“From the New York Times bestselling author of Bird Box, Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman is a chilling, wholly unique tale of true horror about a family as haunted as their home.

To eight-year-old Bela, her family is her world. There’s Mommy, Daddy and Grandma Ruth. But there is also Other Mommy, a malevolent entity who asks her every day: ‘Can I go inside your heart?’

When horrifying incidents around the house signal that Other Mommy is growing tired of asking Bela the question over and over, Bela understands that unless she says yes, her family will soon pay.

Other Mommy is getting restless, stronger, bolder. Only the bonds of family can keep Bela safe, but other incidents show cracks in her parents’ marriage. The safety Bela relies on is about to unravel.

But Other Mommy needs an answer.”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman. Incidents around the House will be published by Pan Macmillan later this week (on Thursday 27th March 2025) and is available in paperback, audio and digital formats. I chose to read a free eARC of Incidents Around the House but that has in no way influenced my review.

I’ve read several of Josh Malerman‘s books over the years and I always, always enjoy his writing. He is definitely one of my go-to ‘must-read’ horror writers, without a doubt. And this latest book, Incidents Around the House, has been on my wish list since it was first published digitally last year. It made such a splash last year that it was one of the nominees for the Goodreads Readers’ Choice Awards (I’ve actually read several of the nominees and what a STRONG year for horror fiction 2024 was!). Here it is on my ‘Books I Hope Santa Brings’ Top Ten Tuesday post, just to prove my point 🤭. It’s safe say to say, I was very keen to read this book.

Bela is eight years old and lives with her Mommy and Daddo. There’s also Other Mommy, a malevolent being who lives in Bela’s wardrobe. Other Mommy started out as Bela’s friend but now Bela’s not so sure how she feels about Other Mommy. She’s started to get closer to Bela’s bed and she’s started talking. She doesn’t say much. But there’s one question she asks Bela over and over again. ‘Can I go inside your heart?’ Bela has managed to avoid answering the question up until this point. No one else knows about Other Mommy. It’s Bela’s secret. But Other Mommy seems to be getting stronger. The love and protection of her family, the emotional security blanket Bela has always known is there is starting to fray. Cracks have appeared in her parent’s once solid marriage. Things are changing. And Other Mommy really needs an answer…

WTF have I just read?! Incidents Around the House is full of creeping, palpable unease, only heightened by its young, impressionable narrator in the form of Bela. The entire story is told from Bela’s point of view which is a very brave direction to take for any author. Everything the reader sees is through Bela’s eyes and oh my gosh, you can’t help but feel for the character. Because she’s so young and because she isn’t aware that a monster in the closet is NOT a normal thing, she doesn’t react the way an adult would. She just seems to accept that this creature, this terrifying apparition (and I’ve read the descriptions of Other Mommy, terrifying is actually an understatement!) is now living in her bedroom cupboard. She doesn’t seem at all alarmed or panicked that Other Mommy wants to possess her, most probably because she doesn’t understand what that means. That naivety in itself is scary. Her parents slowly (OMG hurry the f*** up and realise what is happening to your daughter!!) begin to see and smell things that don’t make sense. But Other Mommy has powers beyond those of a normal ghost and this haunted house is heading out on the road!

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. Incidents Around the House is a unique story told in a fascinating way. The adult characters are difficult to like. Bela’s parents aren’t going to win any awards for parenting BUT the relationship Bela has with her Daddo was something quite special. Her mother, meh! What a cow. The actual story is presented in a different way. Not only is it single POV of a child but the formatting of the text is unusual. My advice, have a quick look at the ‘read a sample’ option which is available on a certain book retail site or pick up a physical copy. Personally, I’m still not sure how I feel about how the story was presented to the reader. So much so, that I would LOVE to listen to this book on audio. From what I’ve heard, it’s a pretty intense, haunting experience! All in all, I enjoyed Incidents Around the House and would read another book by this author in a heartbeat (which is great news as I have several of his earlier books on the TBR still!). A creeping, multi-faceted, hypnotic read. Intriguing, heart-breaking and with a building sense of unease. Recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Incidents Around the House. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman was published in the UK by Pan Macmillan on 27th March 2025 and is available in hardcover, paperback, audio and digital formats (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop | damppebbles amazon.co.uk shop | damppebbles amazon.com shop |

Josh Malerman is a New York Times best selling author and one of two singer/songwriters for the rock band The High Strung, whose song “The Luck You Got” can be heard as the theme song to the Showtime show “Shameless”. His book Bird Box was made into a Netflix film of the same name, starring Sandra Bullock and John Malkovich. He has been nominated for 10 Bram Stoker Awards and has written 40 books, many of those (14) prior to the publication of Bird Box, his debut. Incidents Around the House is his 13th published book. He lives in Michigan with his fiancee, the artist/musician Allison Laakko and their many brilliant pets.