1979. A boy and his mother find their way to Slade House. They’re never seen again. 1988. A less-than-commendable police officer finds his way to Slade House. He’s never seen again. And again, in 1997. Every nine years, Slade House opens its doors to a specific guest. They are never seen again.

David Mitchell’s books are a bit of a hit-or-miss with me. I loved Cloud Atlas but had a hard time reading two of his other books yeaaaars ago. When I saw this very pretty edition in a second-hand shop, I decided to give him another go, and I happened to read the right one! Slade House is a slightly creepy story that feels like a haunted house novel at first but turns out to be something else. The narrative is very easy to follow, which wasn’t the case of the previous books by this author I read, and which is why I enjoyed this one. You are faced with a varied cast of characters, some of them you want to be safe, others you don’t care or even wish they could meet an early end, which makes things even more fun. It’s not necessarily a book that will stay with me, or that I will re-read, though. I really liked the vibes, but even though I’m a scaredy cat, I wish it had leaned into the creepy aspect, rather than explain things.

Rep: bi protagonist.