Jason Rekulak

Hidden Pictures

Fresh out of rehab, Mallory Quinn takes a job in the affluent suburb of Spring Brook, New Jersey as a babysitter for Ted and Caroline Maxwell. She is to look after their five-year-old son, Teddy.

Mallory immediately loves this new job. She lives in the Maxwell’s pool house, goes out for nightly runs, and has the stability she craves. And she sincerely bonds with Teddy, a sweet, shy boy who is never without his sketchbook and pencil. His drawings are the usual fare: trees, rabbits, balloons. But one day, he draws something different: a man in a forest, dragging a woman’s lifeless body.

As the days pass, Teddy’s artwork becomes more and more sinister, and his stick figures steadily evolve into more detailed, complex, and lifelike sketches well beyond the ability of any five-year-old. Mallory begins to suspect these are glimpses of an unsolved murder from long ago, perhaps relayed by a supernatural force lingering in the forest behind the Maxwell’s house.

With help from a handsome landscaper and an eccentric neighbor, Mallory sets out to decipher the images and save Teddy—while coming to terms with a tragedy in her own past—before it’s too late.

Me prendeu muito e acabei rapidinho de tão curiosa que fiquei, algo que faço questão em livros desse gênero. No entanto, não sou a maior fã de fantasia/espirito quando o livro é sobre crime, gosto mais de investigação e fatos por si só. No final achei a conclusão muito preguiçosa, como se o autor só ligasse pra parte do fantasma mesmo ou quisesse acabar logo o livro. No geral me surpreendeu.

Larissa Campos

I was pretty underwhelmed, to be honest. The premise is solid: a recovering addict trying to rebuild her life lands a nanny job for a sweet, artistic kid who starts producing increasingly sinister drawings. There’s a haunting mystery, a beautiful house with secrets, and a child who might be channeling a long-buried truth through her crayon-scrawled sketches. 

At first, I was genuinely into it. The mystery had tension, the atmosphere was well-constructed, and I appreciated the way Mallory’s past struggles with addiction added depth to her as a narrator. I liked watching her rebuild her life while unraveling something deeply disturbing just beneath the surface of this seemingly perfect home. The early pacing was strong, and the unfolding clues kept me guessing.

But the further in I got, the more it started to lose me. The writing felt… juvenile. Not quite middle grade, but definitely not what I was expecting from a book pitched to adult readers. Dialogue between characters felt stilted and overly expository, like it was written to serve the plot rather than sounding like actual human conversation. And the big twist was framed so poorly it left me feeling both disappointed and confused. There was so much potential, but the twist didn’t feel earned, and its execution left a bad taste in my mouth.

The twist (spoilers from here on out): the child Mallory believes is named Teddy is actually Flora, a girl who was kidnapped years ago and raised under a false identity. Some readers have called this plotline transphobic, and I do understand why, but I personally didn’t read it that way. The gender identity element seemed more like a desperate attempt by the Maxwells to cover their tracks, rather than any kind of commentary on gender identity itself. They didn’t transition their child out of ideology, they did it out of fear and guilt. If they’d had any other way to bury the truth, I imagine they’d have taken it.

What did strike me as poorly handled was the language in the epilogue. There’s a line where Mallory reflects on Flora’s identity, saying something like “you were always a girl,” and it mimics language that can be hurtful and reductive in real-world conversations about trans identity. I think the intention was to affirm Flora’s truth and condemn the Maxwells’ control over her, but the phrasing didn’t sit well. It lacked the nuance and care that this kind of twist really demands. I don’t believe the book was trying to be transphobic, but I do think the way it was written opens the door for misinterpretation, and that’s a problem in and of itself.

And that’s sort of the core issue for me: I don’t believe the book is intentionally transphobic, but I do think it’s careless. It uses real-world identity struggles as part of its final twist, but doesn’t show much thoughtfulness in how those elements are handled. There’s no clear critique of the Maxwells’ actions, no real unpacking of what it means to strip a child of their identity, not because they were trans, but because they were a kidnapped girl forced into someone else’s life. That distinction matters, and I wish the book had drawn it more sharply.

There are things I liked. I appreciated the early suspense, and the book genuinely had moments where it worked as a horror-tinged mystery. But the resolution—the twist, the tone, the epilogue—left a sour taste. Not because I think the book is hateful, but because it plays fast and loose with themes that deserve more care. I can see how it could read as harmful to some readers. I also see how that may not have been the author’s intention at all.

Still, intention doesn’t always erase impact.

baku

I was pretty underwhelmed, to be honest. The premise is solid: a recovering addict trying to rebuild her life lands a nanny job for a sweet, artistic kid who starts producing increasingly sinister drawings. There’s a haunting mystery, a beautiful house with secrets, and a child who might be channeling a long-buried truth through her crayon-scrawled sketches. 

At first, I was genuinely into it. The mystery had tension, the atmosphere was well-constructed, and I appreciated the way Mallory’s past struggles with addiction added depth to her as a narrator. I liked watching her rebuild her life while unraveling something deeply disturbing just beneath the surface of this seemingly perfect home. The early pacing was strong, and the unfolding clues kept me guessing.

But the further in I got, the more it started to lose me. The writing felt… juvenile. Not quite middle grade, but definitely not what I was expecting from a book pitched to adult readers. Dialogue between characters felt stilted and overly expository, like it was written to serve the plot rather than sounding like actual human conversation. And the big twist was framed so poorly it left me feeling both disappointed and confused. There was so much potential, but the twist didn’t feel earned, and its execution left a bad taste in my mouth.

The twist (spoilers from here on out): the child Mallory believes is named Teddy is actually Flora, a girl who was kidnapped years ago and raised under a false identity. Some readers have called this plotline transphobic, and I do understand why, but I personally didn’t read it that way. The gender identity element seemed more like a desperate attempt by the Maxwells to cover their tracks, rather than any kind of commentary on gender identity itself. They didn’t transition their child out of ideology, they did it out of fear and guilt. If they’d had any other way to bury the truth, I imagine they’d have taken it.

What did strike me as poorly handled was the language in the epilogue. There’s a line where Mallory reflects on Flora’s identity, saying something like “you were always a girl,” and it mimics language that can be hurtful and reductive in real-world conversations about trans identity. I think the intention was to affirm Flora’s truth and condemn the Maxwells’ control over her, but the phrasing didn’t sit well. It lacked the nuance and care that this kind of twist really demands. I don’t believe the book was trying to be transphobic, but I do think the way it was written opens the door for misinterpretation, and that’s a problem in and of itself.

And that’s sort of the core issue for me: I don’t believe the book is intentionally transphobic, but I do think it’s careless. It uses real-world identity struggles as part of its final twist, but doesn’t show much thoughtfulness in how those elements are handled. There’s no clear critique of the Maxwells’ actions, no real unpacking of what it means to strip a child of their identity, not because they were trans, but because they were a kidnapped girl forced into someone else’s life. That distinction matters, and I wish the book had drawn it more sharply.

There are things I liked. I appreciated the early suspense, and the book genuinely had moments where it worked as a horror-tinged mystery. But the resolution—the twist, the tone, the epilogue—left a sour taste. Not because I think the book is hateful, but because it plays fast and loose with themes that deserve more care. I can see how it could read as harmful to some readers. I also see how that may not have been the author’s intention at all.

Still, intention doesn’t always erase impact.

Loved the book but at the end it was pretty disappointing because all the build up in the book just for it all to crumble down in just a few pages, 

It’s a good book don’t get me wrong but I wished they kept the storyline of the ghost was Annie and not the real mother of teddy 

And in the end where Mallory figured it all out and made it seem like it was obvious that teddy was a girl and was kidnapped while I reading didn’t get that all it feel a little scrambled together at the last minute 

Ida 

Loved the book but at the end it was pretty disappointing because all the build up in the book just for it all to crumble down in just a few pages, 

It’s a good book don’t get me wrong but I wished they kept the storyline of the ghost was Annie and not the real mother of teddy 

And in the end where Mallory figured it all out and made it seem like it was obvious that teddy was a girl and was kidnapped while I reading didn’t get that all it feel a little scrambled together at the last minute 

Captivating enough to read through in a day or two, but becomes increasingly problematic in the final chapters

Mckenzie Collard

Taylor Silveira 

The beginning was slow, but the last 20% was insane, would recommend.

Ivybeth Shipe

Pretty good book. Definitely entertaining. 

Rodney Crawford

Carmen Malca

So this was the perfect book I could read for Halloween. It is a paranormal thriller and I needed up really enjoying it. It kept me intrigued throughout and I really think it played out perfectly. The pictures were such an amazing part of the story and was so glad I hybrid read it because it was all so good. 

Priscilla Stanfield

4.5/5⭐️

So this was the perfect book I could read for Halloween. It is a paranormal thriller and I needed up really enjoying it. It kept me intrigued throughout and I really think it played out perfectly. The pictures were such an amazing part of the story and was so glad I hybrid read it because it was all so good. 

The pictures in the book are what brought the story from a 4 to a 5. Love to see this as a movie one day. 

Megan Lown

The beginning was so slow it made it hard to want to finish the book but by the time you got through the slow introduction and the pictures started showing up you were hooked on figuring it out. I never would have guessed that shocking twist ! It was brilliant! 

Brianna Hickey 

Had me hooked from the first page, the plot twists were amazing! 

Chrissy Gray

This one took me by surprise! For once the twists at the end took me by surprise! I loved the whole premise of the story with the drawings! 10/10 would definitely recommend this book ♥️

Mariah crawford

I’ve never seen a clearer agenda in a book than this. Of course the atheist, pro science, pro consent parents transed the kid after killing her mom I’m so shocked. But also of course the liberal, no red meat eating parents were going to teach their kid about “anal, cunnilingus, and gender theory” be so fucking for real. This was a Fox News level millennial couple and the message only would’ve been clearer if they made it a same sex couple. ”I knew deep down that she always knew she was a girl”  bffr

Alex

Some of it, yes, was WILDLY predictable. But there were also parts of it that completely shocked me and had me scratching my head. I loved the twists and turns that this took me on and there’s always something so fun about adding another element into a story that doesn’t always get added. I wasn’t 100% satisfied with the ending but the rest of it was good enough to wear I can’t completely knock it.

Kaitlyn R

This book was unlike anything I’ve read before! I really love a good mystery where I feel like I have to remember everything that could possibly be a clue to figure out what’s going on in the end…and I stilllllll don’t guess the ending 😭 there was a good 4/5 twists in this book and I was living for every one of them lol also don’t read this book in the dark 😣

Kiana Johnson

Lola

This was a nice read, the writing style was easy, fast pace and the characters were easy to like. Despite the great start i did feel like we'd veered off course a little in the middle and i felt a little bored as if the story was just going around in circles. Despite this i thoroughly enjoyed the ending, the last few chapters really drew me back in and it all tidied up so nicely at the end.

4 stars for me, i don't know that I'd pick it over some of the other thrillers/horror's I've enjoyed but i could and would probably recommend it as a quick easy thriller read.

Rebecca Hurd

LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!! This was such a great read!! It had a slow build up, but with an amazing turnout!!!! Those twists towards the end just WOW!! I only realized one of them and the other one really threw me for a loop!! Probably the best mystery/puzzle I’ve read in a long time cause I usually figure out all the little twists and turns but this one kept me on my toes for the majority of the ride!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!!

Ryan Mateyk

Fantastic narrator on the audiobook and am I ntriguing story overall, but kind of YA vibes to me and the story took a silly turn towards the end.

boring. the writing had unnecessary details, some really dull scenes, and the horror had a false sense of tension. plus, it's packed with pop culture references, which made it quite cheesy. not even the drawings saved it.

I enjoyed this book because I didn’t see where it was going and the ending threw me for a loop. It was refreshing to really be surprised.

Amanda 

Fairly breezy read. A decent, if familiar ghost story, that veers into a  surprising twist.

Christian von Schack

the plot is engaging and unpredictable. There's not a single moment when I felt disappointed throughout the story. And I could never imagine the ending. One of the best mystery novels.

Hidden Pictures

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