You Did Nothing Wrong
Dark domestic suspense meets haunted house horror in this unnerving adult debut guaranteed to keep you awake for days afterward, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Don’t Let the Forest In and Hazelthorn
The walls are closing in on her perfect new life.
Single mother Elodie’s life has become a fairy tale. She’s met Bren, equal parts Golden-retriever-devoted and sinfully handsome. He’s whisked her and her autistic son, Jude, away to the crumbling family house he’s renovating. She has a new husband, a new house, and a new baby on the way. Everything is perfect.
Until Jude claims he can hear voices in the walls. He says their renovations are “hurting” the house. Even Elodie can’t ignore it―something strange is going on.
The question is, Is it with the house, or with her son?
And what is Elodie hiding?
"A masterpiece." - Ava Reid
"Brilliantly tense, paranoid, masterfully wrought." - Dawn Kurtagich
"Prepare to have your heartstrings clawed." - T. Marie Vandelly
- Pages
- 299
- First published
- March 17, 2026
- Language
- English
- Edition
- Ebook
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Shelved by 8 Litcadians
Reviews
Finished June 13, 2026
*✨ 5 stars ✨* Elodie thinks she’s finally found her happily ever after—a loving husband, a new home, and a baby on the way. But when her autistic son, Jude, starts hearing voices in the walls and insists the house is alive, strange things begin happening. As long-buried secrets come to light, Elodie must figure out whether the real danger is the house itself—or the people inside it. This is everything I want in a gothic horror story, especially when there’s more happening beneath the surface than what’s actually being said. The haunting stories that feel true to life are the ones that crack open my mind and live there rent-free. I really loved the direction C.G. Drews took with her characters: a single mom who became a mother at sixteen and her autistic son. While I can’t relate to having an autistic child, I was a teen mom, so that immediately pulled me in. I love Drews’ take on motherhood. It’s such a viscerally complex thing—you have this instinctive need to protect your child at all costs, but the emotions are so intense that love can easily become all-consuming fear. Sometimes, your children have a way of reawakening your own childhood traumas, and I thought Drews captured that beautifully. I felt completely seen by this book’s portrayal of motherhood—and honestly, that might have been the scariest part. There's something deeply unsettling about recognizing your own fears in a character and realizing just how easily love can blur into terror. What makes the horror work so well is how deeply intertwined it is with those themes. While haunted houses can feel a little tired to me these days, this is the kind of haunting that leaves you questioning whether the house is haunted or the character is. Drews creates such an incredible atmosphere that you're constantly left wondering what's real and what isn't. That kind of ambiguity is absolute bliss for me in horror, though I know it isn't for everyone. I love when a story creates a synchronicity between a setting and a character’s mental state, blurring the line between external horrors and internal ones. The house never feels separate from Elodie’s fears, guilt, and need to protect her child, which makes every unsettling moment hit that much harder. Motherhood and haunted houses make a terrifying combination, and Drews understands exactly why. [Find my reviews on Bookstagram🫶🏻](https://www.instagram.com/literarily_laurynn?igsh=aTh6eTZ6dGwxMXpy&utm_source=qr)