Well, reading this book I didn't have too many high hopes considering that it's a novel adapted from the film. Surprisingly, it wasn't too bad. I was dying to see the movie with the wonderful Jennifer Lawrence, but I just couldn't without reading the book first. Elissa and her mother, Sarah, are looking for a fresh start. They think that their new home will be just what they need. The reason they got the house so cheap in the first place, was because of their neighbor's history. 4 years before they moved in, a brutal murder occurred at a house relatively close to them. A girl, Carrie Ann, had killed her mother and her father. Now in the present day, Carrie Ann's older brother, Ryan, lives alone in the home where his parents were killed. He's an outcast in their town, until he meets Elissa. She's one of the first residents to actually get to know him and find out he's not so bad. She disagrees with what everyone else thinks, including her mother, and begins to form a friendship with Ryan. But there is something happening within the walls of Ryan's empty house. He's hiding a secret. A secret that may end his and Elissa's friendship for good. The biggest fault with this book was it being in the third person point of view. I couldn't STAND that I couldn't really tap into Elissa and what she was thinking. If only it had been from her point of view, it would have easily been a 4 for me. I know there are some scenes that had to be shown that didn't include her, but I think they could have easily jumped to whoever was there's point of view. Apart from that, it was pretty interesting. It was so thrilling and suspenseful, I loved it. It seemed like the movie was playing in my head, I was even a bit spooked reading it! I haven't read too many suspense books, but if they're like this I'm down! Another downfall was the length. I don't know if I like big books, but the last two I've read felt rushed and too short! I just like emotions to be more panned out. I recommend this movie and book to anyone down for a suspenseful scary movie with a shocking twist! If you haven't seen it already, I think you really should. If you've already seen it though, I think you can pass on the book. It took until the end of the first chapter for me to feel like it wasn't just a boring repetition of the movie. The plot does say the same but there are some details and nice things I don't remember from the movie, because writing is always different from film. It would have been a lot more exciting if I hadn't known the story beforehand or if it was a little more different from the movie, but all things considered there was nothing wrong with it and it was a really fast read; I finished it in less than a day. This is an instance where I'd suggest reading the book before seeing the movie though.Oh and in this edition there's a two-sided fold-out poster, so that's fun.------Just realized the book was written based on the movie and not the other way around... Hopefully it will still be good but at least I got it 25% off. :/
What do You think about La Casa De Al Lado (2013)?
this was such a good book very suspenseful and has a very good plot twist
—graby95
I loved this book! But, it got really creepy at times...
—nehemiah
