5/5stars

this was a FANTASTIC way to kick off 2024

This book was so many things that begin with H - harrowing, haunting, heart wrenching, horrifying - and it did all of them SO WELL

This book is so many things - its a horror novel about parasitic, vampire-like creatures and a creepy, haunted apartment building, it's about grief and motherhood, its about grief and self and what its like to lose hold of your self physically and emotionally and mentally, its about rich vs poor and society, and its about probably a dozen other things I missed.

Truly this has such an amazing plot - a couple moves into an upscale, new york city apartment because they are picked in a lottery-esque system where lower class people can live there for subsidized rent. Once they move in, they notice strange things about the apartment and even stranger things happening to their new baby.

It has amazing, extremely REAL and RAW characters - a woman who has been paralyzed from childbirth and deals with hating herself and her own child, a man who is trying to do everything for his family at the cost of himself, and an unsettling cast of characters that they meet in this new apartment building

This had some of the creepiest scenes I've ever read that I don't think I'll ever be able to get out of my head - namely the stream of consciousness thoughts we get from Reid when he's on the roof with the other adults, everything to do with the Jacobs', everything with bugs/insects/spiders, and the entire final chapter.

This author has some serious talent - this should be made into a movie, for real, it would be INSANE. Considering how well this author was able to make it feel like a movie in my head, it would be amazing on an actual screen.

Absolutely loved this, but definitely can't recommend it for anyone with a faint heart or who gets scared/sick easily.

Meh.
I'm was a fan of this story. I'm not sure sure exactly why I didn't connect with it. Maybe it was the main characters, they were a bit obnoxious. I read a review that called Ana & Reid insufferable...that's a more accurate characterization.

"Nestlings" ist definitiv eines: Einzigartig.

Einzigartig gut geschrieben, einzigartig in seiner Auseinandersetzung mit Trauer, Mutterschaft, Wochenbett und Behinderung und einzigartig spannend.
Definitiv ein Horrorroman und somit auch nicht unbedingt für jeden geeignet, aber wer dieses Genre gerne liest, dem kann ich das Buch absolut empfehlen.

Slow paced, erschreckend, atmosphärisch und unerwartet emotional.
Klare Leseempfehlung!

"Know your home, he thought... and this time it felt like a warning."

Nat Cassidy does it again. I had high expectations for this novel after reading Mary and let me tell you: He delivered it.
Ana and Reid have been under extreme stress for almost a year. Ana is paralyzed after the birth of their first kid, Charlie. Reid has taken over the role of the caretaker and main provider for his family. It seems like everything is about to go their way when they win an apartment lottery and move to the famous Deptford building. They find themselves around beautiful architecture, facing a beautiful Central Park view and the promise of better things to come.
But the Deptford building has secrets of its own and that includes the luxurious residents. Moving is hard but Ana and Reid might find out that settling down is ten times harder when you're living in a place like this.

Let me just start by saying how much I loved Ana. She felt real in all her complexity and I found myself rooting for her the entire time. The way her resentment and love towards Charlie is written is quite honestly beautiful and so rich in feelings that I crave to see more of in horror media. She was a delight to read about and her relationship with Charlie was fascinating. Nat Cassidy does an amazing job at "showing, not telling", in a way it's like knowing his readers can interpret what actually goes on between the two of them without having to use exposition to exemplify it. I absolutely love that.
The relationship between Ana and Reid also felt real and I was moved by the way it developed throughout the novel. Again, you can see what's happening without the author pointing it out to your face. You can root for them or not, but it's hard not to get emotional by the way the so called tragedies in their lives have impacted them both as individuals and as a couple.
Also, I can assure you Charlie is a delight to read about.
I don't want to go into the horror territory in this review in fear of spoiling anything, but the horror is ever so present, as well as unique and, well, it works really well.

I'd recommend Nestlings even to those who are not familiar with the horror genre, I feel like this could be a great gateway to get to know it a bit. If you are in any way interested by this book, this is your sign to pick it up and give it a read, you won't regret it.

I liked the premise so I don’t want to give it 3 stars but I did get a little bit bored in the middle which is crazy considering this book is not very long. Reid really annoyed and irritated me and he was super dumb, careless, and annoying, at some points it made reading this unpleasant.

Edit: I originally gave this 3 stars, sat on it for a couple hours then upgraded to 4 stars. I think I just needed to think about it. This reminded me of American horror story’s double feature vampire half which I really liked and I feel like this book did not disappoint when it said “rosemary’s baby meets Salems lot” I haven’t read rosemary’s baby but have read Salems lot earlier this year and found myself making many comparisons.

This book made me say wtf so many times. There were new surprises around every corner, and I loved it. The ending got almost too whacky and I didn't enjoy it as much as the first 80% of the story (and it might also just be that cosmic horror is not my fave), but overall the writing was excellent and there were a lot of scenes that genuinely spooked me. I'll definitely be reading more of Nat Cassidy's work after this one!