‘Our House’ is the latest book by Louise Candlish.
On a bright January morning in the London suburbs, a family moves into the house they’ve just bought in Trinity Avenue. Nothing strange about that. Except it is your house. And you didn’t sell it.
I was curious about ‘Our House’. When I received a copy, there was quite a bit of hype on social media about Louise Candlish’s latest book and as I was a huge fan of her previous novel called ‘The Swimming Pool’, I was eager to dive into this book and see for myself.
The story is written as a dual narrative, written from the perspective of husband and wife Bram and Fiona and begins just at the point that Fiona discovers strangers moving into her house and telling her that they bought it. Confused as to what is going on, she tries to get in touch with Bram but he seems to have disappeared off the grid.
The story then flows in a past and present, with the circumstances leading up to the events and the aftermath leading to the couple’s separation.
What is particularly clever about the story, is the way the couple tell their sides of the story. Fiona’s is delivered through a podcast called ‘The Victim’ which is created in a similar style to the hit podcast ‘Serial’. Listeners are able to hear her side, conveying her emotions and disbelief to the public and they are able to engage with her through social media. Whilst, Bram’s is done in a more traditional method, written as diary entries, as he writes of his guilt and remorse at his actions.
When I initially began the book, I did find it a bit slow to start but the as story progressed and the drama unfolded, I found it hard to put down. The characters were fascinating and their background stories added a thrilling twist to the story. Fiona is quite a hard woman, after being repeatedly let down by Bram, she decides to call it a day on their marriage but wants it to be as amicable as possible for the sake of their two boys.
Bram is a complex man who’s life has been riddled with problems since his childhood. After being caught in an accident, his life suddenly changes for the worst and he fears that everything that he held dear, will be snatched away. As much as he tries to put his life in order, he is faced with drama and problems along the way. He tries desperately to be the perfect father and I found myself regularly sympathising with the poor man throughout the book.
A thrilling tale riddled with deception and drama, ‘Our House’ is a scarily realistic story that will send shivers through you. Unsettling from the start, the story is cunningly written and filled with double crossing and twists, that will have you checking your locks once more before bed.
You can pre-order Our House from Amazon and will be available to buy from good bookshops from 5th April 2018.
I’m delighted to see that Louise Candlish has revealed her new book for 2019 called ‘Those People’.
With being based in Northern Ireland, I sometimes miss out on book events, so when the lovely Sara Jade Virture from Books and the City invited me to their Spring Bloggers event, I literally jumped on a plane.
