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Home Sweet Home
His parents said it would be lots of fun. Two weeks in the mountains with nice Mr. Walker. A perfect vacation for a little boy. But Timmy didn't think it was fun. The closer they got to the cabin, the less friendly Mr. Walker's smile became. The scarier the sound of his voice. The more evil the light in the depths of his eyes. Timmy was surprised to find other children at the cabin. He sensed their dread, heard their nightmarish screams, felt their unspoken terror. But then he peeked through the keyhole of the forbidden locked door and saw the bloodcurling horror that awaited him. And he knew there was no escape from the deadly welcome of home sweet home.
317 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 1985
15 people are currently reading
435 people want to read
About the author
Ruby Jean Jensen
39 books211 followers
Ruby Jean Jensen
Born McDonald County, Missouri, USA, March 1, 1927
Died November 16, 2010
Website http://www.rubyjeanjensen.com
Twitter RubyJeanJensen1
Facebook www.facebook.com/Rjjhorror
Ruby Jean Jensen authored 30 published and 4 not yet published novels, and over 200 short stories. Her passion for writing developed at an early age, and she worked for many years to develop her writing skills. After having many short stories published, in 1974 the novel The House that Samael Built was accepted for publication. She then quickly established herself as a professional author, with representation by a Literary Agent from New York. She subsequently sold 29 more novels to several New York publishing houses. After four Gothic Romance, three Occult and then three Horror novels, MaMa was published by Zebra books in 1983. With Zebra, Ruby Jean completed nineteen more novels in the Horror genre.
Ruby was involved with creative writing groups for many years, and she often took the time to encourage young authors and to reply to fan mail.
Ruby Jean, a supreme story-teller, quickly captures and holds your attention. Her books, written for adults, are also suitable for adolescents and young adults. She continues to have an enthusiastic following in the Horror genre.
Born McDonald County, Missouri, USA, March 1, 1927
Died November 16, 2010
Website http://www.rubyjeanjensen.com
Twitter RubyJeanJensen1
Facebook www.facebook.com/Rjjhorror
Ruby Jean Jensen authored 30 published and 4 not yet published novels, and over 200 short stories. Her passion for writing developed at an early age, and she worked for many years to develop her writing skills. After having many short stories published, in 1974 the novel The House that Samael Built was accepted for publication. She then quickly established herself as a professional author, with representation by a Literary Agent from New York. She subsequently sold 29 more novels to several New York publishing houses. After four Gothic Romance, three Occult and then three Horror novels, MaMa was published by Zebra books in 1983. With Zebra, Ruby Jean completed nineteen more novels in the Horror genre.
Ruby was involved with creative writing groups for many years, and she often took the time to encourage young authors and to reply to fan mail.
Ruby Jean, a supreme story-teller, quickly captures and holds your attention. Her books, written for adults, are also suitable for adolescents and young adults. She continues to have an enthusiastic following in the Horror genre.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
October 13, 2019
3.5 stars
Ten-year-old Timmy is sent to stay for a couple of weeks at 'Uncle' Dan's cabin in the woods. He doesn't want to go but on arrival is pleasantly surprised to find that there are some other children staying there too so maybe it will be fun after all. But Uncle Dan and the mysterious Little Mother have other plans for them.
This was a well written and absorbing novel with some excellent suspense and action. I thought the child characters were great and their dialogue and behaviour felt believable. Overall it was an enjoyable read but I felt I wanted just a little more from the reveal and the ending.
Just a heads up: there is an element of pedophilia in the story; it's more implied than anything graphic and/or sexual, but there are some scenes of physical abuse to children.
Ten-year-old Timmy is sent to stay for a couple of weeks at 'Uncle' Dan's cabin in the woods. He doesn't want to go but on arrival is pleasantly surprised to find that there are some other children staying there too so maybe it will be fun after all. But Uncle Dan and the mysterious Little Mother have other plans for them.
This was a well written and absorbing novel with some excellent suspense and action. I thought the child characters were great and their dialogue and behaviour felt believable. Overall it was an enjoyable read but I felt I wanted just a little more from the reveal and the ending.
Just a heads up: there is an element of pedophilia in the story; it's more implied than anything graphic and/or sexual, but there are some scenes of physical abuse to children.
August 14, 2024
Review to come.
September 25, 2020
“We’re going to be so happy here, with dark woods closing us away from the world. I knew the minute I saw you children that you were the perfect ones.”
Ruby Jean Jensen is an author I’m quite familiar with, but haven’t had a chance to read until recently, when much of her catalogue started getting re-released in kindle format. Jensen’s own personal life is somewhat of an oddity itself-I can’t help but think of her as someone who might be an extra on ‘Murder, She Wrote’ when I view biographical content and images surrounding her life. When it comes to horror, she isn’t someone I’d picture while reading the horrific novel ‘Home Sweet Home.’
Wrongful judgements aside, I wasn’t disappointed to say the least. Originally published in 1985, the story concerns a young boy, Timmy, who is coaxed by his parents into going on a camping trip in the Ozarks with his mysterious ‘Uncle Dan,’ a namesake that really covers up the fact that he’s just a family friend. Timmy, though only ten-years old, is smart enough to realize that something strange is happening when he arrives at Dan’s cabin in the woods, and orphans are present.
One may easily conclude that this is another work synonymous with ‘Girl Next Door’ or ‘Let’s Go Play at the Adams’, but ‘Home Sweet Home’ steadily builds up the terror through atmosphere, not violence and bloodshed.
Ruby Jean Jensen is an author I’m quite familiar with, but haven’t had a chance to read until recently, when much of her catalogue started getting re-released in kindle format. Jensen’s own personal life is somewhat of an oddity itself-I can’t help but think of her as someone who might be an extra on ‘Murder, She Wrote’ when I view biographical content and images surrounding her life. When it comes to horror, she isn’t someone I’d picture while reading the horrific novel ‘Home Sweet Home.’
Wrongful judgements aside, I wasn’t disappointed to say the least. Originally published in 1985, the story concerns a young boy, Timmy, who is coaxed by his parents into going on a camping trip in the Ozarks with his mysterious ‘Uncle Dan,’ a namesake that really covers up the fact that he’s just a family friend. Timmy, though only ten-years old, is smart enough to realize that something strange is happening when he arrives at Dan’s cabin in the woods, and orphans are present.
One may easily conclude that this is another work synonymous with ‘Girl Next Door’ or ‘Let’s Go Play at the Adams’, but ‘Home Sweet Home’ steadily builds up the terror through atmosphere, not violence and bloodshed.
August 15, 2008
This is a free bin book. This story is basically Psycho with a little bit of latent paedophilia thrown in for good measure. Very silly and illogical, but it help me catch some Z's after scouring my bookshelves late one night for something I hadn't read yet, which is the exact reason I keep a cache of free bin books. I would probably read another Ruby Jean Jensen book if I found one, but then again I love horrible 80's slasher films so take that as you will.
February 9, 2016
After reading this book, I was surprised to find that while this story was indeed a horrifying one, it really didn't deal with the supernatural horror that many of her books do. Instead, we deal with the gut wrenching fear of having our child turned over to the hands of a maniac and the fear that both the child and parents have to deal with. I have enjoyed others by Ruby more, but this was a very enjoyable and quick read and I would recommend it. (originally posted on Amazon.com)
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October 5, 2020It’s pulp horror. This one was fairly well written and overall a fun read to kick off October.
January 6, 2015
I love anything by Ruby Jean Jensen. This book was even autographed. Though the author has passed away, her legacy of being the Queen of horror novels lives on! Mostly her books are about dolls or toys coming back to life or evil and strange children doing ugly things. Loved this book and all the others.
August 9, 2024
Riveting. Disturbing. Creepy as all hell.
In this day and age of trigger warnings, this novel would be covered in em. I've read two other books by RJJ, so I trusted in her abilities as a storyteller going into this one. Had I not been familiar with her work, I would be pretty trepidatious and skeptical. A super simple, super disturbing setup for a story concern children in a terrifying situation. The prologue is so nasty and disturbing in its stark account of really heinous child abuse, I was basically reading it through my fingers as I covered my face. If it was most other authors, I probably would have given up. But I trusted in Ruby Jean and holy moly, does she deliver.
As a parent, anything involving the abduction of kids is beyond unpleasant for me as entertainment, and in the hands of a lesser author, this could have been a tawdry, exploitative affair. But Ruby Jean never makes it feel cheap, or exploitative as many other, mostly male authors would have (looking at you, Mr. Laymon). She makes it feel real, and she has enough respect for her characters to have you rooting for the good guys and absolutely loathing the bad guy(s). This is shocking, grade A Horror with a capital H. Ruby Jean deftly plots the story so well that you absolutely cannot put the book down. The ending was perfect and actually made me a little misty! I've only read three of her books now, but I think I can say that this is Ruby Jean's crowning achievement. I know she wrote many, many books, but this one will be very hard to top.
In this day and age of trigger warnings, this novel would be covered in em. I've read two other books by RJJ, so I trusted in her abilities as a storyteller going into this one. Had I not been familiar with her work, I would be pretty trepidatious and skeptical. A super simple, super disturbing setup for a story concern children in a terrifying situation. The prologue is so nasty and disturbing in its stark account of really heinous child abuse, I was basically reading it through my fingers as I covered my face. If it was most other authors, I probably would have given up. But I trusted in Ruby Jean and holy moly, does she deliver.
As a parent, anything involving the abduction of kids is beyond unpleasant for me as entertainment, and in the hands of a lesser author, this could have been a tawdry, exploitative affair. But Ruby Jean never makes it feel cheap, or exploitative as many other, mostly male authors would have (looking at you, Mr. Laymon). She makes it feel real, and she has enough respect for her characters to have you rooting for the good guys and absolutely loathing the bad guy(s). This is shocking, grade A Horror with a capital H. Ruby Jean deftly plots the story so well that you absolutely cannot put the book down. The ending was perfect and actually made me a little misty! I've only read three of her books now, but I think I can say that this is Ruby Jean's crowning achievement. I know she wrote many, many books, but this one will be very hard to top.
December 15, 2017
One word.. Interesting. I like to step out of my normal reading zone and pick up different authors occasionally to see if I can find a new favorite. This book, Home Sweet Home, drew me in by the little back cover preface. I wasn't disappointed by the read.
I could certainly see this one overlooked by most people, but I'd recommend it if you are into books or movies about people with *Spoiler* Multiple personalities or child predators. The first of which, is pretty apparent but the second a little more subtle. The taking of the pictures while the children were running around naked in the water is very questionable as to what Dan's intentions really were.
He was clearly very disturbed from his childhood and wanted to seek out a "perfect family" by kidnapping children. It isn't clear what his criteria for the perfect child was and what was judged by "Little Mother" and her approval. No one really seemed to fit this imaginary standard he had come up with for them. *End Spoiler*
The book kept me interested enough to finish it rather quickly and the ending didn't leave you with millions of questions, just the typical ones as to why are people crazy.. which we will never actually know.
I could certainly see this one overlooked by most people, but I'd recommend it if you are into books or movies about people with *Spoiler* Multiple personalities or child predators. The first of which, is pretty apparent but the second a little more subtle. The taking of the pictures while the children were running around naked in the water is very questionable as to what Dan's intentions really were.
He was clearly very disturbed from his childhood and wanted to seek out a "perfect family" by kidnapping children. It isn't clear what his criteria for the perfect child was and what was judged by "Little Mother" and her approval. No one really seemed to fit this imaginary standard he had come up with for them. *End Spoiler*
The book kept me interested enough to finish it rather quickly and the ending didn't leave you with millions of questions, just the typical ones as to why are people crazy.. which we will never actually know.
February 19, 2021
Summer camp
This book was a slow burn for me however, it picked up much later. The story itself was decent compared to the other Ruby Jensen books I've read in the past. I felt for the children in this book especially Dale even though he wasn't the main child character like Timmy, but he was a bit more of a charismatic character and his death was just sad. Furthermore, as for the parents trusting a psychopath that was yikes on their part. This book grew on me because I didn't think it would top (Wait And See) another Ruby Jean Jensen book which is one my favourite books. But as this book went along it kept me hooked and I enjoyed it! I would recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers five stars for me!
This book was a slow burn for me however, it picked up much later. The story itself was decent compared to the other Ruby Jensen books I've read in the past. I felt for the children in this book especially Dale even though he wasn't the main child character like Timmy, but he was a bit more of a charismatic character and his death was just sad. Furthermore, as for the parents trusting a psychopath that was yikes on their part. This book grew on me because I didn't think it would top (Wait And See) another Ruby Jean Jensen book which is one my favourite books. But as this book went along it kept me hooked and I enjoyed it! I would recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers five stars for me!
September 21, 2019
Mr. Walker seemed so nice to invite Timmy to the cabin. But the closer he got, the stranger "Uncle Dan" seemed to act. Timmy was not alone in the fix that he awakened to, and he immediately began looking for a way out of their predicament. What was this stuff about the "Little Mother", and why did it seem to be so important to Uncle Dan? Ruby Jean again captures the thoughts and feelings of a youngster in this compelling story that has parallels in today's conversations about child safety.
July 1, 2020
Have read many of her books and enjoyed them except for this one, it was okay, predicted most of the plot by the first 100 pages.
June 29, 2022
A truly creepy tale that could have used a better, less deus ex machina sudden ending.
June 4, 2023
The overall book was great, but I think some questions were left unanswered about Dan, his wife and why he decided to kill Dale and Josh, would’ve loved to known his reasoning.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 24, 2020
It was a very good book. It was entertaining from start to finish.
March 22, 2021
Jensen's writing style is pretty good. She has a good sense of atmosphere, a keen eye for detail, and knows how to draw out her suspense without it getting overwrought. I can see why she's considered one of the better writers from the "Paperbacks from Hell" era, but I can also see that she's a bit of an acquired taste. The stories feel a bit dated, and they tend to end abruptly, like she reached the end of her thread and decided she was done. So far, they all feel like they could use an epilogue, but maybe those will come as I read more of her works.
Horror fans who haven't read her really should, but casual readers ... well, you know, maybe it wouldn't hurt to give her a try. I'm not sure I'd start here, but since this story lacks any supernatural elements, maybe it would be a good read for fans of mystery/thrillers.
A-Z Horror: H
Horror fans who haven't read her really should, but casual readers ... well, you know, maybe it wouldn't hurt to give her a try. I'm not sure I'd start here, but since this story lacks any supernatural elements, maybe it would be a good read for fans of mystery/thrillers.
A-Z Horror: H
January 30, 2024
This one is in fact almost a five stars…
I mean, if you really love horror stories, macabre creepy stuff, you need to read some of Ruby Jean Jensen’s work. It’s so much fun. It’s straight to the point but well written, it has a lot of suspense but do not keep too much narrative secrets… It has the perfect ingredients for a scary story but it’s never cliché.
“Home Sweet Home” is good craft, like an old solid wooden chair. Like you know the global shape of it, but it’s so comfortable. And, I dont’t know, there is always something to get excited about in these books!
Now sit a good old armchair, and enjoy the story of Timmy, Uncle Dan and Little Mother… Good authors that never fails to entertain you are very rare and Mrs. Jensen is one of them, for sure.
I mean, if you really love horror stories, macabre creepy stuff, you need to read some of Ruby Jean Jensen’s work. It’s so much fun. It’s straight to the point but well written, it has a lot of suspense but do not keep too much narrative secrets… It has the perfect ingredients for a scary story but it’s never cliché.
“Home Sweet Home” is good craft, like an old solid wooden chair. Like you know the global shape of it, but it’s so comfortable. And, I dont’t know, there is always something to get excited about in these books!
Now sit a good old armchair, and enjoy the story of Timmy, Uncle Dan and Little Mother… Good authors that never fails to entertain you are very rare and Mrs. Jensen is one of them, for sure.
April 2, 2023
Isolated children-in-peril story at the hands of "Uncle Dan" and the mysterious "Little Mother ". At times, it is almost like a very dark and very twisted fairytale. Strong trigger warnings for child endangerment and abuse. The author did a decent job with setting and characterization. And the overall sense of fear was palpable and quite ramped up on occasion.
My favorite character had to be old man Alcorn.
A bit of deus ex machina at the end.
My favorite character had to be old man Alcorn.
A bit of deus ex machina at the end.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews