This is the story of a murderer. A stolen child. Revenge. This is the story of Ted, who lives with his daughter Lauren and his cat Olivia in an ordinary house at the end of an ordinary street.
All these things are true. And yet some of them are lies.
You think you know what’s inside the last house on Needless Street. You think you’ve read this story before. But you’re wrong.
In the dark forest, at the end of Needless Street, something lies buried. But it’s not what you think…
I knew, as soon as I caught sight of The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward over on Twitter, that this would absolutely be my kind of book. Dark, mysterious, and with an air of something dangerous lurking just beneath the surface, I couldn’t wait to read it and discover what twisted secrets would be revealed. The title instantly enticed me into wanting to find out more about the house on Needless Street. I wanted to know what was so important about it and why it was the sole focus of the title. Not only that, but the cover of this book had my mind alive with all manner of ideas. Death? Lies? Deceit? Secrets? I just couldn’t wait to find out what waited for me between the pages.
In The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward, readers are introduced to Ted. Wrapped up between the walls of the last house on Needless Street, Ted lives a very private, very restricted life, alongside his daughter Lauren, and his cat, Olivia. It isn’t long before readers begin to realise that Ted’s life is far from normal, much like Ted himself. Chapter by chapter, reality becomes murkier, and more suggestive, and I found myself trying my hardest to correctly place my thoughts and feelings about the circumstances revealed to me. The truth remains ghost-like throughout the telling of this story, so much so I could never be quite sure of what I was reading. Was I right in my anger? Was the fear necessary? Was I correct in feeling as though I’d avoid Ted at all costs if I were to come across him in real life? This questioning of myself was something that remained with me right the way through to the end of the novel, and it was such an exhilarating experience.
Ward creates an almighty overwhelming sense of place in this novel. The Last House on Needless Street, where the majority of this story takes place, was dingy, dirty and overgrown. It felt claustrophobic almost, like simply being there would cause a person to panic and freak out. It couldn’t have been more of a fitting house for Ted, Lauren and Olivia to inhabit. I loved how unsettled I felt while here, how nervous I was of my surroundings, and of Ted himself. There was just something unreadable about his character, and as the plot wore on, I realised that there was a reason for this, because there was so much more to him than I originally anticipated. As Ward provided more of Ted’s childhood, I began to realise that his upbringing hadn’t been normal either, and it quickly became clear that his world had been dark since before he could remember.
When Catriona introduced Dora to the plot, my excitement was almost too much to contain, because this is where the novel really picked up its pace for me. As realisation dawned, and I came to understand what connected Ted and Dora, I genuinely couldn’t wait for the moment when these two characters would cross paths. I became entirely invested in what became a mission for Dora, and as I swept back and forth between the ever-changing narratives, I knew I’d hurtle towards the last pages barely pausing for breath because I couldn’t wait to see how it would end. Throughout this chilling, twisted tale, there were numerous moments where I thought I knew what I was witnessing in Ted’s world, and again and again I was proved differently. It was thrilling, to forever think I had a handle on the plot, only to realise that I didn’t.
There were so many different aspects to this novel, so many different themes that laced the pages which made it interesting and juicy. There were secrets around every corner, and moments of pure confusion swiftly followed by stark realisation. I loved the uncertainty that I drowned in throughout, the ‘never quite knowing’ that heightened my interest even more.
Ward writes an assured, bold and complex novel in The Last House on Needless Street, one which tricks the reader time and time again. It takes skill to be able to play with the readers mind in such a powerful, all-consuming way, and I thoroughly enjoyed being victim to the authors’ dark creativity. Not only was this chilling and frightful, but there were moments of grief and sadness that echoed throughout the pages too, which left their mark. This was a fascinating novel, and has left me excited for more from Catriona Ward.
CATRIONA WARD was born in Washington, DC and grew up in the United States, Kenya, Madagascar, Yemen, and Morocco. She read English at St Edmund Hall, Oxford and is a graduate of the Creative Writing MA at the University of East Anglia. Her next gothic thriller, The Last House on Needless Street, will be published March 2021 by Viper (Serpents Tail).
Ward’s second novel, Little Eve (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2018) won the 2019 Shirley Jackson Award and the August Derleth Prize for Best Horror Novel at the 2019 British Fantasy Awards, making her the only woman to have won the prize twice, and was a Guardian best book of 2018. Her debut Rawblood (W&N, 2015) won Best Horror Novel at the 2016 British Fantasy Awards, was shortlisted for the Author’s Club Best First Novel Award and a WHSmith Fresh Talent title. Her short stories have appeared in numerous anthologies. She lives in London and Devon.
You can purchase your copy of The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward here.
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