Purchase The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewel via Amazon: https://amzn.to/3maC2TD
On Libby’s 25th birthday, she received an inheritance – a huge house (a mansion). It is where her family used to live – according to old news articles, her parents were involved in a cult suicide pact, along with an unidentified man.
Libby asked the help of Miller Roe – an investigative journalist who wrote the article about her parents’ death. Together, they explored the house.
When Libby & Miller Roe decided to stay for the night at the house, they met a man who introduced himself as Phin. Phin was staying in the house, waiting for Libby. He invited them to his apartment, not far from home. He told them stories about what really happened in that house, but he made them drink wine, and in the morning, their memories were hazy. Miller Roe lost the recording (he suspects Phin) deleted it. When Libby & Miller Roe woke up, they were locked in the room, but he simply claimed he forgot to unlock it when Phin appeared. He claims that he closes doors for his guests because he usually sleeps walks.
Libby & Miller found Phin suspicious. So they worked on investigating further. Phin told them that the unidentified man found along with Libby’s parents is David Thomsen – Phin’s father. Libby & Miller found Sally, David’s ex-wife. Later on, they found Clemency – David and Sally’s daughter, Phin’s sister. Clemency told them most of the truth.
The Truth:
Henry & Lucy lamb lives comfortably in their home (the same house Libby inherited) with their parents until their money runs out. When their money ran out, they met Birdie, a singer – who used to film her music video. The strange thing is after filming the video, she didn’t leave the house and even brought in her boyfriend named Justin.
Mr. Lamb had a stroke, and Birdie suggested a physical therapist named David Thomsen – after a few days, David and his family moved in with him. David’s family includes his wife, Sally, and two children, Phin and Clemency.
Lucy and Clemency became very close friends while Henry struggled with his relationship with Phin because he secretly liked him.
When it was revealed that Henry saw David and Birdie kissing, Sally moved out of the house. David and Birdie continued their relationship while Justin stayed in the house, simply tending at his garden. He has built a park where they get most of their veggies and tea leaves.
As days went by, David and Birdie gained control over the household. Mr. Lamb could no longer talk. He just kept on sitting, staring into thin air. Mrs. Lamb eventually got pregnant with David’s child – the children were horrified. Birdie was okay with it.
Justin left the house when he found himself another job. He left his books in the place for Henry to find – so Henry took over the garden and read the books. Henry thought that the baby in his mother’s womb would worsen the situation – so he served his mother juices/teas based on the book that teaches how to induce abortion. At 5 months, the baby died, and they had to bury it in the backyard. Mrs. Lamb was never the same after that.
Since Mrs. Lamb changed after losing her baby, David and Birdie took complete control of the household and implemented rules. They added locks to the children’s doors; they did not allow them to wear clothes and shoes – they could only wear black robes. Their diet is also stringent – and most of them looked very thin and malnourished.
Phin also got locked in his room after pushing Henry to the river (truth was, he went to Henry because he kissed him).
Not long after losing Mrs. Lamb’s baby – David announced another pregnancy, and this time it was Lucy. Lucy gave birth to a baby girl, and Birdie took care of the baby and pretended her own.
David announced that he would host a party for Birdie’s 30th birthday – the children, led by Henry, thought of a plan. They wanted to escape. The thought of running started when Henry went inside David and Birdie’s room to check his parent’s will regarding the house. Henry saw luxurious things in David and Birdie’s bedroom. There was even a bottle of wine. So Henry planned to make his Belladonna tea to let the adults sleep and give them time to escape.
Henry served the tea, and the adults fell asleep. While they were escaping, Birdie woke up and went upstairs. Henry hit her and killed her. When they checked the adults in the dining hall, they found that they were dead! To avoid getting in trouble, Henry organized the scene like the three of them were cult members, making a sacrifice, killing themselves – after that, they planned to escape.
But they encountered problems – Clemency ran away. She ran away until she finally reached her mom’s apartment. As for Phin, he was very sick, and he insisted that they leave him behind. And for Lucy, she is not sure what to do because she needs to take care of the baby.
Henry and Lucy talked that night, and it was revealed that the baby wasn’t David’s – it was Phin’s. Henry got angry and went to Phin. Phin was tied up, and Henry kissed him. When he was done kissing Phin, he slept beside him. When he woke up, Phin and Lucy were gone. It was just him, the baby, and the dead adults who were left in that house.
So he thought of an escape – he added a note in the suicide letter informing a baby upstairs. After leaving the baby, making sure she’s not hungry, she left the house and called the police – telling that he’s just a neighbor, wanting their neighbor’s house checked.
Henry looked for a job and found one – he got rich. Then 25 years later, he went back to the house to meet Libby (real name is Serenity Lamb)
Meanwhile, on the night Lucy and Phin runaway, they simply went to the doctor because Phin was very ill. The doctor took care of them until they recovered, but when they were already well, the police already found the body of the adults, and they no longer had a chance to come back for the baby. The doctor helped them leave the country – and Lucy & Phin worked for around 2 years. The two of them were just friends who talked about their baby every now and then. One morning, Lucy woke up, and Phin was gone. Lucy left too, brought along a fiddle, and played in the streets as he looked for Phin. She eventually gave up.
Lucy met a man, had a baby boy – then they broke up because he was abusive. He met another man he loved but also left; they had a baby girl. By the time Libby turned 25 and Lucy planned to return to London – Lucy sadly had no money and no passport. Lucy asked for help from her ex-husband but ended up killing him because he got abusive when he had sex with her (in exchange for the passport). Lucy hid his body in the cellar and fled to London.
Lucy and Libby finally met, and they sold the house.
They were also able to locate Phin with the help of Miller Roe – he was alive after all.
Libby quit her job. She fell in love with Miller Roe. She’s now happier that she belongs to her real family.
The End of The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewel.
Purchase The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewel via Amazon: https://amzn.to/3maC2TD
Forever Winter 