Jonathan Sims

Jonny Sims

One apartment building, many stories. A chilling thriller that's perfect for fans of grounded horror like Get Out, Us and It Follows. A dinner party is held in the penthouse of a multimillion-pound development. All the guests are strangers - even to their host, the billionaire owner of the building. None of them know why they were selected to receive his invitation. Besides a postcode, they share only one thing in common - they've all experienced an unsettling occurrence within the building's walls. By the end of the night, their host is dead, and none of the guests will say what happened. His death remains one of the biggest unsolved mysteries - until now.

Thirteen Storeys

It is truly a mess of a language, but it can still have its pretty moments.

Ryn Johnstone

Oh, I've never thought of it like that. It's kind of true though...

"Nothing," the stranger said. "The dead are dead. Justice is for the living."

it was nothing but a towering metal spine, a strange relic of iron vertebrae gradually falling to rust.

Ahahaha! Yeah, that sounds like a you problem, Marie.

"We're going to die in a fire, aren't we? Marie said, the resignation in her voice only half-pretend.

"What's this "we" you're talking about? I'm going to work." Marie gave Violet a withering look, but her flatmate didn't notice.

Ryan Mateyk

Interesting framing device for a short story collection but a mixed bag of quality and the ending was pretty silly to me.

'A wonderfully creepy climax, hitting that perfect spot of uncanny horror' Grimdark Magazine 'Combines a creeping sense of unease with all-out gore . . . Nerve-jangling.' Guardian GOING UP? A dinner party is held in the penthouse of a multimillion-pound development. All the guests are strangers - even to their host, the billionaire owner of the building . None of them know why they were selected to receive his invitation. Whether privileged or deprived, they share only one thing in common - they've all experienced a shocking disturbance within the building's walls. By the end of the night, their host is dead, and none of the guests will say what happened. His death has remained one of the biggest unsolved mysteries - until now. But are you ready for their stories? Jonathan Sims' debut is a darkly twisted, genre-bending haunted house thriller. Early reviewers say you're in for a fright: 'Left me feeling uneasy . . . creeped out, and a little bit horrified. In other words, this was an excellent book' NetGalley reviewer 'Steals your sleep, not only because it's such a page turner but it is very very creepy . . . Highly recommended' NetGalley reviewer 'Chilling and so creepy - perfect reading . . . Even if you don't usually go for this genre, give THIRTEEN STOREYS a try - you won't be disappointed!' NetGalley reviewer 'This book literally has it all: simply faultless. A majestic tour de force of the imagination' NetGalley reviewer

rumbledethumps

A clever idea, 12 short stories tied together by a single narrative theme, each written with a different horror trope/style, coming together in the final story. Interesting, but not great, though I would read Sims again.

Dave | Storyphoria

Fantastic anthology of short stories all intertwined into a terrific ending.

finn

3 stars.

this is definitely a book that picks up as you read it, despite enjoying the chapters a very different amount each time. some chapters i liked a lot, some i didn't like as much, but i'd say it depends on the sort of horror you like and are affected by. it's hard to say for sure what i think people will enjoy and what they won't enjoy. horror is a tricky genre.

i think one of my main problems with his book was the pacing, especially in the last chapter. it just made it hard to get into for me, and when i finally did, it was almost over. and it didn't help that i wasn't a very big fan of the final chapter. i thought the resolution went by a little too quickly. i likely would have enjoyed more build up around the horrors/disturbances within Banyan Court throughout the chapters, and then a more thorough discussion of it in the last chapter. though, this is just a personal preference.

it's an easy read though, so the problems i had with it weren't difficult to get through. chapters i didn't enjoy were easy to read through. at the same time, the chapters i enjoyed didn't feel too short or incomplete either, so i'd say the way this novel is written suits it just fine.

to summarize: it's an easy enough read, so the fact that it took a while for me to get into it and that some chapters were definitely more enjoyable to me than others wasn't that much of an issue. personally, i would have wanted some more development and build up surrounding the horrors within Banyan Court, but otherwise the plot was enjoyable.

it's difficult to say whether i think other people would enjoy this book or not. i think that entirely relies on your own tastes in horror, which is arguably a difficult genre. i do enjoy the way Sims does horror, and everyone who knows me knows i've been a pretty big fan of his horror podcast, the magnus archives, since last year. so despite my mixed feelings for this particular book, i do very much look forward to potential future novels of his.

'Left me feeling uneasy . . . creeped out, and a little bit horrified. In other words, this was an excellent book' NetGalley reviewer GOING UP? A dinner party is held in the penthouse of a multimillion-pound development. All the guests are strangers - even to their host, the billionaire owner of the building . None of them know why they were selected to receive his invitation. Whether privileged or deprived, they share only one thing in common - they've all experienced a shocking disturbance within the building's walls. By the end of the night, their host is dead, and none of the guests will say what happened. His death has remained one of the biggest unsolved mysteries - until now. But are you ready for their stories? Jonathan Sims' debut is a darkly twisted, genre-bending journey through one of the most innovative haunted houses you'll ever dare to enter. Early reviewers say you're in for a fright: 'Steals your sleep, not only because it's such a page turner but it is very very creepy . . . Highly recommended' NetGalley reviewer 'Chilling and so creepy - perfect reading for dark, Halloween evenings in. . . Even if you don't usually go for this genre, give THIRTEEN STOREYS a try - you won't be disappointed!' NetGalley reviewer 'This book literally has it all: simply faultless. A majestic tour de force of the imagination' NetGalley reviewer

Louise 

3.5 stars, but rounded up to 4 cause Goodreads. 
A bit slow at times, but just as unsettling as Jonny's previous works. It was a bit confusing and difficult to keep track of all the references to other characters. Loved the anti capitalism themes tho.

Sandaru Ravihari

Even though the audiobook was a rather a long listen I was not bored at all and I found myself wanting more and more. The build of suspense to the climax was so thrilling and amazing. I loved the fact I had to do my own homework and make notes of each character just because I didn't want to lose out on any details. Since it is a story parallaly happening to many characters it was amazing to to find the details that was part of one's story entangling with another character's. 

The performers did a really good job and it was easy to listen to. I loved how they they performed the last episode in first person POV even though in the actual book it was written in 3rd person. Great story for Halloween!

Thirteen Storeys

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