the setup…
Single mother Elodie January left her home in Australia with her six-year old autistic son Jude for Virginia after a whirlwind romance with new husband Brendan (Bren) who is deeply devoted to her. She’s also pregnant, reveling in a her new and blissful life. That is until Jude complains about the sounds coming from the walls of the house Bren is renovating. Jude is a handful, small for his age and difficult to manage. Could it be his imagination? Then Elodie starts seeing horrible phenomena within those walls. Is there something malevolent within this house?
the heart of the story…
It soon becomes clear that Elodie isn’t the most reliable of narrators and she’s in denial about Jude’s autism. I vacillated between Jude making it up and having a true reason to be fearful. The transitions between the present and past timelines when Elodie lived in Australia helped give me more context. But what both of them described about that house remained an enigma, weighing down the story with multiple scenes that didn’t shift anything.
the narration…
Saskia Maarleveld has long been a favorite and she shines here. She managed an Aussie accent (very believable) and a child’s voice perfectly!
the bottom line…
There’s a great twist late in the story even though I guessed it before the reveal. I don’t read a lot of horror so the I’m still befuddled about a lot of things left unexplained. I enjoyed the story but the stuff going on in that house was a bit beyond me. However, the psychological mind bending was great.
Book Info
- Release Date: March 17, 2026
- Narrator: Saskia Maarleveld
- Audio Length: 8 hours, 50 minutes
- Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Goodreads | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Libro.fm
Blue Mood Café 