The Stranger Upstairs, Lisa M. Matlin
The Stranger Upstairs, Lisa M. Matlin
List: $20.00 | Sale: $14.00
Club: $10.00

The Stranger Upstairs

Author: Lisa M. Matlin

Narrator: Fiona Hardingham

Unabridged: 9 hr 6 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/12/2023


Synopsis

Most people wouldn’t buy an infamous murder house to renovate for fun . . . but Sarah Slade is not most people.
 
“This debut novel deftly explores our shadows—the dark parts of ourselves we don’t want others to see. I couldn’t stop reading.”—Julia Bartz, New York Times bestselling author of The Writing Retreat

A POPSUGAR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

A therapist and self-help writer with all the answers, Sarah has just bought a gorgeous Victorian in the community of her dreams. Turns out you can get a killer deal on a house where someone was murdered. Plus, renovating Black Wood House makes for great blog content and a potent distraction from her failing marriage. Good thing nobody knows that her past is as tainted as the bloodstain on her bedroom floor.

But the renovations are fast becoming a nightmare. Sarah imagined custom avocado wallpaper, massive profits, and an appreciative husband who would want to share her bed again. Instead, the neighbors hate her guts and her husband still sleeps on the couch. And though the builders attempt to cover up Black Wood’s horrifying past, a series of bizarre accidents, threatening notes, and unexplained footsteps in the attic only confirm for Sarah what the rest of the town already knows: Something is very wrong in that house.

With every passing moment, Sarah’s life spirals further out of control—and with it her sense of reality. But as she peels back the curling wallpaper and discovers the house’s secrets, she realizes that the deadly legacy of Black Wood House has only just begun.

About The Author

Lisa M. Matlin is the author of The Stranger Upstairs. She was a guitarist in a rock band before switching from songwriting to story writing. She lives in Melbourne, Australia, with her dogs. She’s probably rewatching The Walking Dead right now and trying not to laugh at her own jokes. Matlin is a passionate mental health advocate and your dog’s number one fan.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Heather on February 23, 2024

3 stars I think? I literally don’t know what to rate this, sometimes I was really enjoying it and other times I was annoyed but I think that’s was the point lol......more

Goodreads review by Rachel on July 07, 2023

Would you buy a known murder house? A house where a vicious murder-suicide took place? A house that has sat vacant for 40 years because nothing but darkness and death vibes surround it? Well, our main character Sarah Slade bought this house. Sarah is not superstitious, and the price was right! Sarah......more

Goodreads review by Catherine on October 07, 2023

**Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House - Ballantine, and Lisa M. Matlin for an ARC of this book! Now available as of 9.12!!** "Want a great deal on a house? BUY ONE WHERE SOMEONE WAS MURDERED!" (and if those two opening lines don't catch your attention, you probably haven't been personally victimized......more

Goodreads review by Jayme on September 12, 2023

Don’t Kill Me Don’t Kill Me Don’t Kill Me Those were the words heard from Janet Campbell as she ran from Black Wood House, after her father bludgeoned her mother to death with a hammer, before taking his own life. She hasn’t been seen since. Now, social media Influencer, Sarah Slade has just purchased......more


Quotes

“A fast, fun, gasp-inducing read.”—Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Diamond Eye

“Creepy, crafty, and packing some deliciously dark surprises, The Stranger Upstairs is a dizzying spiral into madness that kept me guessing to its final pages.”—Taylor Adams, author of The Last Word

“The ultimate spooky-season read! Lisa M. Matlin skillfully infuses every page of The Stranger Upstairs with eerie, evocative imagery, and her (anti)heroine, Sarah Slade, is just as disturbing and compelling as the murder-house setting.”—Layne Fargo, author of They Never Learn