Lisa Jewell is an author of several other books, none of which I’ve read yet. She is from the UK, so her books are set there. I love anything British, so of course the setting of this book was wonderful. I wish she had given more word space to describing the city.
This is the first book I’ve come across, but I will likely look for her others and give them a shot. I admit I tend to judge a book by its cover, and this was a good one. I was attracted to the cover, and interested in the inside jacket synopsis. I love unique stories, and this book is like nothing I’ve read before.
Publisher: Atria Books 2019, subsidiary of Simon & Schuster, 2019
You can grab this book for less than $20 on Amazon. Get it here.
The Book
The Family Upstairs is written in 3 different points of view: Libby, a 25 year old kitchen saleswoman who has received a letter telling her she has inherited a huge mansion in Chelsea, London. The house has a weird history, which is given in bits and pieces through Henry, a young man who lived in the house 25 years before. Lucy, a single mom of 2, living in France, has received a mysterious text, “The baby is 25,” so is working her way toward London. How these 3 stories are related is at first slow and frustrating, but as the story progressed, I was drawn into all the characters and found that I couldn’t put the book down.
What I Loved
The mystery was built up enough from the beginning of the book. I love mysteries, and I love stories that I can’t figure out right away. When I find a story that is hard to solve early on, I find myself wanting to read more, because I love that illusion of no answers, and I love the fact that I can’t figure the mystery out right away.
What I Didn’t Love
I have a hard time with books in multiple Point of View. While I agree that it was necessary for this book, and I was able to get used to it, it was something I can’t say I truly enjoyed.
Recommendation
I did end up loving this book, and think most people should at least give it a chance. I have other books in my collection that I love more than this one, but I may even choose to re-read The Family Upstairs at some other point. I will likely even down some more of Lisa’s books to see how they are. All in all, I enjoyed this story in the end. I hope you do too!
Have you read this book? What did you think? Let me know in the comments!
While you’re here, please subscribe! You’ll get a weekly notification of new posts, and I never spam. Promise!
Until Next Time, Friends!
2 thoughts on “The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell [Book Review]”