Title: There’s Someone Inside Your House
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: September 26, 2017
Genre(s): Young Adult, Fiction, Contemporary, Mystery, Thriller/Horror
Source: Won in a Giveaway
Pages: 289
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Love hurts…
Makani Young thought she’d left her dark past behind her in Hawaii, settling in with her grandmother in landlocked Nebraska. She’s found new friends and has even started to fall for mysterious outsider Ollie Larsson. But her past isn’t far behind.
Then, one by one, the students of Osborne Hugh begin to die in a series of gruesome murders, each with increasingly grotesque flair. As the terror grows closer and her feelings for Ollie intensify, Makani is forced to confront her own dark secrets.
ReviewSo, I had no clue what to expect going into this book. Reviews were all over the place and Stephanie Perkins fans were mixed on whether this book or her contemporary books were better. Not being a fan of Anna and the French Kiss, I was curious yet apprehensive going into this one.
Honestly, it was fun. This book was definitely a gory slasher mess so if that’s something you’re sensitive to, I would not pick it up. This book does follow some of the classic tropes found in classic slasher films and it was fun seeing these tropes put into a book format. Yeah, that’s really all I can say about it without going into spoilers. Fun, different, gory, great for Halloween.
Spoiler Corner:Okay, I was trying to keep this spoiler free but that’s not gonna happen.
There were some parts of this book that kind of irked me. First, Makani’s past was a total let down. Throughout the entire book, we’re told about Makani’s secret past that made her move and change her name. The mystery is built up until the big reveal in the climax and wow did it fall flat. Makani was hazed by some members on the swim team, reacted badly, and cut her best friend’s hair. That’s it. Yeah her friend almost drowned, but that wasn’t necessarily her fault and wasn’t the part that she was so ashamed by. Yeah, it just fell flat for me.
The other part that kind of irritated me was the reveal of the killer (who I won’t spoil for you). I thought the person who did it was completely random, though that’s not the worst thing. It wasn’t someone you could guess, but eh that doesn’t bother me. What did bother me was the level of mutilation and posing that the bodies experienced with absolutely no explanation. There was one chapter from the killer’s perspective that mentioned that no one got the killer’s jokes like when he put the heart of the victim on college brochure’s because the victim had their “heart set on college”. Which, okay, that kind of makes sense. BUT NONE OF THE OTHER “JOKES” WERE EXPLAINED. If this is the motive and the set up that you’re going for, the least you could tell the rest of the “jokes” to the audience. It was just something that really bugged me, especially as a student in forensic psychology that would have loved to have this topic explore more.
I guess one other thing that kind of irked me was the happily ever after ending of sorts. We have a pretty big slash fest at the end of the book as the MC knows who the killer is and tries to confront them. Several characters get taken out…only to actually be alive comes the end of the book. I don’t know, I felt like it took away from the horror movie vibe and was a great opportunity to play with the final girl trope that was completely wasted.
Final ThoughtsYeah, I got a little harsh in the spoiler corner, but those pet peeves aside, the book was actually really fun. It’s one I can actually see myself picking up again around Halloween or when I’m in the mood for a different style of book.
If you’re apprehensive about picking this one up, I’d say give it a shot (if you’re cool with murder, blood, and gore). This book really is a 90s slasher film in book form and was certainly a unique read. It wasn’t the best mystery I ever read, but it was fast paced and it kept me entertained.
Rating⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ – 3.75/5
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