The beauty of the snow, is that I have more time to chill out at home and read inside.
A big thank you to the author for sending me a copy in exchange for my honest review!
THE NOISE – Allison A. (Released October 31st, 2023)
I felt terrible after discovering her initial comment to me on my blog was hidden but I’m so relieved she was still happy to send me a copy for review.
Book Description:
Angela Blau has a degenerative bone disease, but she was never warned her mind could deteriorate as well. There’s no other explanation for the footsteps coming from the second floor—footsteps her husband, Jack, never hears. And then there are the ghosts who attack her at night, and the townspeople who dig through the dirt like rabid animals and peer through her windows.
Maybe the ghosts and the townspeople are in her head—it wouldn’t be the first time she’s let her mind wander—but the noise has to be real, and she’d go up there and prove it if the stairs weren’t so rotted that she’d fall right through, Jack says.
Things get worse when Arlo, a lonely old man who lives “somewhere down the street,” reveals a violent crime that occurred on the second floor. Against Jack’s warnings, Arlo indulges Angela’s growing obsession and pushes her to discover the true source of the noise, who exactly the townspeople are, and whether a traumatic incident that occurred four months ago, an incident Angela refuses to talk about, is to blame for all of it.
My Thoughts: 5/5 stars
You just know something creepy and scary is going to happen when a couple moves into a major fixer upper home – even more intensity and anxiety knowing that the wife has a disease that has her dealing with chronic pain that can cause her minds to play tricks on her. THE NOISE was a haunted house story that sneaks up on you while you’re reading. Reading the synopsis and description from the author, I thought it would be your standard spooky house story, oh boy, I was very wrong. This one crept up on me and I couldn’t put it down – those 400 pages flew by.
We meet Angela, she has been diagnosed with a degenerative bone disease and is reliant on a cane to move around her new home. She and her husband, Jack, got a major fixer upper, but it was the right price so they decided it would be alright to do some renovations. After some time in the house, Angela hears a noise coming from the second floor. Jack insists that he can’t hear it, but she’s adamant that she can hear footsteps. That enough would make me lose my mind and not be able to sleep. I understand there’s an adjustment period when it comes to a new living space – learning the sounds and creaks – but footsteps aren’t a normal sound to hear.
Add in some nosy neighbors/townspeople and an elderly man, Arlo, that “lives down the street” continues to bombard them with random visits and unwelcome information. Not only are these intrusions stressful enough, but add on the stress of a new home in need of repair, her ever-present pain, and these incessant noises that won’t stop make for a paranoia filled ride. I love me a good psychological thriller with the paranormal elements, and I think the author did a great job keeping the ending hard to pin down. Not going to lie, at night I was almost positive I heard some new sounds coming from the house, and if that’s not an effective horror story, then I don’t know what is. Highly recommend!
Jessicamap Reviews 