This is a book review of the sci-fi/grief horror/thriller mashup book by author Sam Weiss. In The House Of Root And Rot is book 2 of The Altered Planes series. This series is a trilogy.”

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In The House of Root and Rot

Released 3rd October 2025

Old Gramps always said the Deadmarsh family was cursed. Will never believed him—until now.

In a last-ditch effort to pay his grandfather’s mounting medical bills, Will signs up for a shady sleep study, ignoring the warning signs. But everything changes the night his grandfather vanishes. In his place, Will’s dead sister returns.

Convinced the sleep study is to blame, Will tracks down Spectre, the enigmatic research firm behind it, only to discover they’ve disappeared. His search leads him to a girl whose father vanished after her own harrowing encounter with Spectre. She also seems to know more about his family’s past than she’s letting on.

Desperate to stop seeing his dead sister and unsure of who to trust, Will forms an uneasy alliance with the girl to find out what Spectre wants with them. Together, they plummet down a rabbit-hole of secrets, discovering Spectre’s true purpose and what it planted in Will’s bloodline centuries ago. Something ancient, something not of this world, has been feeding off his family for generations, growing stronger, hungrier, and desperate to be set free.

The family curse is real. And it’s been waiting for Will to unleash it.

~ ~ ~

My Review

This is book 2 of the Altered Planes series; however, it can be read as a standalone. However, I do recommend reading The Afterlife Experiment first. It gives you great insight into the characters of Atra and Tom who featured heavily in the first.

The story again follows Atra, the female protagonist, now living outside of the asylum and trying to come to terms with a world that feels unfamiliar and so different from what she’s used to. I liked how she was portrayed trying to learn things we often take for granted.

The other main POV is Will, the male protagonist, who has a connection to a character we met in book 1. His storyline was a great addition to the series, and watching him deal with his turbulent home life and a serious issue that has him seeking help from a sleep study ramped up the creepiness.

This book moved at a nice clip, with lots going on at each chapter. Similar to the first book, things unravelled slowly at times, but that helped to build up the tension.

I really enjoyed Scarlett’s scenes, even though there were only a few, and I loved the concepts of the Untethered. Sam Weiss has a wonderful ability to write creepy beings that you can picture real well… especially at night.

I thought the dynamic between the FMC and the MMC was believable and touching in parts. I liked how two somewhat broken people were able to come together. Their clashes didn’t feel contrived or unnecessary, and the way they developed together was great.

I’m looking forward to the third book in the series.

My rating:

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Ari

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