The Houseshare by Carla Kovach
Genre: Psychological thriller, Suspense
Read: 15th August 2022
Published: 16th August 2022
★★★ 3.5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
Behind closed doors is a secret someone is willing to kill for.
I walk into the bright, open living room of my new apartment, and I know this is the fresh start I’ve been dreaming about. As I double lock my pretty red door each night, I feel like I can finally be happy. I can finally be safe.
But when I’m woken one night by the sound of my neighbours arguing through the wall. I swear I hear one of them saying my name. Why would they be talking about me?
Michaela and Kirsty seem so nice, always stopping to chat when we pass in the hallway, and inviting me round for a glass of wine after work.
I know I’m being paranoid, but then my favourite hair clip goes missing and I start to feel like someone’s watching me.
Nobody was meant to know where I am. And I was careful. I did everything right. But I can’t help but fear my past has caught up with me and this time, I might not escape…
If you love gripping psychological thrillers like Gone Girl and Mark Edwards’s Here to Stay, you’ll be blown away by The Houseshare. Addictive, tense and with an ending you won’t see coming, you’ll be up all night turning pages.
The Houseshare is a rework of To Let, which was previously published by the same author.
MY THOUGHTS:
A new beginning...a new nightmare...
After leaving her controlling and abusive boyfriend, Libby is ready for a fresh start by fleeing in the night and renting a flat in Canal House near the centre of Birmingham that her sister Olly has found for her. It is affordable and she can easily walk to work. She soon meets her landlord and neighbours who are all friendly and welcoming. Even her cat Einstein is happy with the move and the landlord has bought some furniture, given she has arrived with nothing, to which she adds her own personal touches to make it more like a home.
But she has barely settled when the threatening texts from her ex, Gary, begin to arrive in a flurry going from demanding and abusive to remorseful and pleading. Libby is well versed in the familiar cycle and has no intention of backing down or returning to him and as per her sister's advice, she deletes every text as they arrive. He tries calling but she ignores him. And then she starts to feel as if someone is watching her, especially when she sees shadows of movement in the backyard and hears strange noises coming from the downstairs flat. And then things begin to go missing while others appear out of nowhere. And where has Einstein gotten to? Then when she learns that the girl who lived in the flat before her suddenly disappeared, she starts wondering just how safe is her new home...her fresh start.
The story initially opens twenty years previous with the heartbreaking scenes of someone being bullied and my heart just went out to them. The scene took me back to my own school days and reminded me just why I hated those times that were supposed to be the best years of my life. Kids can be so cruel. But more to the point, the teachers knew what was happening and did nothing.
As the story unfolds, the mystery of the murder of a teenage girl is entwined with the strange goings on that Libby faces in her new home. She confides in her landlord as to what happened back in the place where she grew up and he shows a level of compassion that she never knew with Gary, and she soon finds herself attracted to Tim. Even her fellow tenants, Michaela and Kirsty tease her about it. But Libby isn't ready for another relationship and is adamant that Tim is just a friend.
But poor Libby can't seem to catch a break. If it's not Gary with his incessant hot-and-cold texts, it's a client from work who has become abusive when he misses out on a work placement, believing Libby to have held out on him. He vows to make her pay.
So who is it that's stalking her? Gary, who won't accept that their relationship is over? Or Trevor, who feels she has wronged him?
And then Libby receives news so devastating it shakes the very foundations of her world. And she wonders...is she even safe anymore?
I was suspicious of just about everyone and their motives however the villain was fairly easy to figure out as they all but had a neon sign announcing their involvement throughout. But that never interferes with my enjoyment of a good thriller. There are always other aspects that I consider and if it holds my attention, it's generally a winner. But if it's slow or veers off somewhere, then my attention has wandered with it.
THE HOUSESHARE is a fairly entertaining read that I did enjoy, though not as much as some of the author's other offerings. For those who are fans of the Gina Harte series, don't expect this to be anything like those because it is entirely different as are all her standalone thrillers. It has a more claustrophobic feel to it and is incredibly tense at times but I do feel it is lacking something. What that is, I'm not sure. All I know is that it didn't quite have the bite or intensity and I came away feeling there had been something missing. It was a bit a slow burn initially but it still held my interest and I was quite enjoying things...until the end. And the end came about 15% before the actual end of the book. That is to say, there was the reveal and then the whole ending became dragged out a bit too long I felt. And that bogged down the whole story I think, because until I arrived at that point, I was enjoying it immensely.
However...there is one factor that totally blindsided me just before the end...and for that I give an extra half star because I never saw it coming. But then that kind of dwindled away that it ended up losing its shock value.
THE HOUSESHARE is an intriguing psychological thriller and perfect for newbie fans but those who frequent this genre might find it a bit lacklustre. I didn't hate it and it is a good read but not a great one.
This title was previously published as "To Let".
I would like to thank #CarlaKovach, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheHouseshare in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
Since then she has written & produced several stage plays, has four self-published books, has acted in several independent films and is currently in the final stages of production of her feature horror film, Penny for the Guy.
She now writes full time as well as co-owning a film, photography & video production company located in the heart of Redditch town centre.
Social Media links:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads
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