Selected as a Best Book of the Month by Amazon.com, B&N Reads, iBooks, LibraryReads, and Paste Magazine
In this enthralling and atmospheric thriller, one young family’s dream of a better life is about to become a nightmare.
Ben and Caroline Tierney and their two young boys are hoping to start over. Ben has hit a dead end with his new novel, Caroline has lost her banking job, and eight-year-old Charlie is being bullied at his Manhattan school.
When Ben inherits land in the village of Swannhaven, in a remote corner of upstate New York, the Tierneys believe it’s just the break they need, and they leave behind all they know to restore a sprawling estate. But as Ben uncovers Swannhaven’s chilling secrets and Charlie ventures deeper into the surrounding forest, strange things begin to happen. The Tierneys realize that their new home isn’t the fresh start they needed . . . and that the village’s haunting saga is far from over.
House of Echoes is a novel that shows how sometimes the ties that bind us are the only things that can keep us whole.
Praise for House of Echoes
“Exquisite…a book that deserves to be savored.”
The Star-Ledger
“Debut author [Brendan] Duffy has delivered a fluid, suspenseful yet subtle thriller, with touches of humor, evocative writing and characters that are both familiar and uniquely fascinating. A wonderfully tense and heart-wrenching debut.”
Kirkus (starred review)
"Warning: Brendan Duffy's debut novel is not for scaredy-cats. If you live for heart-racing chills, this thriller — about a young family that packs up their life in Manhattan for a spot in upstate New York (that turns out to be haunted, of course) — is already calling out your name."
Refinery29
“HOUSE OF ECHOES is that rare debut that grabs the reader by the lapels with both hands and never lets go. It’s compelling, brooding, atmospheric, and propulsive—and it accomplishes something frightening and unique: a portrayal of the great outdoors as beautiful, amoral, and claustrophobic at the same time. The scenes of a family swirling down the drain in a circle of madness are unnerving. It will stay with you long after you read the last page and it may very well haunt your dreams.”
C.J. Box, author of Endangered
“HOUSE OF ECHOES is dark, emotionally affecting and truly creepy. Brendan Duffy dives straight into the ugly core of small-town America and doesn’t flinch a bit – a fantastic story and a great book.”
Kelly Braffet, author of Save Yourself
“Debut novelist Duffy expertly builds suspense, leaving readers eager to know what happens while simultaneously dreading the outcome. This creepy page-turner will appeal to fans of Stephen King and anyone who loves a good ghost story.”
—Library Journal
“Duffy’s debut is a riveting blend of horror and family drama. The remote location, creepy townspeople and the village’s savage history produce a harrowing tale that keeps readers quickly turning the pages. As this complex family struggles with mental illness and their child’s isolation, their redemption comes in the revelation that they can survive anything together.”
—RT Book Reviews (4 1/2 stars)
"Already drawing comparisons to Stephen King’s The Shining, Brendan Duffy’s debut novel offers chills without sacrificing character development. But be warned: you might want to leave the lights on for this one."
Paste
“Brendan Duffy’s fantastic debut novel is gloomy, small-town Gothic horror in the vein of “Twin Peaks,” Alan Wake and The Shining… Duffy knows that true horror has neither name nor face. Grounded by emotional realism and nuanced characters, HOUSE OF ECHOES is intense, addictive and genuinely creepy.”
BookPage
“[Brendan] Duffy walks a fine line between crime and horror, skillfully manipulating the threats of a punishing winter, creepy historic setting, and strange villagers. . . . This unsettling, atmospheric tale is right up the alley of those who enjoyed Jennifer McMahon’s Winter People; and the shared appeal with Stephen King’s The Shining is undeniable.”
Booklist (starred review)
“Shades of The Shining are spattered through Brendan Duffy’s novel…an enjoyable read.”
USA Today
“HOUSE OF ECHOES is one of those stories where you know something bad is going to happen, but you hope it won’t. It’s one you’ll remember long after reading the last page.”
New York Journal of Books
“HOUSE OF ECHOES is the captivating tale of a bruised family’s escape to their dream house in a bucolic small town, only to find themselves trapped by its dark legends. In this relentlessly chilling story, Brendan Duffy breathes new life into the gothic tradition. Uncanny and hypnotic, it will freeze your heart.”
Keith Donohue, author of The Boy Who Drew Monsters
“Brendan Duffy’s HOUSE OF ECHOES is one of those wonderful stories that comes along only once in a while, a beautifully nuanced and riveting family drama set within a terrifying landscape that has you turning pages long past bedtime. But keep the light burning and read to the end. That’s when you realize you’ve been in the hands of a very clever storyteller, and that what you thought you’d been reading was all along something else.”
Carla Buckley, author of The Deepest Secret