doesn't take long to realise this was a bad idea. creepy, inexplicable things start happening and eve struggles through finding a way to fix it, while contending with what is real or if shes losing grip of reality. so interesting & so well written & so SPOOKY

huuuge thank you to netgalley for an arc of this brilliant book due to be published on june 20th

DNF.

The complete absence of any kind of buildup or atmosphere was a real moodkill, and right from the start too. The uneasiness of the protagonist with her circumstances is baldly stated too often and not made evident in any other way.

It’s not uncommon to refer to a horror novel as “unsettling.” But never has that word applied more than here. When lesbian couple Charlie and Eve move into their new home, a man shows up claiming he used to live there and asking to show his kids around. When Eve allows this things get… weird. And worse. The anxiety grows and grows, the creepiness of the events, the chilling sense that we don’t know what is real and what is imagined and beneath it all this pervasive people-pleasing social anxiety - how do we tell the guests they’ve overstayed their welcome? A fantastic debut.

Charlie and Eve have recently moved into a new house when they get a knock at the door from a man, a long with his family, who claims he used to live in the house. Eve lets him take a look around his old home but soon regrets this when strange things start to happen.

I really liked the concept of this one so I was intrigued to read it. This is definitely a great debut, well written, suspenseful and creepy. I feel this is more horror, which I don’t read that often, than thriller genre wise and was very different to what I was expecting. I felt the pacing was up and down. It started off well and I was instantly engrossed, however I found it dipped in the middle, picking up again towards the end. The ending was ambiguous and left me with many questions. Overall though this was a well crafted, unique book and I look forward to watching the film due to be released based on this. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.

Up on Goodreads now, live on the blog on 17 June:

I spotted We Used to Live Here on social media and I immediately felt drawn to it. Something about the title and the cover gave me Shirley Jackson vibes and even though I can’t say I’m Jackson’s biggest fan, it did make me want to read We Used to Live Here right away. I’m so happy I gave in to this particular urge, as it ended up being everything I’d hoped it would be, and more.

Let me just say that if you’re looking for a ghost story, look no more, you’ve found your next obsession. It is very rare for me to actually find a thriller / horror story scary. Unsettling, sure. Creepy, yes. Scary, not so much. But We Used to Live Here seamlessly shifts through all those vibes. I was so happy I was reading certain scenes in broad daylight, had I been reading them in bed at night, I probably wouldn’t have slept a wink.

I love thrillers and horror stories that weave psychology into the fictional narrative to up the feeling of reality and plausibility. This is something Marcus Kliewer does to a t. I started questioning everything and I love when that happens, with this type of book at least. Should I take things at face value or is something more going on?

If you don’t like loose threads, you might take offence at We Used to Live Here. On the other hand, I generally don’t like dangling threads either but for some reason, they didn’t bother me here. I think that’s because they seem to reinforce the story and the creepiness of it all. And for me, that open ending just drives home the scariness of the story.

We Used to Live Here is an absolutely fantastic debut novel, which, incidentally, started out as a serialised short story on Reddit where it won the Scariest Story of 2021 award on the NoSleep forum. I had a great time with it, even if, or maybe because, I felt genuinely scared during some of it. I would definitely recommend it to fans of psychological horror.

We Used to Live Here is out in hardcover, digital formats and audio on 20 June.

Massive thanks to Bantam and NetGalley for the DRC. All opinions are my own.

This book left me with many questions. But in a good way.
Throughout the book I had an uneasy feeling, that I rarely get in books. I was left confused to what was going on and what the truth really was.
This book is creepy and disorientating. Leaving me feeling chills. But I also just couldn't put it down.

This was a pretty fascinating concept for a book. A mysterious family shows up out of nowhere claiming they used to live in a house currently being renovated by a queer couple and asking for a tour. Honestly even without the supernatural horror element that sounds like a horrifying enough concept for me. The first part of the book is really good in how you never know if the situation is intentionally weird or the main character is just being extremely paranoid. I liked how nicely that balances. It definitely becomes clearer as the story goes on but it still creates a nice level of doubt whether we should believe the main character at all. I also enjoyed that with the ending a lot of things are still up in the air. It worked for me since we are in the same position as the character in terms of knowledge, and honestly I would really love a sequel where we get more answers and... A happier ending maybe.

I think one thing that annoyed me was Charlie and how clearly she fell into the trope of the "horror husband" who never believes their partner when things are clearly taking a supernatural turn. But at least it was very clear that she loved Eve when most "horror husband" trope characters feel like they don't even respect their spouse. Again though, a sequel from her perspective would be such a fun concept.

Overall a good read, not particularly horror for me but the storyline was interesting.

I did loose the plot slightly middle to near the end but I did enjoy it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK for this ARC.

I was really looking forward to reading this book and I was really enjoying it up until the last quarter of the story.
Before that, the story builds as does the sense of suspense and dread. The mystery surrounding the family who turn about at Eve's door keeps you engaged and at the same time, frustrated with Eve for being so passive.
Get to the last quarter of the book and it all becomes too abstract, too quickly for me. I lost the thread, and felt like it was trying to do too much, without really explaining what was happening properly. I don't think that the origin /history or reason that Thomas is the person / entity was explored or explained enough.
In the end, was disappointing.

This book is so creepy and weird!

Eve and Charlie have bought an old house to renovate and sell. One day a family knock the door. The dad used to live there and he wants to show his family around. If I was Eve I would have said no, closed the door and that would have been the end of the book 😂 but Eve, against her better judgement let's them in and let's just say it's pretty tricky getting rid of them after that!

This is a horror not a thriller novel and things get pretty claustrophobic and scary. It's not so gory but it does mess with your mind. Weird things start happening in the house and watch Eve start to spiral.

I will say I felt very impatient reading this book and frustrated with Eve's actions at times, I found her a bit annoying! I also didn't get the relevance of a lot of the mixed media entries although some become slightly clearer at the end.

I am someone who enjoys creepy goings on but likes some sort of explanation behind it. I felt like this left more questions than it answered although I did really enjoy the ending. This one has already proved to be pretty popular with great reviews and I'm so excited for the Netflix adaptation starting Blake Lively!