What’s more terrifying than a child insisting there’s something in her closet? The moment you realize it’s real and that it’s no longer in the closet…
Incidents Around The House by Josh Malerman is a horror novel told entirely from the perspective of eight-year-old Bela, who is being haunted by “Other Mommy,” an entity who repeatedly asks, “Can I go inside your heart?”.
Let’s dive in!
My Thoughts on Incidents Around The House by Josh Malerman, narrated by Delanie Nicole Gill –
My gosh. This tale delivers some major emotional devastation in the quietest, most persistent way. The horror creeps in, building slow-burning dread as the tension inside the family mirrors the growing supernatural threat. What makes it so unique and unsettling is the child narration; experiencing everything through Bela’s innocent understanding makes each moment more heartbreaking. We see only what she sees, know only what she knows…
On audio, the story becomes even more powerful. The narrator’s childlike tone adds authenticity and vulnerability that make the emotional blows land even harder. Seriously, just go listen to a preview from Delanie Nicole Gill and tell me it’s not already unsettling with the tone she uses!
While listening, I couldn’t help but think that this entity was feeding on the emotional fractures within this poor family. As the tension between Bela’s parents grows, Other Mommy seemed to grow bolder, stronger, and even more insistent. This was such a great setup, as readers will quickly see that the family itself is carrying its own ghosts.
I will admit, I raged quite a bit while reading this, and there were so many moments when I wanted to scream at Bela’s parents. One of them is clearly already struggling, clearly tangled in their own tension and unresolved issues, and that emotional distance the stick into the mix makes everything worse. Because the story is filtered entirely through Bela’s perspective, we see how she desperately needs both of her parents to understand what she’s facing, but one is very dismissive. As the danger escalates, my heart just broke for her. Every step of the way, I felt worse and worse, watching her try to be brave in ways no child ever should have to be.
The horror feels especially cruel because it’s happening to a child. Bela’s innocence makes the threat even more unbearable. The bonds that are supposed to protect her (her parents, her home, the stability of family) begin to fray under pressure and as those bonds weaken, the sense of safety she relies on starts to crumble. Soon it’s not just about surviving a haunting, it’s about watching a child stand in the middle of a family that’s falling apart.
Ugh, clearly horror books around children are especially tough for me now… Tread lightly with this one if that’s a factor for you as well.
My Favorite Passages from Incidents Around The House –
I like the books in his office too. I like adult books. I can’t read all the words but I like looking at them anyway. Pages in any book are pretty, I think.
Dado said other people might help too. He used the word occultist. But he said it slowly like a word he didn’t know. I do that all the time. Dado, Mommy, and Grandma Ruth don’t know what to do. They always know what to do, but they don’t know now.
My Final Thoughts on Incidents Around The House –
Man oh man. Horror fans who like slow-burn horror, child narrators, and emotionally heavy stories, you’re going to love this. I highly recommend checking out a copy of this on audio, but the formatting of the physical book is so neat, too!
Thanks for reading!
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