We Used to Live Here

Content Warning: This section contains graphic depictions of violence and presents mental health conditions through a stereotyped and exaggerated lens. In addition, the source text uses outdated and offensive terms for mental health conditions, replicated in this guide only in direct quotes.

“Something lurking in the deepest, darkest chamber of her mind weighed in. An almost audible voice that had been with her for even longer than the broken spidey-sense.”

The novel doesn’t shy away from cliches, instead using them to draw readers into a modern take on classic horror tropes. Alliteration, as in “deepest, darkest” and “an almost audible,” adds orality to the prose. By describing a voice in Eve’s mind, the text raises the question of her mental health.

“A pull-string for the attic’s trapdoor staircase. He blew on it, a swift puff, like putting out a birthday cake candle. It swung back and forth like a metronome.”

This description of the attic door uses two similes, creating sensory imagery to help engage readers. Thomas’s confidence in navigating the house indicates his long history with it, though the exact nature of this history is yet unknown. At this point, his stated motivation seems plausible even if his blatantly interrupting the house’s residents on a Friday evening is insensitive.

“There was a damp dullness in the silence, as if the shadows had swallowed his words before they even made it halfway.”

Alliteration emphasizes the mystery and isolation of the house’s basement, as though it is a separate structure containing its own secrets. Shadows often come to life and have a strong presence in both the basement and Eve’s mind, calling into question whether Eve is perceiving reality or a simple trick of the light.