Home Is Where the Bodies Are

Home Is Where the Bodies Are 

Home Is Where the Bodies Are is the latest novel to be checked off my to be read list. This book has been in my library holds for a while, it has a long wait time. But I was randomly able to borrow a copy of the audiobook version. 

It is the first Jeneva Rose novel that I’ve read. I am familiar with her novels, but hadn’t made it to reading any. This one being available on audiobook boosted it to the top of my to be read list. Since I’ve been reading dark romance novels, this was a nice change. 

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“Resentment only poisons the person who consumes it, not the one it’s intended for.” 

Jeneva Rose, Home Is Where the Bodies Are

I’ve been reading a lot of dark romance novels lately and wanted to switch back to thrillers, just for a change of pace. If I read too many of the same genre, it can push me into a reading slump, and I hate when that happens because it can be hard to pull myself back out and want to read again. 

Have you read Home Is Where the Bodies Are? Come on in and let me tell you about it! 

About Home Is Where the Bodies Are 

After their mother passes, three estranged siblings reunite to sort out her estate. Beth, the oldest, never left home. She stayed with her mom, caring for her until the very end. Nicole, the middle child, has been kept at arm’s length due to her ongoing battle with a serious drug addiction. Michael, the youngest, lives out of state and hasn’t been back to their small Wisconsin town since their father ran out on them seven years before.

While going through their parents’ belongings, the siblings stumble upon a collection of home videos and decide to revisit those happier memories. However, the nostalgia is cut short when one of the VHS tapes reveals a night back in 1999 that none of them have any recollection of. On screen, their father appears covered in blood. What follows is a dead body and a pact between their parents to get rid of it, before the video abruptly ends.

Beth, Nicole, and Michael must now decide whether to leave the past in the past or uncover the dark secret their mother took to her grave. 

A Note From the Author 

I wanted to share a little insight on some of the heavy topics in this novel. Although this is a fictional story, it’s a deeply personal one for me as I was able to write about things I’ve personally dealt with in my life, through the characters of Beth, Nicole, and Michael. Addiction, death, and grief are heavy themes in this book, and they’ve also been themes in my personal life for a long time now. It was cathartic to write Beth, for I have felt like Beth when it comes to dealing with a person suffering from addiction. 

Through her, I was able to express a fraction of the emotional toll it’s taken on me, while also allowing myself a little grace for the guilt I endure in still having been unsuccessful in helping them to recover. It was also cathartic to write Nicole, to put myself in the shoes of said person with some of their insights guiding me and giving me a glimpse at life from their point of view. I’m grateful for having the opportunity to write this book, and I thank you for reading it. 

Jeneva Rose 

Thoughts on Home Is Where the Bodies Are 

“It’s important to remember both the good and the bad because together they keep us grateful and grounded.”  

Jeneva Rose, Home Is Where the Bodies Are

Home Is Where the Bodies Are reminded me a lot of The Perfect Family. It wasn’t a thriller, and I’m kind of annoyed it is classified as such. But family drama isn’t thrilling. Just my hot take on that. Thriller novels should keep me on the edge of my seat. This one didn’t. 

I liked it. The chapters were fairly short, and each character had their own issues and struggles. They are all relatable. Not necessarily likeable, but certainly relatable. But it didn’t make me feel any emotions about them. While they were relatable in their struggles, they felt one dimensional to me at the same time. 

I found that I predicted the plot from a mile away. In fact, I mentioned it to my husband about half way through the book, as he was listening to it with me. He reminded me that I called it when the book finally ended. Which means there were no real surprises or twists along the way. 

My husband listened to parts of it with me, and I asked him if he wanted to listen all the way through, and he said no. The funny thing is, when I listened to parts without him, he really didn’t miss anything. What I mean by that is, he was able to listen to parts here and there, and still understand the story as it progressed and when it ended. Which tells me there wasn’t much going on within the story. 

It is clear that I need to find a better thriller to take the place of my dark romance novels for a bit. But it is clear that Home Is Where the Bodies Are just wasn’t the answer to what I was looking for. 

Final Thoughts on Home Is Where the Bodies Are 

“Anger is easy, Rebecca. It’s the most rudimentary of human feelings. Babies experience anger. Psychopaths experience anger. People with little to no brain activity experience anger. But compassion and forgiveness are challenging. They’re the most complex of all the emotions.”  

Jeneva Rose, Home Is Where the Bodies Are

I’m calling Home Is Where the Bodies Are a three star read. It was okay. Nothing fabulous or memorable. It was honestly forgettable, which is why I’m calling it a three star read. It didn’t make me angry, so I’m not rating it any lower. Nor is it memorable, and I’m not recommending it to family and friends. Therefore I can’t rate it any higher than a three star. 

The ingredients for a good story were there. But the recipe just didn’t come together the way it should have.

I always recommend my readers try novels even when I don’t recommend them. I will be honest and tell you that by the time I’ve written this review, I’ve already forgotten this novel. 

I’m also hoping that the next novel I read from author Jeneva Rose will be a lot more memorable and worth raving about to you. I will be reading more from her in the future. This may be the first novel from her, but I want to read more so I can form a better opinion on her writing. I don’t want to judge her based on this one book. 

Reading the note from Jeneva Rose that I added in earlier, I can certainly empathize with the story. It is similar to one of my own, which may be another reason it didn’t sit as well with me as I wanted it to. It was too relatable. But I do empathize with what she went through, and how she dealt with grief and loss. I do love how much it helped her heal, and that honestly can mean everything. 

Discussion 

Have you read Home Is Where the Bodies Are or any other writing from author Jeneva Rose? Are you a fan? Let me know your thoughts in the comments! 

Do you have a go-to genre when you need a change of pace? Do you ever find yourself in a reading slump if you read too much of any one genre at a time? Is it something you have to change up along the way? Tell me about it. 

About the Author 

Jeneva Rose is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of several novels, including The Perfect Marriage and The Perfect Divorce. Her work has been optioned for film and television and translated into more than thirty languages. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband, Drew and her stubborn English bulldogs, Winston and Phyllis.  

Purchasing Home Is Where the Bodies Are 

• If you are interested in buying the paperback version of Home Is Where the Bodies Are, click here.
• For the hardcover version, click here. 
• Click here for the Kindle version.
• Click here for my favorite Kindle I currently own.

More from Jeneva Rose 

Did you enjoy my review of Home Is Where the Bodies Are? Need another great Jeneva Rose novel? Here are my favorites! 

• Dead Woman Crossing 
• Last Day Alive 
• The Perfect Marriage 
• The Perfect Divorce 
• The Girl I Was 
• One of Us is Dead 
• You Shouldn’t Have Come Here 
• It’s a Date (Again)
• Home is Where the Bodies Are 
• Dating After the End of the World 

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