We Used To Live Here (2024) – Marcus Kliewer Book Review

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“When things felt right, it only meant there was so much more that could go wrong.”

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It feels like it’s been an absurdly long time since we last read a proper horror novel. Thankfully, we’re breaking our drought with one of the reads we’ve been most pumped to read ever since it came out back in June 2024: We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer. We didn’t read the short story when it first hit the /nosleep forum on Reddit, but the premise of a couple being increasingly terrorised by a family who claimed to have lived in their house before them promised to be deliciously claustrophobic and psychologically intense, both things we absolutely love lapping up. But, how did this viral bestselling horror hit (that’s already slated for a big Netflix adaptation) stack up against our admittedly lofty expectations? Join us at What We Reading for our We Used to Live Here book review as we put Marcus Kliewer’s creepy mystery under the spotlight! 

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Date Published: 2024

Author: Marcus Kliewer 

Genre: Horror, Thriller

Pages: 312

Goodreads Rating: 3.61/5

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We Used To Live Here Summary

As a young, queer couple who flip houses, Charlie and Eve can’t believe the killer deal they’ve just gotten on an old house in a picturesque neighbourhood. One day, there’s a knock on the door. A man stands there with his family, claiming to have lived there years before and asking if it would be okay if it would be alright if he showed his family around. People pleaser to a fault, Eve lets them in. 

As soon as the strangers enter their home, inexplicable things start happening, including the family’s youngest child going missing and a ghostly presence materialising in the basement. Even more weird, the family can’t seem to take the hint that their visit should be over. And when Charlie suddenly vanishes, Eve slowly loses her grip on reality. Something is terribly wrong with the house and with the visiting family – or is Eve just imagining things? 

What Worked

One of the biggest strengths of We Used to Live Here is its premise. The idea of a family showing up, claiming they once lived in your home, and then refusing to take the cue that they’re meant to leave creates an immediate sense of tension and claustrophobia. 

It’s the sort of situation you can easily imagine yourself in, which makes Eve and Charlie’s predicament unnervingly believable. That relatability is what helps add to how gripping the story becomes.  

The novel is also incredibly effective in keeping you hooked. From early on, we found ourselves constantly on edge, eager to discover what was really going on. Each chapter builds on that sense of unease, and the pacing rarely ever lets up. 

We also really loved the inclusion of newspaper clippings, blog posts and interview excerpts. The Troop by Nick Cutter was the last book we read that did that, and they’re good fun. Rather than neatly explaining anything, they often raise even more questions, which only further the mystery. They’re a clever way of reinforcing that persistent “what is actually going on here?” feeling. 

These interspersed excerpts work well as a storytelling device overall. The chapters are already short and punchy, but these additions make the reading experience even more rewarding. They contribute to the sense that this is a book you want to keep flying through. 

Finally, on an admittedly sillier note, it’s good to have chapter headings in play here. It’s a lost art, but we appreciated it all the same. 

What Didn’t

One big limitation of We Used to Live Here is that its origins as a short story on Reddit’s /nosleep forum are sometimes painfully apparent. At points, the novel feels padded out, with certain ideas and sequences stretched further than they need to be. While many of these moments are written well enough and sometimes undeniably creepy, some ultimately feel like the result of expanding a short-form horror concept into a full-length novel. 

The book is also packed full of questions and very few answers. This works to an extent in maintaining an atmosphere of mystery and unease, but it’s likely going to infuriate some readers. There aren’t any clear explanations or satisfying resolutions to be found in We Used to Live Here, and numerous plot threads are introduced, just to be left hanging. 

More than once, we found ourselves wondering why certain elements were included at all, other than for a page count. 

This focus on atmosphere and mystery also comes at the expense of any real character development. Despite what our summary might suggest, Charlie barely features for most of the book. Eve, meanwhile, doesn’t undergo any meaningful growth. She doesn’t grapple with any significant internal conflicts, and often just feels like a passive observer, reacting timidly as events unfold around her. 

Finally, we struggled at times to visualise what was actually happening. In a story that revolves around shifting realities and a constantly morphing house, clarity is crucial. While some scenes are vividly rendered, others are so hard to picture, especially when the narrative becomes more fractured as the climax approaches. 

This occasionally left us feeling disoriented in a way that took away from the tension. 

Verdict

Despite its flaws, We Used to Live Here is a genuinely gripping and memorable horror mystery. Its central premise is strong enough to carry the story, and the sense of creeping unease is maintained really well throughout. Even when the narrative feels loose or overly ambiguous, the tension rarely ever evaporates, and we blitzed through the whole reading experience. 

While the lack of clear answers and limited character development might frustrate some readers, we genuinely found the process of reading We Used to Live Here more rewarding than disappointing. The book’s originality, atmosphere, and ability to create sustained suspense set it apart from most of the thrillers we’ve read here. Kliewer isn’t interested in nice and neat resolutions or familiar formulas, and that willingness to take risks lends the book much of its power. 

Overall, we like We Used to Live Here. It might not be perfectly polished, but it is an effective and unsettling read. It offers a fresh, eerie take on the “something is wrong with this house” trope, and delivers a reading experience that is far more distinctive and absorbing than most thrillers we’ve reviewed. 

For anyone who loves ambiguous, tension-driven horror, this is well worth picking up and giving a go. 

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Our Rating: 4/5

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