Alex North

the-half-burnt-house

About us

About Us (Header 4)

Kate-Atkinson

James-Baldwin

Marian-Keyes

haruki-murakami-320×320-1

Richard-Osman

Malorie Blackman

Lisa-Jewell

Charlie-Mackesy

Authors (Header 3)

Children&#039;s

Company

Discover

Fiction

Non-fiction

Penguin Classics

Penguin Shop (Header 5)

Useful links

Work with us

You Can Run

The 50/50 Killer

I Know Who Did It

Black Flowers

Dark Room

The Man Made of Smoke

The Shadow Friend

The Whisper Man

The Half Burnt House

Penguin Shop: 3 Clothbound Classics for £33

The Half Burnt House is Alex North at his best - a writer who can terrify you on one page and break your heart on the next

Steve Cavanagh, bestselling author of Thirteen

One of those books that made me wish I'd written it. North wields suspense like a blade. Breath-taking and terrifying

North handles  the complicated plot with skill while bringing his troubled characters to life amid  the horror.

North's poetic way with even the most grotesque of situations is always a joy. The Half Burnt House is his best yet. I love it.

Thrilling, moving and utterly gripping; The Half Burnt House is a triumph

A masterfully creepy, atmospheric rush of a read that will linger with you long after you've finished the last page

Deeply complex and carefully crafted, this novel is a thrilling question mark all the way to the end, and it puts North's storytelling skills on full display . . . the tension mounts with almost every single chapter... his best so far, a superb addition to his already impressive oeuvre

Alex North's best book yet. It's as darkly disturbing as The Whisper Man, and as viciously twisty as The Shadow Friend. But this time there's a premise that will break your heart even as it chills you to the very marrow. Nobody in dark fiction writes family relationships - guilt, fear, loss, and ultimately love - like North, and this is an unputdownable thriller

Everything in this story is connected in ways the reader can't begin to imagine until a series of stunning parallels and revelations are disclosed. Wait for it!

North's latest thriller does not disappoint, weaving an intriguing cast of characters across multiple time periods into a story rich with layers and plot twists and perfectly suspenseful pacing ... A delightfully bone-chilling tale

As terrifying as a great horror novel, as unpredictable as the best type of crime novel and above all beautifully written...a writer who is an absolute master of his craft

This is absorbing, headlong reading, a play on classic horror with an inventiveness of its own

Hugely atmospheric and deliciously creepy

Katie always prided herself on being a responsible big sister - until she left her brother Chris alone for one selfish afternoon, and everything fell apart. Although he survived the attack, the scars ran deep - physical, and emotional. Now they're adults, and they haven't spoken in years. 
 
Then she gets a call - from a detective. A body has been found in a sprawling mansion - one that remains half-ruined by a decades-old fire. Chris is the prime suspect. 
 
Katie knows this might be her last, best chance to save her brother. But she doesn't realise that this isn't the first murder - and so she doesn't know how much danger she's in...

ARE YOU READY TO ENTER THE HALF BURNT HOUSE? 
 
The spine-tingling new thriller from the internationally bestselling author of Richard &amp; Judy pick THE WHISPER MAN 
 
____________ 
 
It begins with the house – and a body: 
Alan Hobbes stabbed to death in his own bed. 
 
For years, he’s lived as a recluse in the remains of a 
derelict mansion that once belonged to a serial killer. 
 
The police have a suspect: Christopher Shaw, 
observed on the premises on the night of the murder. 
 
Katie Shaw hasn’t seen her brother Chris in two years. 
All her life, she’s tried to look out for him. 
Even when he made it so hard. 
 
But now he’s bound up in the secrets of this dark house. 
To save Chris, dare she follow him inside . . . 
 
____________ 
 
‘North handles the complicated plot with skill while bringing his troubled characters to life amid the horror’ Observer 
 
'Alex North at his best - a writer who can terrify you on one page and break your heart on the next' STEVE CAVANAGH 
 
'One of those books that made me wish I'd written it. North wields suspense like a blade. Breath-taking and terrifying' HELEN FIELDS 
 
'Dark, gripping, and twisty' CLARIE MCGOWAN 
 
'Endlessly intriguing' NEW YORK TIMES

Alex North was born in Leeds, where he now lives with his wife and son. He studied Philosophy at Leeds University, and prior to becoming a writer he worked there in their sociology department. The Whisper Man was a Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller, and is being published in more than 30 languages.

The Half Burnt House

Format:

Buy the book from:

The Half Burnt House is Alex North at his best - a writer who can terrify you on one page and break your heart on the next

Endlessly intriguing

So dark and so twisty

One of those books that made me wish I'd written it. North wields suspense like a blade. Breath-taking and terrifying

North handles the complicated plot with skill while bringing his troubled characters to life amid the horror.

North's poetic way with even the most grotesque of situations is always a joy. The Half Burnt House is his best yet. I love it.

Dark, gripping, and twisty

**Thrilling, moving and utterly gripping; The Half Burnt House is a triumph**

A masterfully creepy, atmospheric rush of a read that will linger with you long after you've finished the last page

Complex, tense and atmospheric

About Alex North

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter