This was such a great read. The author does a great job of establishing this creepy house in the middle of nowhere where creepy things happen and there are creepy children trying to chase the main character away. It reminded me a little more of Turn of the Key instead of Turn of the Screw/Haunting of Bly Manor but since Key was inspired by Screw, close enough. The author did such a great job of establishing the gothic setting and immersing the reader in the world. In the heat of the Texas summer, there are few cool places for the homeless to hide. Cow Lady guards her patch with grim ferocity, until one evening, when strange men arrive and talk of guns and gas. This book definitely enjoys a Gothic Horror leaning aesthetic, and the bones and the sprawling estate fit with greenhouse and ancient cemetery really make this setting feel real and get your ready for the story being told. I appreciate how much this is a "girl comes to be a nanny, is immediately isolated and over her head" classic piece of horror, but in a way that still feels modern even while leaning into that dressing. Stanzas one and two explore what “Death” is not. This is followed by two stanzas that try to define death. The final stanza echoes the first two in attempting to make a definitive comparison — “But, most, like Chaos —”

This novel was simply incredible. Once I started, I couldn’t put it down. It was advertised as a novel for those who are fans of The Haunting of Bly Manor, one of my favorite horror TV shows (albeit I love Hill House more), and the inspiration was very clear. The slow unraveling of all the mysterious secrets held by the family, and the confines of their secluded property, left me hooked until the very end. While, at times, I felt the story was getting too similar to Bly Manor, I can happily say the uniqueness of this story shines through. The “slow burn” nature of the gradual horrors unfolding was done perfectly, and I think the Bly Manor writers would be equally impressed. Given that this story was compared to one of my favorite shows, I had high expectations, and this novel exceeded them. All women have a goth phase, we all need to mourn. Some of us just choose to show it on the outside.” The book takes you on a ride within the Lovelace house. A combination of magic and horror, the book is about Marin who receives a letter to be a nanny at Lovelace House. Now that she has lost everything, this seems like a good start. But the girls are weird and there is something unnerving about the house. 🏡. As she is settling down, the level of incidents occurring at the house increases with the return of the eldest daughter. The game of death and shadows has begun! This has it all: a slow burn sapphic love story, an agonizingly delicious build of tension, creepy children, reveals that made me gasp out loud. A gothic love story meets gothic horror story, with expert pacing, dark family secrets, and a twisted reveal I didn't see coming.' — Katrina Leno, author of Horrid and You Must Not Miss The Haunting of Bly Manor meets House of Salt and Sorrows in award-winning author Kyrie McCauley's contemporary YA gothic romance about a dark family lineage, the ghosts of grief, and the lines we'll cross for love.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher, Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of HarperCollins, for review. Superb storytelling and gripping suspense once again from the author who puts Patricia Cornwell in the shade. Chilling, convincing, powerfully entertaining, this is suspense writing at its best as crime journalist Molly Cates is dragged into the desperate underworld of the homeless, threatened by vigilantes and brought face to face with the violence in her own past. But as Marin settles in, she can’t escape the anxiety that shadows her. Dead birds appear in Marin’s room. The children’s pranks escalate. Something dangerous lurks in the woods.

Days after a tragedy leaves Marin Blythe alone in the world, she receives a surprising invitation from Alice Lovelace—an acclaimed horror writer and childhood friend of Marin’s mother. Alice offers her a nanny position at Lovelace House, the family’s coastal Maine estate. Days after a tragedy leaves Marin Blythe alone in the world, she receives a surprising invitation from Alice Lovelace, an acclaimed horror writer and childhood friend of Marin’s mother. Alice offers her a nanny position at Lovelace House, the family’s coastal Maine estate.Our main character Marin is invited to live at Lovelace House by the owner, Alice Lovelace, who is a famous horror writer. Marin shows up without a penny to her name and tries to be nanny to the 2 Lovelace children - who of course play creepy pranks on her and are generally creepy ("creepy" is the word of the day for this review). She finds dead birds in her room and learns about creepy Lovelace traditions like how when you cut your hair, you keep it in the house forever. Marin is determined to understand what is actually happening at Lovelace House and get to the bottom of what everyone is hiding. The story unfolds and gets weirder (in a great way) as time goes on. I had a few guesses for what the reveal was going to be and none were right. I loved the whole plot for all its detailed descriptions and inter-relationships between the characters. Also, you might be thinking that there are not many twists, but I can assure you the second half is filled with them. What's more to adore? a secret fondness budding between two poles apart characters. In 'Under the Beetle’s Cellar', Mary Willis Walker gives us a kidnap story of rare intensity and mounting tension ... a superb suspense thriller”