Books like The house on the gulf

A sunny summer housesitting gig slowly unravels into a tense puzzle of sibling suspicion and hidden agendas. These 12 books are the closest matches in mood, pace and themes, with what each one shares with The house on the gulf.

sun-drenched
unsettling
tense
secretive

01
Found
Margaret Peterson Haddix
A high-stakes puzzle box that turns a quiet suburban life into a breathless race against unknown, time-bending pursuers.
Shares:
- tense
- suspenseful
- earnest
02
Double Identity
Margaret Peterson Haddix
A tense, eerie puzzle box of a novel where every answered question only deepens the chilling mystery of who you really are.
Shares:
- tense
- suspenseful
- earnest
- family secrets
03
Into the Gauntlet
Geronimo Stilton
A breathless, puzzle-packed race to the finish line where the ultimate prize demands an impossible moral choice.
Shares:
- tense
- suspenseful
- earnest
04
The ghost sitter
Peni R. Griffin · 2001
A sunlit summer vacation slowly gives way to a gentle, spine-tingling mystery about the ghosts we leave behind.
Shares:
- suspenseful
- earnest
05
The Bell Bandit
Davies, Jacqueline
A gentle, wintry mystery that wraps a poignant exploration of family changes inside a satisfying neighborhood whodunit.
Shares:
- earnest
06
Stolen children
Peg Kehret
A ticking-clock thriller that trades on quick wits and the fierce, protective instinct of a young protagonist backed into a corner.
Shares:
- tense
- suspenseful
- earnest
07
Clue At The Bottom Of The Lake
Kristiana Gregory
A sun-drenched, suspenseful summer adventure where ordinary kids stumble into a very real adult secret.
Shares:
- tense
- suspenseful
- earnest
08
The Watch House
Robert Westall · 1977
A chilling coastal mystery where the relics of past tragedies awaken a lingering, malevolent force.
Shares:
- suspenseful
09
The Other Side of Dark
Joan Lowery Nixon · 1987
A tense, disorienting psychological thriller about waking up to a stolen adolescence and a killer waiting in the shadows.
Shares:
- tense
- suspenseful
- earnest
10
Ghosts of Greenglass House
Kate Milford
A snowbound, puzzle-filled retreat that feels like sitting by a crackling fire while shadows dance on the walls.
Shares:
- suspenseful
- inquisitive
- earnest
11
Cemetery Street
Brenda Seabrooke
A chilling middle-grade blend of real-world family upheaval and creeping supernatural dread.
Shares:
- unsettling
- tense
- uneasy
- earnest
12
Following the Mystery Man
Mary Downing Hahn
A quiet, yearning mystery about a young girl projecting her deepest hopes onto a stranger in her home.
Shares:
- tense
- secretive
- suspenseful
- earnest

Back to The house on the gulf