Title: There's Someone Inside Your House
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Genre: Young Adult | Romance | Horror
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: September 26, 2017
Format: e-Audiobook
Source: Publisher
One-by-one, the students of Osborne High are dying in a series of gruesome murders, each with increasing and grotesque flair. As the terror grows closer and the hunt intensifies for the killer, the dark secrets among them must finally be confronted.
International bestselling author Stephanie Perkins returns with a fresh take on the classic teen slasher story that’s fun, quick-witted, and completely impossible to put down (goodreads).
There's Someone Inside Your House reminded me of a fun slasher film.
Plot: When you see the words "Stephanie Perkins", you immediately think of fluffy romances, definitely not of murder and gore. Well, Stephanie Perkins doesn't stop surprising! There's Someone Inside Your House did not feel like it was written by the same author, which surprised me in a good way. This was basically Scream but in book form; the killer even preferred to slash his/her victims. I thought the murders were creative and had a lot of fun with the book, but it did feel as though the romance was crammed in just to bring that Stephanie Perkins flavor.
Characters: There's Someone Inside Your House had a fantastically diverse cast of characters. Makani, the main character, was half African American and half indigenous Hawaiian. She suffered from culture shock as she was uprooted from sunny Hawai'i to Nebraska, and she was the eternal "new kid" in small-town Osborne. I enjoyed Makani because she was sassy and wasn't afraid to take life by the horns. Her friends, while supportive and authentic, weren't particularly memorable which I expected from a horror novel. While I mentioned that the romance seemed out of place, I thought that Makani's relationship with Ollie was sweet and I respected how sex-positive this book was.
Worldbuilding: Nebraska is one of those states that blurred into the others for me, and I enjoyed Makani's outsider perspective. It was easy to see Nebraska through Makani's eyes, and even though Nebraska has been a conservative state throughout history, I was happy to see that Perkins' characters were very inclusive and diverse. And like a true slasher, there is even a corn maze scene in There's Someone Inside Your House.
Narrator Performance: I was unsure of Bahni Turpin as a narrator, but I ended up loving her performance. She made each character distinct and she excelled in making Makani's black grandmother come to life. I highly recommend the audiobook if you have the option!
Short N Sweet: There's Someone Inside Your House is perfect for this Halloween season, be sure to lock all of your doors before diving in!
Labels: 4 stars, book review, dutton books for young readers, review, stephanie perkins, there's someone inside your house
