I listened to this, whilst getting ready for work and walking the dog, and made myself late two days in a row! A fast paced story with various twists and surprises. Some of which I guessed and some I didn’t. Sometimes the endings to books in the genre can be disappointing. This, however, did not disappoint. I definitely recommend this book to readers of this genre. It’s my first book by the author and I’ll now be looking out for more. The narration was also very good. Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to listen to this audiobook.

Twenty years ago, teenager Joseph Flowers brutally murdered his family then drove to a friend's house to complete writing a computer game he was working on. The following morning, as he was fleeing, he crashed and has been in a vegetative state ever since. Celestine Flowers, 6 years old at the time of the murders, was the only survivor. Now living under an assumed name, Eve, she tries to live a quiet life, avoiding any connection with the murders at The Red House. When her grandmother asks her to visit, a series of events are set in motion which lead to devastating consequences and shocking revelations.

The Red House from Roz Watkins is an engrossing thriller with numerous plot twists. You certainly have to keep your wits about you in order to keep up with what is happening. The opening chapters quickly give the background to the brutal murders, setting the scene for the present.

We learn that Joseph was a bit of a loner who liked to write computer games. At the time of the murders, he had been working on his game, The Red House, and people believe that he had included a hidden level explaining why he had carried out the murders. I liked this plot point as it gave us an insight into Joseph's nature and also a reason for the murders to have a cult-like status.

Celestine/Eve is trying to live a quiet life and not draw attention to herself. She's changed her name, and at times resorts to changing her appearance, but every so often she's spotted, usually by people interested in finding the hidden level in the computer game. As a result of this, she is reluctant to trust people. There is an added complication in that she suffers from face blindness. Initially, I thought this was an unnecessary addition to the story-line, but it becomes pivotal to the plot on a number of occasions.

When Eve visits her grandmother it leads to the discovery that she has been caring for Joseph at home and she wants Eve to take over when she dies. It is this revelation that sets in motion a series of murders. Eve's grandmother has discovered that Joseph can communicate with his eyes and this leads to doubts about who actually committed the murders.

As we delved into the computer game and Eve tried to solve the mystery of what happened at The Red House, a range of different characters were introduced. Just like Eve, I didn't completely trust each character, wondering if they had an ulterior motive. As we approached the conclusion I did feel that the story-line became overly complicated, but the plot twists were impossible to guess and left me reeling at the end.

It’s a cleverly written, spooky thriller but just a little too slow paced that I found my attention drifting at times. Eve is a real quirky character that you can’t help but like and her outlook is eye opening. The switching of timelines was interesting an gave you an insight into other characters points of view which was good. The narration was engaging and really added to the listen and brought it to life. I did enjoy the storyline as it was something a little different but just felt it was to drawn out and could have come together a lot sooner then it did.

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK Audio for the opportunity to listen to #TheRedHouse

*Many thanks to Roz Watkins, HarperCollins UK Audio, and Netgalley for a free audiobook in exchange for my honest review.*
I had expected more .. A good idea, however, I the longer I listened to the book, the more far-fetched and implausible it seemed to me. Just as I began to accept some explanations, there was another twist and new information, which added to my confusion. I am afraid this book will not stay long with me.
The narrator did a grand job, but it was not enough for me.

I got easily hooked into this book I really enjoyed the setting and story was intriguing especially the face blindness aspect. The story is mostly told by Eve in the present time but there are some flashbacks that are told by Joseph and Andrew with the layers being quite emotional at points. The computer game thread to it tho wasn’t for me and didn’t seem feasible but that might just be me.
I did however love the final chapter and let out a gasp when the final twist was revealed I really had not expected it at all.
This was an audio listen for me and I thought the narrators were great and really brought the book alive.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Uk Audio for the chance to listen to this arc.

When I started this and it was revealed that our girl has face blindness I groaned and laughed. My brother insisted he had the same and then we took him to the eye doctors (finally) and he's actually just regular legally blind. So to me this is a big joke when it happens in novels. But as it turns out this actually fits the story perfectly, and yes it is a real thing and a disability, even if it is a joke to me thanks to my brother.
This was phenomenal. I was so worried about our coma guy and his sister. I was worried about the eels and the house. I loved it all.
I would absolutely recommend this. The narration was great too!

A good narrator makes all the difference and so it was the saving grace of this book for me. Yes it’s paced very fast but a lot of the plot ended up being too far fetched for my liking.
Worth a listen though as I’m sure lots of listeners will get more out of it than I did.

Wow what a book The Red house is written by Roz Watkins an author I haven't read before but I will definitely look out for again, She has wriiten a great book and with out giving anything away I have to state this book is full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing right to the last page. The characters are well written and I liked the fact the main character Eve has face blindness (something I suffer mildly from) which made the story more interesting as I have never come across this before in a novel.

I was lucky enough to listen to the audiobook which was narrated really well by Lauren Moakes & David Hartley whose pace and voices really enhanced the story.
.

This novel kept me guessing right to the end. I downloaded the audioARC from NetGalley and was instantly drawn in by the character of Eve, whose parents and younger brother were killed by her older brother, who has spent over a decade in a coma, cared for by their grandmother in the creepy and ill-fated Red House.

All Eve wants is to live an ordinary, anonymous life. She’s found a job in an independent bookshop, working for the kindly Marcus. Unfortunately, before the family tragedy, her brother had written a video game that remains popular, with gamers desperate to find the Easter Egg to the secret level in the game.

As if this weren’t challenging enough, Eve suffers from face blindness, a condition she keeps secret for fear of being predated upon after two boys at her school switched places with each other and she was almost raped. She has not even told the police, which is significant because when she was found in the Red House after the murders, she told them her brother, Joseph, was the killer.

We join the story just as she is starting to doubt whether or not her five-year-old self did see her brother or just someone who looked very like him. Meanwhile, her brother is starting to gain consciousness, and she discovers he can communicate by moving his eyes - the rest of his body being paralysed and vulnerable.

It’s a tense read, helped by the extreme likability of Eve’s character. We want to see her succeed and find some sort of resolution to her doubts about what happened. Part of the story is narrated by her brother, locked inside his unmoving body, unable to remember what happened and terrified in case he really is a killer.

It’s all extremely well-written with an amazing sense of pace. I found myself quite breathless in some parts, the tension was ratcheted so high, and then the next moment I would be laughing at one of Eve’s charmingly self-deprecating stories about her hapless confusion between people who expect her to recognise them.

The face blindness is no joke though, even though it does allow humour to shine through. It’s a key component of the crime and how the murderer got away with it, and by the end, even Eve isn’t laughing at her social awkwardness.

Highly recommended. One of my books of the year for 2023 (and we’re only in June).

🎧4.5⭐️

I had the audiobook read by Lauren Moakes and David Hartley who both do an excellent job with the voices, giving a great level of tension and atmosphere.

It’s a dual time frame story of the present and 20 years earlier where
Joseph is blamed for the death of his family, the only survivor being his 5yr old sister who has no memories of that night. He was involved in a car accident the night of the murders being left with locked in syndrome.

In the present his sister now known as Eve she is trying to investigate what happened believing the answers might be in a hidden level of a game that Joe was working on the night of the accident.

It really grabbed my interest straight away, and kept it well throughout. There’s so many twists and turns throughout, with bags of interest.

I felt for Eve who has been left with issues after losing her family to violence. She’s very likeable, I was rooting for her to uncover the truth.
Joe’s plight is heart wrenching, and well written.

There’s some elements at the end that stretch believability, so it’s lost some points for that, but great entertainment value so it didn’t suffer as much as it could have. Personally I think it could have ended sooner with less twists.

I loved this book, and recommend it, but you need to be able to go with the flow.

3.5 stars



There's a lot going on in this book, some of it good, some of feels a bit over the top.
A big cast of characters, and a super sleuth in Eve, even if she has waited 20 years to look into the murder of her family.
No matter which, I found the whole thing fast paced and entertaining.

I listened to the audio book, and the narrator did a great job.

It definitely made me want to read more by this author.

<i> Twenty years ago, Joseph Flowers murdered his parents and younger brother in cold blood, before spending the night at a friend’s house as if nothing had happened, then crashing his car into a tree. Since that night, Joseph has been in a coma, and the family farm has become known as the Red House. The place where the walls were covered in blood.

The only person to escape the massacre was Joseph’s five-year-old sister, Eve. Now living her life with a new identity, she finally feels like she’s put her horrific past behind her.

Eve was the only one to witness her family’s murder, and she has never known why Joseph snapped all those years ago – but when she is faced with the decision of keeping her unresponsive brother alive, or letting him die, it might be her last chance to find out.

As she pieces together what happened that night, she will have to question everything she understood to be true, including her brother’s guilt, the stories she’s been told about her parents, and her own innocence.

Because Eve may be a survivor, but she might also be a liar. </i>

Wow. Even the twists had twists in this story. I’m afraid to say anything more lest I give anything away. An entertaining and suspense- filled thriller to add to your summer reading list.

I received an ARC of the audiobook of The Red House - skillfully narrated by Lauren Moakes & David Hartley - from NetGalley and HarperCollins UK Audio in exchange for an honest review.