Book Review: The House at the End of Lacelean Street by Catherine McCarthy

“When the lesson has been learned, you may wipe the slate clean.”

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At midnight in the midst of a rainstorm, Claudia Dance climbs aboard a yellow bus bound for a mysterious destination. She has only herself — no luggage, bag, coat, memories, or understanding of the reasons behind the trip she’s undertaking. Two strangers soon join her, and the trio ends up at the house at the end of Lacelean Street, a strange and enigmatic red-brick Victorian with the power to grant salvation. This is anything but a normal home, and all three will find their sanity tested and limits pushed to the brink. Will they be able to endure the difficult journey, as well as what they discover about themselves?

The House at the End of Lacelean Street is a unique and captivating blend of folk, cosmic, and psychological horror underpinned by delicious mysteries, dark histories, and otherworldly terrors. The characters are wonderfully flawed, relatable, and oh-so-human, undergoing fantastic arcs that take them from seeming blank slates to compelling, fully fleshed individuals. Right from the beginning, the enigma of what’s happening and why is masterfully dangled, flawlessly constructed, and gradually unveiled, producing a riveting plotline where first impressions mean nothing, and truth and backstory mean everything.

The house itself is a fascinating character: an eerie, gated, castle-esque structure adorned with a tall turret, high ceilings, checkered floors, elaborate moldings, fancy furniture, and occasional oddities — one that generously provides while enforcing strict habitation rules and guidelines. The writing is beautiful and atmospheric, seamlessly melding gorgeous prose, sumptuous Gothic elements, and ethereal scenes with visceral horror and macabre events. It’s a devastating but hopeful and meaningful story of cruelty and suffering, safety and solace, redemption and deliverance, failure and forgiveness, regret and acceptance, fear and confrontation, instinct and survival, hopes and dreams, and pasts and futures — a page-turning and distinctive fusion equal parts gruesome and magical, brutal and comforting that truly tears at the reader’s heartstrings.

Thank you to Catherine McCarthy for sharing an ARC of this incredible novella, which is scheduled for release on April 16th via Dark Matter INK. It’s a harrowing, powerful, and haunting read that will linger in readers’ minds long after the final page.

❤Amanda