Book Review: Just Like Home

 

Rating: 4/5

From Goodreads: “Come home.” Vera’s mother called and Vera obeyed. In spite of their long estrangement, in spite of the memories -- she's come back to the home of a serial killer. Back to face the love she had for her father and the bodies he buried there.

Coming home is hard enough for Vera, and to make things worse, she and her mother aren’t alone. A parasitic artist has moved into the guest house out back, and is slowly stripping Vera’s childhood for spare parts. He insists that he isn’t the one leaving notes around the house in her father’s handwriting… but who else could it possibly be?

There are secrets yet undiscovered in the foundations of the notorious Crowder House. Vera must face them, and find out for herself just how deep the rot goes. 

This review is spoiler free!

First off - I LOVED this book. It was weird and creepy and uncomfortable at times and twisted in every sense of the word. Sarah Gailey took this story in so many directions and it ended up in such a cool space I wasn't expecting. Their writing style is so well done and atmospheric. This was a one sitting read for me and I just cannot recommend it enough!

Just Like Home begins with Vera Crowder going back to the home she had left as a teenager to help care for her dying mother and settle her affairs. Vera's adult life had been spent trying to escape the Crowder house, as well as the legacy her serial killer father left behind. However, she is forced to reckon with the darkness of her past as she returns.

Told both in the present, and in snippets of Vera's youth, this book is absolutely riveting and terrifying. Pacing is always something I look at closely in horror, and can make or break a book for me. While this book is definitely a "slow burn," in terms of plot, unraveling the mystery, etc. Sarah Gailey's pacing throughout is very engaging, making this book easy to devour in a single session.

*I received an ARC from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and views in this review are my own.

~ Charlotte