The Family Remains: the gripping Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller (The Family Upstairs, 2)

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How exciting to have a sequel to The Family Upstairs at last. Everyone that I know who has read it was left wanting more, and Lisa Jewell has delivered. The Family Remains will give readers closure on what happens next and lets us see how the survivors are coping. The book wasn't terrible until the last 25% or so. I was going to give it a generous three stars because I was caught up in the drama of it all, but then Lisa Jewell said HOLD MY BEER and this story nosedived into one-star territory at the speed of light. First things first, I did not read book #1. However, I did read a super long spoiler review of it to get a grasp on wassup because I was mad confused at first. My rating does not reflect the fact I didn't read #1... so pls refrain from the "YoU nEeD tO rEaD tHe FiRsT oNe" comments, respectfully. There are several POVs and many mysteries to resolve, including the detective trying to solve the case, Rachel; a recently married jewelry designer, Lucy Lamb; who fled London 30 years ago; and her creepy brother, Henry, who, to put it mildly, has some issues. I found the mystery behind the remains intriguing, but the storyline that interested me the most was that of Rachel and her husband, Michael. There are multiple sex scenes, some of them graphic. The theme at the heart of the stories is disturbing.

Furthermore, I would categorise Henry, Lucy, and Marco’s story as more family drama/secrets/tragedy, with Rachel’s being more domestic thriller, and a dash of police procedural thrown in. Do you agree with Justin that Henry is “Poor Henry” and that the Lamb children were “all victims. Whatever happened inside that house, none of them deserves to be punished for it” (340)? Cite examples as to why you do or do not believe Justin’s assessment. Q: We don’t hear from Libby as much in this novel as we did in THE FAMILY UPSTAIRS. Why did you decide to use her less in the narrative? With me so far? Honestly there was so much to remember from the first book. I highly recommend skim-reading it like I did, or at least have a copy handy to refer to if you get lost. POV’s alternated between Henry, Lucy, and Marco (and their search for Phin), DCI Samuel Owusu (investigating Birdie’s murder), and Rachel Gold (Michael Rimmer’s second wife). This is going to sound weird, but even though this was an engrossing read, with top-notch writing, I don’t think a sequel was really needed. Don’t get me wrong, it was great to re-visit these characters, I was emotionally invested, and I appreciated the closure regarding certain characters fates, but by the end of this book, I felt we were at the same place as the end of The Family Upstairs. Rachel’s story arc was my favourite, likely because she was a new character with a fresh take, but the hunt for Phin became rather tedious in the second half. Also, I really missed Libby’s POV, and thought she would’ve had more of an active role in the search for her father. I read The Family Upstairs more than three years ago, and unfortunately too much time has gone by. This is the reason why I don’t love reading series…I always forget the previous book by the time that the new one comes out. I did not have time to read the first book again before I got to the sequel, so please keep that in mind when reading my review.Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realize that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life—and into her home.

Once again, Lisa Jewell has written a clever and twisty tale of many characters. Multiple timelines and plots all work together to get a better understanding of what happened in the house in Chelsea and to these characters. DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Random House UK, Cornerstone, Century via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Ok I'm cutting myself off lmao. Anyways. I'm obviously an outlier (what's new) but really this book just fell a part in the last 25% and I couldn't in good conscience give it anything higher than a one.I absolutely loved The Family Upstairs, unfortunately this sequel didn’t have quite the same tension and atmosphere that I loved so much in the first book. The pacing felt slower, more of a police procedural than an edge of your seat thriller. It became a little repetitive after a while, I just wanted everything to hurry up. That being said, it was always going to be difficult to live up to the first book for me! Bonjour, good morning. This is Detective Avril Loubet from the Police Municipale in Nice. Is this Mrs. Rachel Rimmer?” Mrs. Rimmer. I am afraid I am calling you with some very distressing news. Please, tell me. Are you alone?”