At the end of Needless Street, before you get to the forest, there is a house. The man who lives in that house is lonely. Sure, he has a cat, and his daughter comes to visit sometimes, but Ted wants to find that special someone. Then, a woman moves in next door. She’s looking for the person who kidnapped her little sister ten years earlier, right after all those boys went missing, just on the other side of this very forest. Oh, and there’s something buried out there.
That would be a pretty solid set-up for a tense and heart-stopping serial killer thriller, wouldn’t it? Look elsewhere for a cheap thrill, my friends.
The Last House on Needless Street is a difficult book to review because I have to step carefully in order to avoid spoilers. In fact, it’s probably best to go into this one knowing as little about the plot as you’ll allow yourself to know.
Here’s what I can tell you:
– I can only remember a few other books that so utterly devastated me the way this one did and yet, I think I’m going for an immediate re-read.
– Ward’s writing is tight. So tight and so deliberate that she’s telling you everything the whole time, but you just can’t see it. It feels like a magic trick.
– Take care for content, this book isn’t for everyone.
There is one aspect of this book that I find troublesome in a different way. Something that I’m not qualified to speak to really and again, spoiler city.
This book hurt but I love this book.
I hate Ted but I love Ted.
4/5 Matryoshka dolls
“I judge people two ways – on how they treat animals, and on what they like to eat. If their favorite food is some kind of salad, they are definitely a bad person. Anything with cheese, they are probably OK.”
She Reads At Midnight 
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