Books & Audiobooks
I just finished We Used to Live Here written by Vancouverite Marcus Kliewer and it was a book I could not put down. I’m not normally a reader of thrillers or horror but the description of this book sounded so intriguing I had to give it a try…and oh my, was it ever a page turner! The premise is: a young couple buy an old house in rural Oregon intending to fix it up or possibly flip it, when one night a man knocks on the door claiming to be a past resident; could he and his family come in for a quick look around? Eve is alone, her partner Charlie hasn’t made it home yet, should she let in this unsettling crew? Are they harmless? Will her anxiety get the best of her?
Expanded into a novel in 2024, this began as a serial story on Reddit, where it was named one of the Scariest Story of 2021 Winners. This is psychological horror that relies on Old House folk lore and conspiracy theories, including tragic events, mysterious rooms and paranormal hauntings. Interspersed between the narrative chapters in the novel are pieces of “evidence” – documents, newspaper articles, and police interviews, that at first seem somewhat random but, as one keeps reading (or goes back and reassesses them after finishing the novel as I did), help to complete the picture.
Kliewer presents an eerie and unsettling atmosphere right from he get-go as night falls, a snow storm sets in and Eve is stuck with this family who just feels “off.” A childhood game of hide-and-seek in Kliewer’s hands may have me scared of basements and dumbwaiters for life! Described by its publisher as a mix between the films Get Out and Parasite, this novel is also very cinematic. The chapters play out like scenes in a movie, jump scares and all. The film rights have been snatched up so we’ll see if it makes its way to the big screen sometime soon.
In the meantime, Kliewer’s second novel, The Caretaker, is being released this month. In this one, twenty-something Macy Mullins accepts a Craigslist ad for a caretaking job. Only three days work and good money, Macy just needs to keep watch of a mansion while its owner is away for the weekend. Not surprisingly, in this supernatural horror novel, Macy’s new job turns into a living nightmare. I can’t wait to read it…looks like I may have found a new genre to add to my reading profile!