Charlie and Eve are the proud owners of an old fixer-upper in the Pacific Northwest; a home they plan to flip and sell. While settling in, Eve is home alone when she hears a knock at the door. A man, Thomas, stands on the porch alongside his family. He says they are passing through town as they move house to Minnesota and thought this may be his only chance to show his family where he grew up. Turns out Eve is the proud owner of his childhood home! Could he just step inside for fifteen minutes to give his wife and kids the grand tour?

There had been considerable buzz surrounding this book given that it had evolved from an award-winning serialised story on Reddit (r/nosleep), and the premise being compared to that of the plot of the Oscar-winning film Parasite, so I had a few reasons to pick it up. It’s also spooky book season, so I needed all the horror I could get my hands on.

I liked what Kliewer presents here with a constant simmering of unease and dread. As Thomas and his family create reasons to stay longer and longer, it results in a deep panic and frustration on the part of Eve. Things take a turn for the worst as unexplainable events begin happening in and around the house. Without spoiling anything, there is a moment about three-quarters of the way through the story that made me grip my Kindle and audibly gasp. Those are the best horror stories!

The ending, again without spoiling anything, leaves things pretty open-ended and ambiguous. It seems to be a common complaint amongst reviewers who didn’t enjoy the book. I’m usually one who prefers a more closed-book finale, but I was more or less OK with it given everything that led up to the final pages, although I would have preferred a more definitive end. That said, it took a few weeks before this one left my thoughts and isn’t that what we all want from a book; something you can’t stop thinking about so easily?