We Used to Live Here: A Novel

This was a good book but it was a slow burner and to be honest it'll probably upset you lol. Not that it wasn't good, the people that "used to live there" will definitely get under your skin! 😤

WOAH. This book was deeply unsettling. It was not at all what I was expecting. This was definitely more horror than thriller if you ask me, with some sci fi/paranormal elements. I quite literally could not put this book down. I tore through it and now I’m left wanting more. After that ending… WE NEED A BOOK 2! I feel so disturbed by how it ended & I really want a resolution. Took off one star because I felt like the book was a mix up of a few different things? And maybe that was intentional but I felt like the plot was just a little bit disorganized. Overall though, it was extremely well written and entertaining!

This book has left me speechless. I loved the story, the author's writing style, the between chapter bits, the puzzles. I recently learned about liminal space and it scares the crap out of me, so this book being liminal space adjacent is amazing. My only complaint is I wish the ending was a little more developed/longer, but otherwise this book is incredible.

• Who It’s For: Fans of Shirley Jackson, Mark Z. Danielewski, and Stephen King's more unsettling slow-burns will find themselves deeply unnerved and utterly gripped. This is for the reader who enjoys atmospheric horror, unreliable narrators, and the feeling of being lost in a puzzle you’re not sure you want to solve. • Who It’s Not For: If you prefer tightly plotted thrillers with clear answers, full character arcs, or traditional closure, this one may leave you frustrated. It’s not action-driven, and the ambiguity may be off-putting to readers who need concrete explanations. 🌀 Spoiler-Free Plot Summary Eve Palmer and her partner Charlie move into a fixer-upper in the Pacific Northwest, a house with more rot in the bones than they first realized. But when a family knocks on their door one snowy afternoon claiming they used to live here, Eve opens the door…and slowly, reality starts to close in. What begins as a claustrophobic houseguest scenario evolves into something far stranger: a disintegration of memory, identity, and time; all centered around the house itself, which may be watching. This is a story of erasure. Of horror that isn't about what breaks in, but what breaks through. 📽️ Book vs Film (Not Yet Adapted, But Should Be): We Used to Live Here began as a viral Reddit r/nosleep story, and you can feel that DNA in every scene. The creeping dread, the voyeuristic pacing, the sense that you, the reader, are just one of many versions of someone who read this book before. While there’s no film yet, the cinematic potential is huge. Think The Haunting of Hill House meets Vivarium with a whisper of Black Mirror. ❓ Why I Gave It 4 Stars I was absolutely hooked throughout the first 30%, the writing is tight, the atmosphere is thick with dread, and the horror is smart and psychological. The book begins as a slow invasion story and steadily spirals into something much more ambitious. However, I docked one star because I did manage to predict the core twist by the 40% mark, not the details, but the concept. That didn’t ruin the experience, but it did pull the rug a bit early for me. I prefer to be fully gutted by a twist. Still, it delivered on suspense, creep factor, and originality. ✅ What the Book Gets Right Atmosphere: This book is like watching wallpaper peel in real-time: eerie, slow, quiet, and exactly what it needs to be. Cosmic Horror without the Cliché: It’s not Lovecraftian tentacles, it’s the terror of not being remembered. Of being overwritten. Of a house that has seen too many versions of you. Narrative Style: It expertly weaves journal entries, forum posts, and psychological transcripts to blur fiction and reality — a subtle nod to its internet origins. Character Psychology: Eve’s descent into paranoia is grounded and believable, making her an anchor in an otherwise unmoored world. ❌ What the Book Gets Wrong Pacing in the Middle Third: After such a sharp and captivating start, the pacing does drift into repetition. The gaslighting and claustrophobia become slightly monotonous before ramping up again. Lack of Character Depth Outside Eve: Charlie, Thomas, and the kids feel more like concept vehicles than real people. That may be the point, but it limits emotional impact. Ambiguity Overload: While I enjoy open-ended narratives, the final third becomes so disorienting that some readers may feel untethered — like a great horror film that fades to black just before the reveal. 💭 Final Thoughts This is a bold and cerebral debut, perfect for horror lovers who crave atmosphere over answers. It explores the horror of memory, identity, and architecture in a way that feels both intimate and cosmic. It made me question what it means to belong somewhere, or be remembered at all. I’ll be thinking about We Used to Live Here for a long time. And checking my basement door.

I find myself wondering what I would do in each situation. Would my choices change outcomes? I would have given a 10, but the ending felt incomplete