This is the story of Ted, who lives with his young daughter Lauren and his cat Olivia in an ordinary house at the end of an ordinary street. I can understand why so many readers are praising this book to the skies. Posted July 22, 2021 by Tammy in 5 stars, Reviews / 33 Comments, Ive gotta say Im SUPER intrigued by this book after reading your review. Ask yourself: if you, as a young woman all alone, were convinced that a specific man was responsible for the abduction and murder of your sibling, would you move into the house next door to him? Subtle hints are dropped to keep us trying to guess what Olivia knows but doesnt care enough to mention- a fun, unique aspect of Needless Street. Since finishing it, Ive thought about it every single day. Why I Read It: #Bookstagram made me do it. Death. A stolen child. Readalikes| Carolyn is a librarian and book addict with an MA in Creative Writing with aspirations to one day be a published author. Does listening to audiobooks count as reading? Priscilla Bettis recently posted3rd Quarter 2021 Writing Goals, This is one book you DONT want to spoil, it was so unique:-). Like I could handle the Ted/Lauren/Olivia twist because they would conceivably be so fucked up they are actually be narrating as honestly as they are able. I love this cover! The Nerd Daily 2023. In the dark forest at the end of Needless Street, lies something buried. Why or why not? The final act theres a bait and switch that felt organic and not for shock value. All these things are true. Unfortunately I can't read Sundial because I've heard that the plot surrounds animal/dog abuse and I just can't even begin to go there. Wink the Astrokitty drawn by Matt Olson. Genres & Themes| When Olivia talks about how much she hates the creepy Russian nesting dolls that sit on the mantlepiece, its almost like a Symbolism Siren goes off. I honestly didnt even catch the plot point about the sister because I stopped paying attention during the final act. An Olivia is Teds cat. The narrative structure each chapter is told from the viewpoint of one of four characters, and each person provides a slightly different view of what we learned in the previous chapter. In what ways does it not impact them? Revenge. Plot Summary. Author Bio, First Published: Ted is a middle-aged, jobless man who lives by himself in the house he grew up in as a child. Well I found it difficult to read because ultimately its about child abuse and neglect, and I found that difficult to stomach. In the middle of this now, and Im enjoying myself! Experience is not what happens to you; it's what you do with what happens to you. Who killed Teds songbirds? document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. And its here that Ward just stops playing fair with her readers. --Sarah Pinborough, New York Times bestselling author of Behind Her Eyes The buzzis real. There were moments when I thought continuity mistakes had been made (I have a proof copy so it can happen) but trust me when I say that nothing in this book is a mistake. He has only his cat Olivia for company, and he And I am glad you had such a great time with it! Excerpt| In chapter 21, Kayla finds a letter that her father, Reed, wrote to Jackson, describing their new house as "haunted." Thanks Sarah! All the main characters, besides Dee, are his separate identities. Firstly, when I started reading The Last House on Needless Street, I expected a bone-chilling horror and prepared myself for some gore. And an ordinary house at the end of an ordinary street. hah. Here it does. Yeah, I thought it was awful, I guessed the big twist about 50 pages in. Dates read: January 27 February 2, 2022. A stolen child. Just $45 for 12 months or In a boarded-up house on a dead-end street at the edge of the wild Washington woods lives a family of three. A teenage girl who isnt allowed outside, not after last time. A man who drinks alone in front of his TV, trying to ignore the gaps in his memory. And a house cat who loves napping and reading the Bible. Lynn . Instead in many ways it perpetuated stereotypes of those with mental illnesses as untrustworthy, incapable of taking care of themselves or unable to contribute to society in meaningful ways. Hell close his eyes in one place and wake up in another. His only companion is a cat named Olivia, who has her own chapters in which she is the first-person viewpoint narrator, suggesting that Olivia is either a very special cat indeed or maybe not a cat at all. I couldnt agree more with everything you said above . Stephen KingCatriona Ward's The Last House on Needless Street is a shocking and immersive read perfect for fans of Gone Girl and The Haunting of Hill House.The new face of literary dark fiction. Sarah Pinborough, New York Times Ted is of course an unreliable narrator, as is the bible-reading Olivia, so its difficult to believe much of anything being described. Theyre all complex and driven by completely different pain and fears. The reveal at the end was sort of mind-blowing, and I loved the authors Afterword where she gives some background on how the story came to be. Faking evidence of a crime like that is a pretty dumb cheat for any mystery writer to pull. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. The other device the author uses is that she shows the same events from two different perspectives. Synopsis: A communitys past sins rise to the surface when two women, a generation apart, find themselves bound by tragedy and an unsolved, decades-old mystery. (LogOut/ It appears Dee had some responsibility for the death and disappearance of her sister and the subsequent destruction of her family. At the end of Needless Street is forest. They withhold information from the reader, from each other, and even from themselves, the mutability of memoryespecially in regard to traumabeing a key theme. Ted doesnt mind because the guy gives him free meds. They can all no doubt be traced back to the real-life mother of the notorious serial killer Ed Gein, a woman who created such a toxic hellhole of a home life that it would have been a miracle for her son not to have grown up to become the inspiration for Norman Bates and Leatherface. For example, Reverend Filburn and the Northern students did not initially welcome Ellie because she was from the South, and the people in Round Hill opposed the SCOPE program because "Yankee" outsiders were coming in to "tell us how we should be runnin' things," as Buddy says in chapter 6. He found her after her mother and siblings all passed away one stormy night. In the dark of the forest, among the white birch trees, something lies buried. It doesn't matter if you're into Stephen King, Octavia Butler, Jack Ketchum or Shirley Jackson, this is the place to share that love and discuss to your heart's content. An ordinary house on an ordinary street becomes a pit of unimaginable darkness in this truly nerve-shattering psychological thriller from the author of Little Eve. Is Brenda lonely in Round Hill despite being surrounded by the people she grew up with? Ted also has a daughter, a little girl named Lauren, who shows up at odd times for a visit before she has to go away. Are you starting to get the picture yet? But, its also not what you think when you start reading it, it turns into something totally unexpectedI dont want to give anything away! The silly level of reader manipulation in this moment was immediately topped 3-4 chapters later when it turns out the scarf Ted supposedly took from a victim was actually something she dropped and he tried in vain to return to her. haha sorry Im being so vague. Revenge. Frustrated with the lack of results from the police, she has zeroed in on Ted as the prime suspect. Broadly, the novel follows Ted, a man living alone in his mid-30s, his daughter Lauren, his lesbian Bible-reading cat Olivia and a woman named Dee who lost Secrets, shame, and adoption in the 1960sa poignant tale of a mother's enduring love. Gotta agree with all of this. When you tell someone about a book youre reading you dont Death. I loved this, it was so unusual and I couldnt put it down. How did you feel after you learned of Brenda and Miss Pat's involvement in Winston's death? Dees journey was surprisingly nightmarishwe learn she is afraid of snakes for exampleand I thought her character added a nice dimension to the story. Spam Free: Your email is never shared with anyone; opt out any time. It was a genuine surprise and just made me love this novel even more, even though I wanted more with the ending, still thought it was an excellent reading adventure. Am I getting too big picture here? I'm so glad to see another fan of The Last House on Needless Street, though! Revenge. The StoryGraph is an affiliate of the featured links. I wish I could wax lyrical about what twists I liked best and the clues I missed, but I have no intention of explaining the ending. Would you look for excuses to extend your solitary visit with this possible pervert child murderer in his own house by asking things like Can I use the bathroom? and Could I have a drink of water? Would you spy on his movements and follow him, all by yourself, when you see him walking into the forest at night with a shovel? And yet they are all lies. 100-Word (or Less) Synopsis: All is not what it seems on Needless Street. At this point, Ward asks us to believe a chain of events that are frankly incredible. Clearly this was not the case while it slowly dawned on me that the evil in this book is purely human. awesome review, Tammy. as they happened was a truly immersive experience. WebThe last book I can think of that I finished (that probably wasnt worth the effort of finishing) was The Last House on Needless Street. Murder. Ward initially worked as an actor based in New York. Im probably like you in that I would also start to think about how such things really do occur/are occurring in the world and that makes this type of book one Im far less likely to want to read. Ted knows he isnt well, and he sees a therapist he calls the bug man, but the guy is just a quack who only cares about the book he claims to be writing. I just finished this book the other day - so fun to see someone else has read it so recently too! Just the idea of the cat POV has me super curious!!! I was really disappointed in it. By day I'm a content, social media and PR specialist and in my spare time, I'm a book blogger. Synopsis An Indie Next Pick! Recently hes been dating and its not gone too well, so hes been extra stressed. Synopsis This is the story of a serial killer. This was my first book of the year but I sadly set it aside because I could tell my brain wasnt in the right mindset for it, but I am so glad you reviewed this book so well and I am excited to pick it up when the mood is right! ISBN13 9781788166188. Catriona Ward is no stranger to gothic fiction. I have been meaning to get this book for ages. Debjani Ghosh recently postedThe Invitation by Vi Keeland Review, Thanks Debjani, I hope you get the chance to read it, and Ill be curious to hear your thoughts:-), I loved this book and agree with your review. The Last House on Needless Street is an absolute tour de force of a novel. This is probably a story best suited in physical form so you can revisit sections as the mystery unfolds. WebSummary Excerpt Reading Guide Book Summary A community's past sins rise to the surface in New York Times bestselling author Diane Chamberlain's The Last House on the Street when two women, a generation apart, find themselves bound by tragedy and an unsolved, decades-old mystery. Thats where youre wrong. I know Im not alone in judging a book by its cover, and based on this one, I thought a haunted house and black cat guaranteed a supernatural, Halloween-ish read. It doesnt help that Ward has a tendency to be very ham-fisted with her symbolism. Narrated by Matthias Hofer. Honestly, I cant stop thinking about it since it forced me to reassess almost the whole book. Known to most as Little Girl with Popsicle, her sister Lulu disappeared and was never seen again. The cover definitely screams haunted house and supernatural happenings so Id have been shocked to find out it was about human evil too. Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes! Im glad you kept this spoiler-free. Expectation: A page-turning supernatural thriller. This is achieved not through making the language overly simplistic but by highlighting his naivete and inability to express himself or his understanding in a complex way, as youd expect an adult to be able to do, naming people by their physical characteristics, literal and figurative, or by associationsMan with Orange Juice Hair, Chihuahua Lady, Bug-Manfor example. You may think youve read this story before, but its not what you think. A Library Journal Editors' Pick! The story revolves around a handful of characters: Ted Bannerman is a single man who lives in a creepy, boarded up house on Needless Street. You'll have to update us on if Sundial is as good! Bestsellers rank 30,480. And, read at a superficial level, this novel brings us to the brink of despair and back to the promise of hope quite effectively. When hes at home, he enjoys watching monster truck shows, looking after Olivia, and he eagerly anticipates visits from Lauren (whom Olivia hates), even though she tends to misbehave very badly before she goes away. Ted also mentions that sometimes he goes away, and hes not sure what happens when he does. Lying narrators aside, the scarf nonsense alone would have soured me on Wards story. Recommended For: Fans of Paul Tremblays A Head Full of Ghosts or similar all-is-not-what-it-seems stories. Im usually unable to figure things out so perhaps Im also the perfect reader. Hes going to struggle massively to live up to what lies between these pages, but I cant wait to hear who they cast. And yet, it was unputdownable despite this dark subject matter, so although its not the spooky haunted house I was expecting for my Halloween reading, I was terrified all the same. Up to what lies between these pages, but its not what happens you. 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