I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey Published by Tor Books on July 19 2022
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 352
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Gailey’s latest is delightfully unsettling, with unexpected twists, dangerous characters and ominous secrets.
“The outside of Vera was shaped like the inside of this house. This was the house her father had built with his two strong hands. This was the goldfish tank where she’d grown to the size she would always be, even after her mother gave her away to the world.”
Just Like Home was much much weirder than I expected, but I’ve come to realize that Sarah Gailey’s books cannot be easily shoehorned into tidy genre boxes. This is a ghost story, a domestic thriller, a murder mystery, a coming of age story and a twisty psychological horror story all rolled into one. I spent most of the book trying to figure out WTF was going on, and when the answers were finally revealed, they were not at all what I was expecting. The characters are problematic and do upsetting things, and to be honest I didn’t really like any of them. But the story worked its way under my skin, and Gailey’s moody and oppressive setting was creepy and unsettling in all the best ways.
I’m going to keep this as spoiler free as possible (which isn’t easy to do!). Vera hasn’t been back to Crowder House in twelve years, but her mother Daphne is dying, and so she reluctantly agrees to come home and settle her mother’s affairs and prepare the family home for sale. But when she steps foot in the front door, Vera is assaulted by memories from the past. Vera’s mother is camped out in the dining room, subsisting on nothing but lemonade. An avant-garde artist named James Duvall lives in the backyard shed, paying Daphne for the chance to “absorb the essence of the house” to use in his work. And back in her childhood bedroom, Vera is having disturbing nightmares, and something seems to be in the room with her, stealing the covers off her bed at night and even moving the bed.
As Vera makes her way through the house, packing up her parents’ belongings, she comes across odd things from the past that remind her of the year when she was thirteen and the terrible events that sent her father to prison. As the days pass and Daphne continues to cling to life, Vera begins to wonder: is the house trying to get her to leave? Or does it want her to stay forever?
Sarah Gailey does a great job of keeping the reader on edge for the entire book, and this is one of the book’s best elements, the sense that things just aren’t quite right inside Crowder House. Gailey’s descriptions of the house suggest something alive, something that “groans” and “breathes.” Vera discovers strange gouges in the walls that look almost like wounds. Throughout the story she finds smudges of a grease-like substance on her skin, smudges that seem to appear out of nowhere. At night in her childhood room, she hears noises coming from under her bed, but when she looks, there’s nothing there.
Looming over Vera’s return to Crowder House are mysteries from her past. Gailey reveals those mysteries in bits and pieces, the truth dangling just out of reach until the reader is ready to snap. Why are all the surfaces in the house covered with plexiglass? Why did Daphne invite James Duvall to stay in the shed? What happened to Vera’s childhood best friend Brandon? And of course, what did Francis Crowder do and what was Vera’s part in it? We learn that a man named Hammett Duvall (James’ father) became famous after writing a true crime exposé about the horrible events that happened at Crowder House, but we aren’t told exactly what those events are until well into the story. Something bad went down in the basement—and as a child, Vera was forbidden to go down there—but Gailey lets their readers’ imaginations run wild before finally dropping a few shocking revelations. One of my favorite parts of the story involves, of all things, a peephole. And that’s all you’re getting from me! You’ll have to read the book to find out more.
The story is told in alternating timelines—the present, as Vera reacquaints herself with Crowder House, and the past, starting when Vera is eleven and the events leading up to her father’s arrest. I loved this format, which gives us a glimpse into Vera’s mindset and her relationship with her parents. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Francis was a loving and nurturing father, and that Vera adored him. We get to see slice-of-life moments between the two, like the day that Francis taught Vera how to fish, and I loved that these scenes didn’t fit my assumptions about the kind of man Francis should have been.
A few things didn’t work for me, though. I didn’t really like the whole James Duvall storyline, for some reason. By the end of the book I finally understood why the author included him, but up to that point I was completely confused by his presence. He was a creepy and predatory, and I hated that Vera felt attracted to him. Also, the ending caught me off guard, and I honestly cannot decide whether I liked it or not. Gailey introduces a supernatural element that didn’t quite fit the rest of the story, and it was weird. Still, there is a lot to love about Just Like Home, especially if you’re the type of reader who doesn’t need the author to hand feed you the answers. Horror lovers who aren’t afraid to try something different will find themselves right at home.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
What an intriguing review! This book sounds like something of a challenge, and I’m more than tempted to accepts: Gailey is one of the authors I want to read, so this would certainly be a head-on plunge into her narrative 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
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Definitely start with The Echo Wife! It’s sooo good.
It appears you and I felt largely the same about this book. I found it disturbing, at least once I’d gotten far enough in, and yet I couldn’t stop reading. It was so very different from The Echo Wife. I loved the slow reveals, that building of unease, and the alternate timelines. I thought the timelines were a great way to slowly reveal things and to get us curious about what was soon to come in the present. And like you, I’m still not at all sure how I feel about the ending. It certainly didn’t ruin the book, but it was quite a surprise and a bit off, though in some strange way it now almost seems to fit when I look back on it.
It was very different from The Echo Wife! And that’s how I felt about the end, it felt “off” and didn’t quite mesh for me.
Not my jam of horror, but I can think of at least one friend who would probably love this one. Great job with avoiding spoilers!
It’s hard, sometimes I give things away in reviews but I sincerely don’t mean to:-/
Wonderful review, and I agree about James Duvall’s role in the book. I could have done without him, and fel t the book would have been just as creepy without the supernatural element — although that was really good too in its own twisted way. I revealed more about Francis in my review, but that’s because the synopsis (Goodreads, the book jacket, etc) gives it away right up front. I sort of wish I hadn’t know as much when I started the book. I agree about the peephole!! And how powerful it was to see what a loving father Francis was. So disturbing!
I guess I didn’t read the synopsis before I started, lol. And yes, Francis was not at all what I expected!
I like the sound of this. Even the parts that didn’t work for you, Tammy, sound intriguing to me. (But I like weird stuff, so…) Great review!
Thanks Priscilla!
Great review, Tammy! I love that this book is a bunch of different genres rolled into one. And you know I love alternating timelines so this sounds like a winner to me!
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Thanks Stephanie! Yes, I love alternate timelines so much, and the author does a great job with this one.
Isn’t James Duvall an actor? I am so confused bwhaha. But anyway, I think I will have to try this one! I read an article by the author about how they aren’t even sure how to write likable characters anymore heh. I think the supernatural bit would be rough for me too- I kind of hate when books go there and it doesn’t make sense. But, I am always up for weird and twisted, and this sounds like I need it in my life! Great review!
Ha ha yes he is! And the supernatural element wasn’t completely out of left field, but it was super weird, maybe weirder than I’m comfortable with.
I can see how some of the things that didn’t work for you might also bother me, but I’m still really curious about this one! Sounds very weird, but I tend to like weird (when it’s done well!), so we’ll see I guess, haha.
Me too, weird can go both ways for me but this one worked:-)
You did a great job on this review. Thank you for keeping it spoiler free!
Thanks Lydia! It was tough.
There’s something so weird and intriguing about this one and it just feels like the whole story is an experience in itself, something you just can’t predict in any way possible. Great review, Tammy! 🙂
Thanks Lashaan! It was a surprise from start to finish:-)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this book. I’ve been so curious about it. I do worry about those elements that didn’t work too well for you, but I will probably still read it at some point. Although maybe I should go back and read The Echo Wife instead since that one is still sitting on my TBR.
The Echo Wife is my favorite book of theirs so far, I would read that first:-)
You’ve intrigued me with the extra weird supernatural element. I loved The Echo Wife and this one sounds extremely different from that one. Loved reading your thoughts, Tammy.
It’s so different! I like The Echo Wife more, but this is definitely worth reading:-)
Another author that breaks the mould. I love the sound of this one and will be wary for the things you mentioned that didn’t quite work.
Lynn 😀
Hmm, loved the cover of this one, but from your review it might not be one I’ll end up reading. Great review though!
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