Review by Booklist Review
The first collaboration between Cutter (The Troop, 2014; The Breach, 2021) and Sullivan (Waste, 2016; The Marigold, 2023) is just what horror fans will want it to be: dark, brutal, and deeply unsettling. Looking for a new start after being placed on leave from his job, Trent Saban moves with his wife and young son into a newly constructed house in an unfinished development community. When cracks begin to appear on the walls, Trent decides to repair them himself with the help of a YouTube channel called The Handyman Method. Suddenly, Trent is a do-it-yourselfer. He spends more and more time at Home Depot, and has a tool for every job. But his family begins to see that the YouTube channel and its subliminal messaging is changing him in other ways as well. This is a terrific horror novel, with a spellbinding story full of surprises and superb writing that is vivid, visceral, and, at times, darkly beautiful. The ending is gloriously, thrillingly shocking. For horror fans, it's a must-read.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Cutter (The Troop) and Sullivan (The Marigold) don't do anything fresh with the haunted house trope in this bog-standard horror story. Attorneys Trent and Rita Saban move with their young son, Milo, into the brand new Dunsany Estates, a development in the middle of nowhere, billed as a future community full of greenery and like-minded families. For now, though, they're the only ones. Despite the absence of any neighbors, and some physical problems with the house itself, the Sabans hope the move will provide a fresh start after a trauma: a coworker at Trent and Rita's firm "went postal," attacking the office with a hammer. Trent's heroism stopped the attack but left him physically scarred and placed on indefinite leave, at a significantly reduced salary, due to concerns about PTSD. At loose ends, Trent focuses his energy into working on the house, aided by DIY YouTube channel The Handyman Method. That quotidian endeavor turns dark as the house slowly reveals its creepy secrets, which threaten the Sabans' lives and sanity. Though a late plot twist livens things up a bit, there's little else to distinguish this in a crowded market. It's nothing special, but for readers looking for a ghost story, this will do in a pinch. Agent: Kirby Kim, Janklow & Nesbit Assoc. (Aug.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
Cutter (The Troop) and Sullivan (The Marigold) have come together to build a tale that's a brutal yet modern twist on the haunted-house story. Trent Saban is looking toward the future. He may be currently on sabbatical from his job, but Trent and his family are moving into a new home in a burgeoning housing development. A crack in the wall leads him to seek home-repair advice from the videos of Handyman Hank, but Hank's advice soon goes from how to fix cracks in the wall to how to discipline Trent's wife Rita and their son Milo. What began as Trent's efforts to make his house (and his life) perfect could lead to the collapse of his entire family. This supernatural tale of a fixer-upper that tears down a family follows Trent's slow and inexorable descent into the fetid depths of toxic masculinity, from his obsession with power tools and large pickup trucks to his fixation on young Milo's perceived manliness. VERDICT This story is full of moments, from the descriptive body horror to the cringeworthy acts committed by this seemingly normal family, that will burrow under readers' skin.--James Gardner
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