Beneath The Stairs is a spectacular debut novel. Jennifer Fawcett blends horror, mystery, and a sort of coming of age story into a single novel that will wreak havoc on your emotions and obliterate any hope of a normal night’s sleep.
It is said that all local legends have a kernel of truth to them, though exaggerated through the years. The same would be true for the residents of Sumner’s Mills, a sleepy village in upstate New York. The rumors and whispers about the Octagon House passed down from generation to generation had to start somewhere.
Twenty years after a traumatic event that changed the trajectory of both her and her best friend Abby’s lives, Clare returns to her hometown to unravel the circumstances that led to Abby to return to the cursed building and attempt to end her life. Still grieving from a personal loss and her own life unraveling, Clare must sift through the horrific events of the past in order to find some semblance of understanding in the present.
I’ll be the first to admit that this is not the typical type of thriller that I read. I often find myself drawn more towards books that have a healthy dose of physical danger (i.e. bullets flying, bombs going off, etc.)...but I was absolutely spellbound by this story. I waited to start this book on a cold and stormy evening and ended up reading all night, finishing a few hours before dawn. It was a perfectly terrifying night to read this type of story.
The multiple plotlines are full of physical danger, emotional turmoil, and psychological uncertainty that go from cover to cover. It absolutely scared the crap out of me and caused me to cast an anxious look at every shadow that fell across the wall, flinch at each creak from the house settling, and jump at any noise outside my windows.
I applaud Jennifer on a masterful story and look forward to reading more in the future.
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Barrington Books
Chapter 2 Books
Murder By The Book
Once Upon A Crime
The Book Dragon
The Poisoned Pen
