The House of Ashes

By: Stuart Neville

Narrated by: Caroline Lennon

Outside a Northern-Irish village stands a farmhouse with a grim history of violence half a century ago. Now its new tenant, a young woman trapped in a troubled marriage, must confront that legacy in this haunting new stand-alone from Stuart Neville, king of Belfast noir.

Sara Keane's husband, Damien, has uprooted them from England and moved them to his native Northern Ireland for a "fresh start" in the wake of her nervous breakdown. But three sleepless nights into their new life, Sara understands it's not an entirely fresh start after all: Damien's new boss is his ex-con father, whose contracting business is run with violence and tinged by paramilitary association. Sara, who knows no one in Northern Ireland, is jobless, carless, friendless - all but a prisoner in her own house.

And then there's the house itself: When a blood-soaked old woman beats on the door, insisting the house is hers before being bundled back to her care facility, Sara begins to understand the house has a terrible history her husband and his father never intended for her to discover.

©2021 Stuart Neville (P)2021 Recorded Books

Grabbed you from the beginning

Lots of twists and turns. Keeps you wanting more. Such great characters and you feel like you are right there with them. Great story sad, scary, exciting and full of history

Great storytelling. Great actors.

I like the plots and the twist I liked how the two stories melted together.. satisfying ending

Took my breath away

Only Stuart Neville could write a ghost story this savage, heartbreaking and beautiful. I’m not usually a fan of the genre, but in this case the supernatural elements are secondary to the character development and the full tale of sorrow and redemption. Caroline Lennon gives a brilliant performance. Unforgettable.

Now I want everything Stuart Neville!

Nothing I disliked. Such a treat to find a truly gifted author these days. I want to listen to more now to see if he’s a cookie cutter” or not. Ashes, however, was superb. Not for you if you are looking for infused political woke commentary ( which seems to be so prevalent) or a particularly happy story.

Deep

Spoiler alert: I am going to give this story a happy ending in my head.
And trigger warning: there is spousal abuse and beyond.
This is the first Stuart Neville novel I have read. I did like it, it’s harsh, but gave me an insight to a situation I have been Blessed to never have experienced and I understand the fear women feel more now. I look forward to reading more of his novels.
The reading of the novel was disjointed at first, but I came to realize the dramatic effect of “let that soak in” between sentences.

good story

im not sure about that ending. Definitely leaves something to be desired. Why would you end it that way?

Wow! Just wow!

I have absolutely loved every single one of Stuart Neville’s books, but this by far is his very best work yet.
Absolutely spellbinding, from beginning to end.
Caroline Lennon was the perfect narrator for this book as well. I wish I could give it 10 stars.

Tedious pseudo ghost story

On and on and on. Ghost story? Maybe. Maybe not. Wish I’d known beforehand. No current, just a lazy drift, the kind that doesn’t churn and depletes the water of oxygen.

Will remain with you

This story of hard, evil men is not new but told and narrated in a remarkable manner. I grew up in Northern / North of Ireland in the 60s and 70s and was totally absorbed in the story. Some not from the area won’t understand all the geographical and cultural references but those don’t diminish the story. It’s raw, tragic but with some rays of hope. I experienced similar emotions reading The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I’ve read all of Stuart Neville’s books - not for the faint hearted but this is one of his best.

Great book

I loved everything about this book. I loved the voices, the accent, and most of all the story. It was so interesting and sweet and I know it may sound weird, but honest. It was so well written. A very interesting story from beginning to end.