In the Dollhouse We All Wait

by Amanda M. Blake

An extreme horror novel of privilege, cruelty, and survival—splatterpunk at its most unflinching.

“In the dollhouse, if you don’t play with Annie…she plays with you.”

Sam Frain thinks she’s found the perfect a live-in nanny position in a sprawling mansion owned by one of the wealthiest families in the country.

The job seems simple: Take care of Annie Lange.

Annie may look like a grown woman, but she lives inside a world built for a little girl—frilly dresses, scripted games, rigid rules, and what seems like every doll in the world.

As Sam learns the true nature of Annie’s games, she's forced into a waking nightmare of psychological domination, grotesque excess, and carefully curated cruelty. In this gilded cage where money erases morality, survival means choosing whether to resist—or become part of the performance.

Blending the social unease of The Nanny Diaries with the ruthless brutality of Hostel II, In the Dollhouse We All Wait is a harrowing work of extreme horror that explores power, complicity, and the terrifying truth that the rich really are different.

Proudly represented by Torrid Waters, a division of Crystal Lake Publishing—Where Stories Come Alive!

Genres: Horror

311 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 10, 2026

About the author

Amanda M. Blake is a cat-loving daydreamer who enjoys geekery of all sorts, from superheroes to horror movies, urban fantasy to unconventional romance. Born and raised in Texas, Blake attended Trinity University in San Antonio and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English.

Amid dipping tentacles into the sea of gothic and horror short stories and poetry, Blake is also the author of horror novels QUESTION NOT MY SALT, IN THE DOLLHOUSE WE ALL WAIT, and OUT OF CURIOSITY AND HUNGER, horror poetry collections DEAD ENDS and A NIGHTMARE FOR ALL SEASONS, and the fairy tale mash-up Thorns series.

Alt-historical plague novel MASQUE releases in 2027 through Quill & Crow.

For more, visit amandamblake.com.

Reviews

[Michael Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: In The Dollhouse We All Wait
Release: April 10th
Author: Amanda Blake
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Welp, I just read that.

Warning ⛔️: This is a work of extreme horror. Extreme sexual sadism is leveraged in this one, and it’s used masterfully.

I loved the psychological horror elicited through the interactions between Sam and Anna. The concepts of real-life dollhouses, playthings, and how one reaches the pit of such extreme carnal needs are explored in a way that feels both disturbing and compelling. There’s also something to be said about the relationship between pain and finding pleasure, for both the inflictor and the receiver, and how that dynamic unfolds throughout the story.

However, this isn’t simply a depraved story of a serial killer killing and torturing unsuspecting victims. These elements are firmly embedded within a gripping, intentional storyline about survival and healing.

Definitely give this a read if you’re a consumer of extreme horror.

[John Ivery]

In the Dollhouse We All Wait by Amanda M. Blake is a bold and unflinching entry into the realm of extreme horror one that confronts readers with unsettling questions about power, privilege, and human complicity.

From its chilling premise, the novel constructs a claustrophobic world where control is absolute and cruelty is carefully orchestrated. The dynamic between Sam and Annie is particularly disturbing, blending psychological tension with grotesque spectacle in a way that feels both intimate and deeply unsettling.

Blake’s storytelling thrives on discomfort, using the dollhouse setting as a haunting metaphor for manipulation and forced performance. Beneath the brutality lies a sharp critique of wealth and moral detachment, making the narrative not just shocking, but thematically resonant.

The pacing is relentless, pulling readers deeper into a nightmare that is as psychologically suffocating as it is viscerally graphic. This is not a story that offers easy relief it demands endurance, reflection, and a strong stomach.

For fans of splatterpunk and boundary pushing horror, this upcoming release promises a harrowing and unforgettable reading experience that lingers long after the final page.

[Shannon Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Get ready for a thought-provoking experience as this story fearlessly delves into the realm of extreme horror, posing unsettling questions about power, privilege, and human complicity. You may find yourself intensely annoyed with Annie throughout the narrative.

[Ian Gielen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ll admit, I’m not the greatest consumer of extreme horror books. Sometimes I find them a little too much for my delicate sensibilities, but I do occasionally delve into their deranged depths for a change of pace. When the opportunity came to read this one, the synopsis instantly captured my attention, and thus here I am.

Now extreme horror comes in many flavors, and how “extreme” you find them will vary depending on your personal triggers. This one has them in abundance: sexual sadism, torture, dismemberment, nonconsensual sex, and drug use are among them, so if any of those are deal-breakers, this won’t be the book for you.

If you’re comfortable with those elements, then you’ll find a disturbing descent into depravity that doesn’t let up. If that sounds like your cup of tea, you’ll get that with biscuits here.

The novel follows main character, Sam Frain, who’s on her way to start her new job as live-in nanny to a young girl, Annie Lange, the doll obsessed daughter of a wealthy businessman who is going away on a month-long business trip. In exchange, she gets paid $7,000 for the first month and $5,000 for every month thereafter and comes with the bonus of living in a mansion. For someone down on her luck, it’s just too good to pass up, especially with her relationship with her girlfriend back home beginning to fracture.

When Sam arrives, she discovers Annie isn’t a child at all. She’s a grown woman living in a world of perpetual childhood of her own making. And that’s not all. Annie likes to play games, and not the innocent kind. No, these are physically and psychologically torturous. There is a reason why no nanny lasts more than a week. Annie likes to dominate, to live in a world of grotesque excess where there are no limits, as long as she gets what she wants. And Annie always gets what she wants. Sam is no pushover, but she’s soon forced to choose: play along with Annie in her twisted world or become another doll in the dollhouse.

There are some extreme horror books that lean on shock value alone, but this one blends psychological manipulation, the corrupting power of wealth, and moral detachment to create something bigger than the sum of its parts. Sure, there’s mutilation, torture, dismemberment, and sexual depravity, but they’re used to show the unbridled evil that Sam is up against and what she must overcome if she is to survive.

If you’re a fan of the genre, there’s a lot to enjoy here. The pacing never lets up, the atmosphere is tense and harrowing, and the violence, while gruesome and disturbing, doesn’t outstay its welcome.

[Lisa Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is horror.

I have read a lot of horror over the years, and In the Dollhouse We All Wait by Amanda M. Blake is definitively horror on many levels and in many ways. Its status as an extreme horror story is absolute, but there are also pervasive elements of intense psychological horror (inflicted on characters and reader alike!), nightmarish body horror, even a smattering of techno horror. There is something to offend most all your sensibilities, churn your guts, and rack your emotions. But make no mistake; the story is as solid and compelling as it is disturbing and grisly.

It begins almost immediately with a sense of mystery and suspense underlaid with building dread even as it introduces us to Sam. As the story progresses with compelling insistence, the dread builds to bone-chilling, then to outright horror. Graphic horror. Gruesome horror. Then the horror builds from there, and the horrors within multiply and magnify, and you wonder how you will ever get the visuals out of your head. But nothing here is gratuitous.

Blake’s writing is phenomenal. The characters are evocative and vivid, sometimes disturbingly so. The story is relentless, poignant, impactful, visceral, touching on corruption wrought from power and privilege and the horrific things kept secret we don’t want to consider. Interestingly, the conclusion forgoes the easy end in a way that speaks to the realities of terror and process, something not everyone might appreciate but I found gut-clenching. This is extreme horror at its finest, a tale of terror and atrocity that gives no quarter. It’s one of the most twistedly horrifying stories I have read, a highly recommended reading experience, but hardcore extreme horror fans only, please.

A Bibliophilia Templum review
https://bibliophiliatemplum.wordpress.com/2026/04/15/in-the-dollhouse-we-all-wait/

[J.S. Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This book! Once I started it, I couldn't put this psychological / extreme horror novel down and I was entertained from page one until the end. I think what made In the Dollhouse so compelling was that Samantha was such a realistically-drawn character. She was totally relatable and flawed and human and complex. Lately Samantha 'Sam' has been struggling - financially, in her love life, with her family background where too much was put on her shoulders at a young age - and then a dream job at a Dream House lands in her lap right when she needs it.

Let the horror begin. Sam is tasked with being the nanny for an age-regressed woman called Annie. Annie loves dolls. And chocolate milk. And she also loves a whole host of games in her self-designed playrooms that had my eyes bugging out of my head. This is body horror to an extreme. And it's so well written and the characters so nuanced that I wanted to keep reading and see where this story led no matter how dark and depraved it became. Because I was curious about the mystery of the Dream House and held in suspense by Sam's - and all the other staff members' - predicament. I was rooting for Sam and the dolls and teddies and even the playground equipment to somehow survive the pervasive evil of the Dollhouse.

This is well worth a read and perfectly paced as I got to know the protagonist first and come to care about her and then the horror was slowly unveiled until it raced along at breakneck speed until the final showdown. Very gory, very dark, very suspenseful... and it made me ask a lot of questions such as, What would I do in Sam's situation?

Very thought-provoking and clever horror from a talented writer. Recommended!

[Don Anelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty solid extreme novel, so long as the content within here is taken into account. For the most part, the main setup here comes together incredibly well, starting with the arrival at the mansion and learning what the babysitting gig is supposed to contain. This setup involves the different meetings, where her regimented, completely scripted behavior makes it clear why the whole structured environment is necessary to keep her contained; there's a rather solid sense of distrust in the air about what the actual purpose of her visit really is. By the time it starts to become obvious that there's something off and that it slowly becomes a harrowing psychological experience, the more she stays there, eventually becoming far darker as we witness the relationship devolve into a series of torture, mutilation, dismemberment, and sexual degradation.

That's where the main point of contention about this one comes from, as it's either going to be a complete turn-off or something that enhances the story. As we get to learn more about the relationship between the two and how far this goes with the interactions between the two of them, there's a series of scenarios throughout here where the types of games she forces the caretaker to play are designed to be controlling and sexually exploitative situations that are incredibly difficult to get through, regardless of how well-written it all is. The vividness and attention to detail with which the scenarios are written make it quite digestible, even though what's being described is incredibly revolting and cruel to get through, so it's a very difficult situation on display here involving these discomforting attributes that might not be easily accepted by most readers.

4.5/5

[Mieke Janssens · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm impressed!

When Sam gets a job as a nanny to a wealthy girl, she's over the moon. But upon arriving at the mansion, she discovers that the girl, Annie, is actually a grown woman behaving like a child. And that's only the beginning of her problems. Before she knows it, she's caught up in a nightmare, forced to play Annie's evil and extremely cruel games if she wants to survive...

This was an amazing book. It's not just the gore and depravity that make it disturbing—it's the psychological manipulation, abuse of power, and extreme deceit that really elevate the story. This book comes with all the usual triggers: sexual assault, sadism, mutilation, torture... just to name a few—and all of it is very graphic.

It's deeply unsettling, but written in such a compelling way that you can't put it down, even when you might want to just to catch your breath.

This is splatterpunk at its best.

[SeveredTherapy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My god...

This was absolutely incredible. I started it this morning and every possible moment, I'm reading more and more, trying to find out what happens.

This book grabs you by the face, then drags you along through nihilism and bored rich people antics, in the most gruesome of manners. The social commentary smacks you across the face like a barbed-wire sledgehammer, but its appropriate. Theres even a reference to Effrey Jepstein towards the end.

Overall, this was an absolutely phenomenal book and I thoroughly enjoyed it [even more than Ms. Blake's other book, "Question Not My Salt."]

7 out of 5 severed thumbs-up.

[Heather Lachelle Fulmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Insanity and Gore at its finest.

Starts as a nanny job in a mansion. Ends as a full-blown descent into a gilded nightmare.

Annie doesn’t need friends—she needs players.

Sam walks in thinking it’s simple care work and walks straight into psychological rot, power games, and cruelty dressed up like childhood play. The wealth is obscene, the rules are twisted, and nothing in this house is accidental.

Splatterpunk at its most polished and most disturbing. You don’t “read” this—you endure it.

[Mommacat · Rating 5 out of 5]

You wanna read something REALLY scary?

[D Reviews Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sick, twisted, and well-written. I devoured this book and highly recommend it!

[Michael J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t read extreme horror often, but when I do I like it in small doses. If there is too much graphic violence, torture, mutilation, dismemberment, etc. in the story I become numb to the effect and stop worrying for the characters. Sometimes, if I feel the book lacks a point and is just a platform for more of the same extremes - - - then I do not finish.

Consider this a friendly bit of information to share with those readers who are faint-hearted or become greatly disturbed or nauseous/sick when reading extreme horror. There are many bothersome scenes in this novel. In my experience with this genre of horror, IN THE DOLLHOUSE WE ALL WAIT would be a book that I wouldn’t recommend to anyone just dipping their toes in the water to see if the temperature is warm enough to go in further. However, it would be the one extreme horror novel I would recommend once they weren’t afraid to keep swimming in these waters.

I knew before I started reading this novel what I was getting into. But, once my sense of comfort with main character Sam (Samantha Frain) was in place it was the point at which the intensity began, and the scenes did not stop and the ferocity increased. But, I did not stop reading. Each scene revealed a little more of what was going on behind the curtains and provided more detail on the home, the character of the adult in young girl clothing Annie Lange, and the purpose of it all. I had to know what would become of Sam and hoped for a happy outcome.

In an article written by author Amanda M. Blake for Crystal Lake Publishing she says: “DOLLHOUSE demanded an unflinching look at Annie’s terrible dollhouse. No matter where the story led me, I forced myself to look.” That’s what happened to me - - I kept looking, right until the last page.

Blake continued: “When I write stories like this, it can actually sink me deeper into my natural depression, so I have to be careful with myself. I’m sitting with all those awful feelings a lot longer while writing than you do while reading. DOLLHOUSE was no exception. DOLLHOUSE makes you sit with your discomfort a lot longer.”

It’s hard to read this novel and not think of the current cover-up situation regarding Epstein Island. In the same article, Blake mentions this and reveals that she did not intend any social commentary. That was not the inspiration for the novel. It was her own collection and love of dolls and other factors that led to the novel being (in her words) “a dip into nihilism, childish tantrums without consequence, and wealth rot well before we got hit with the full consequences of the power these people have acquired and consolidated.”

Still, estate owner Harold Lange and his malicious daughter Annie reminded me of Jeffrey and Ghislaine Maxwell. However, by comparison Epstein and Maxwell’s immoral sex trafficking are quite mild when you consider the levels to which the Langes took this and treated human beings as possessions and toys. Children sometimes break their toys.

I received an advance digital review copy of this novel from Crystal Lake Publishing without obligation to review.

[Elaine Pascale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I accepted the assignment of reading In The Dollhouse We All Wait, I encountered a very long list of trigger warnings. Having read Blake’s Question Not My Salt, I knew what to expect in terms of violence and sex of a graphic nature. Having read Blake’s Question Not My Salt, I was eager to begin this new novel.

And I was not disappointed. Blake’s writing, while not for the faint of heart, is top notch. Her descriptions are admirably vivid and they place you smack in the center of the action. Like Question Not My Salt, In the Dollhouse We All Wait is a page turner and one that casts a dubious eye on the upper class.

Hired Nanny Sam learns quickly that the rich are not like us once she is brought to the “Dream House” where she meets her ward Annie. Annie dresses like a child, speaks like a child, but is very much not a child and with dark desires befitting the most evil of adults. Sam soon realizes that the Dream House is truly a house of horrors.

This book could not be more timely with its focus on the horrific acts the elite perform in the shadows (and get away with precisely because they are the elite).

I am a fan of Blake’s work and look forward to reading more from her catalogue.

[Bree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Step into Annie's world at the Dream House.

For Sam, being hired as a nanny for a rich family is a dream come true. But as soon as she meets Annie, she realizes that not everything is as it seems. This book was so powerful in its descriptions that I felt nauseated, scared, and claustrophobic at times. This author knows exactly what she is doing, and she does it entirely too well!

So , come and play with Annie and her dolls. She might even show you around the repair room or the barre room..its almost like you could play forever....

[Blair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Depraved, horrifying, disturbing.
A gruesome extreme horror that almost gave me Human Centipede vibes. This had body horror, erotic horror, psychological horror, gore, and so much more. I kept thinking "things can't possibly get worse" and then they did.

[Ann Keeran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will definitely get under your skin! Now that you have been warned, don't waste another minute. Grab your Kindle or paperback and start on your journey to the dollhouse. You're welcome!