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House on Fire Paperback – March 31, 2023

by D. Liebhart (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 988 ratings
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How far would you go to keep a promise?

Bernadette Rogers swore she’d never put her father in a nursing home. Does that include euthanizing him to keep her word? Her mother thinks it does. Bernadette isn’t so sure. And even if she were, it’s not like you can walk into a drug store and buy Nembutal.

As an ICU nurse she’s no stranger to the blunt realities of death, but her mother’s request to help her father—who’s disappearing into the abyss of dementia—go “peacefully” blindsides her. Her mother thinks it’s assisted suicide. Bernadette knows better. Even if they do it for all the right reasons, it would still be murder.

Surrounded by conflicting voices, Bernadette doesn't know which way to turn. Her self-righteous sister insists it's a sin. Her magnanimous ex thinks her mother will try it alone. Then her best friend offers to help. What was supposed to be a relaxing two-week break becomes an emotional rollercoaster as Bernadette is forced to make an agonizing decision about her beloved father and figure out just how far she’s willing to go for love.

For fans of Jodi Picoult and Lisa Genova, House on Fire is an unforgettable story of family, friendship, and the promises we aren’t sure anyone should honor.

  • WINNER Fiction Book - Pager Turner Awards
  • WINNER Women’s Fiction - Pager Turner Awards
  • WINNER Best Debut - Pager Turner Awards
  • WINNER Contemporary Novel - Firebird Awards
  • HONORABLE MENTION Fiction - Writer's Digest
  • LONG-LISTED - Petrichor Prize for Finely Crafted Fiction
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    282 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    March 31, 2023
  4. Dimensions
    5.25 x 0.64 x 8 inches
  5. ISBN-13
    979-8987461518
  6. See all details
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From the Publisher

2022 Petrichor Prize Long-Listed

My heart was hooked.

One of the best books I've read this year.

Intense, honest, and funny.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"We often think we know what we'd do in difficult situations-and we're often wrong. D. Liebhart's vivid, beautifully written story explores what happens when a dutiful daughter is forced to deal with a hypothetical agreement that becomes all too real. I was riveted from the first page of this novel to its explosive conclusion."

-Camille Pagán, bestselling author of Good for You


"Are you a good daughter? Please read House on Fire before you answer that question! This novel explores a topic that touches all of us, but like all great storytellers, D. Liebhart does so while keeping us on the edge of our seats and making us question what's right and what's wrong in ways we never could imagine. This story is intense, honest, and funny--because sometimes life hits you so hard all you can do is laugh. What a page-turner!"

--Arielle Eckstut, author of The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published


"In HOUSE ON FIRE, D. Liebhart mines her experience as an ICU nurse to craft a gripping tale that delves into the devastating toll dementia takes on a family. Exploring the complexities of caring for aging parents while trying to shepherd a child with unique needs through adolescence, the author deftly lights a series of sparks that smolder throughout the story. Timely and relatable, the novel teems with gorgeous lines and keen observations. Readers will identify with Liebhart's main character, Bernadette Rogers, who somehow maintains her humor and keeps her cool while everything around her goes up in flames."

-Liz Alterman, author of The Perfect Neighborhood & Sad Sacked


"A beautiful story of family ties and the secrets we keep in the name of love. The perfect amount of tension and suspense woven into a narrative bursting with emotion. Grateful to have read an advanced copy! I loved the relationship between the adult children and their aging parents... made me really think of 'what ifs' and appreciate what I have. Great read, definitely recommend!"

-Jen Craven, Author of Best Years of your Life


From the Author

The inspiration (even though that's totally the wrong word for it) for House on Fire is rather obviously my own experience with dementia. My father suffered with the condition for more than ten years. My mother took care of him at home for a long time but he ended up in assisted living for the last five years of his life, when it became impossible for him to be cared for at home. My mother visited him daily. The only times she didn't visit him was when she herself was in the hospital.

My dad first started showing signs of dementia a couple of years before my daughter was born so maybe 2003. It's amazing how many families see signs of some kind of deterioration that they can't put an accurate label on. My husband and I were living abroad and every year when we came back to America we'd stay at my parents' house. After one such visit, my father sent me an angry letter about how ungrateful we'd been on our last stay: We made jokes about the LA heat and the truck he lent us that had a broken air conditioner (it was 102). We didn't buy my mother flowers (we took them out to dinner). We didn't wear our shoes in the house (we were living in Japan at the time).

Despite the fact that this whole thing was totally out of character, we all responded (including my mother) as if it were "normal" in the sense that none of us ever thought there was something wrong with my dad's brain that might be causing him to act so strangely, which in retrospect I find astonishing. It's not that knowing would've made any difference in the outcome, but knowing might have helped us deal with his increasingly challenging behaviors.

I wrote a letter back apologizing as best I could and asking why he simply hadn't talked to us while we were there. My mother feared that we'd never speak to them again but instead we simply stayed in a hotel the next time we were in town, which was the following year for my father's 70th birthday, where I first announced I was pregnant only to miscarry the very next day.

By the time my parents came to visit us in Japan about a year later, a month after my daughter was born, I think we had a name for what going on. My father had vascular dementia and there was nothing to be done for it. Each time we came back after that, I'd notice a tremendous decrease in my father's overall memory. The most painful was when my daughter was six months old, we'd stayed with my parents for a few weeks, then moved to a hotel so my husband's older daughter could visit and meet her sister for the first time.

We moved down the street less than a half a mile away to the Holiday Inn. I called to let them know we'd gotten settled and were heading to the airport to pick up Jessica. My father answered the phone and said, "When did you get here?" We'd literally just left their house. It was maybe fifteen minutes. I think I felt my heart actually break. For three weeks, they'd taken my daughter for a walk in the stroller every morning. She crawled up the stairs to "read" the paper with them in bed. They doted and fawned over her like all grandparents but for him the weeks we'd stayed with them had vanished in the time in took us to drive a few blocks.

When I visited my mother once my father was in assisted living, I would go with her everyday to see him. We'd often spend the evenings after we'd come back sitting by her pool having a glass of wine. My mother was typically an excessively positive person, always hunting for a silver lining but on those nights, she'd let her guard down and show me a side of herself not many other people got to see. There were two phrases she'd say over and over through the years. "He didn't deserve this" and "If he'd know this was going to happen, he would have blown his brains out." It's that latter one that is the seed for the story that became House on Fire.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0C12D78W5
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ 9:25 Books (March 31, 2023)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 282 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8987461518
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 0.64 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 988 ratings

About the author

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D. Liebhart

D. Liebhart

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D. Liebhart is a nurse and writer. She writes (and sometimes lives) stories about ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, where they learn that life is rarely predictable and answers to life’s most complex questions are almost never black and white.

House on Fire, her debut novel, was long-listed for the 2022 Petrichor Prize. Her essay Thalassophobia (a true account of a very out-of-the-ordinary honeymoon) won the 2021 Linda Julian Creative Nonfiction Prize from Emrys Journal and is now available on her website.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
988 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Michaele A Hooks
5.0 out of 5 stars Surprised
Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2024
Verified Purchase
I really didn't expect to like this book. But the characters were so well developed and the story so real, I couldn't help loving it. I lost my mother to dementia but she was never anything but kind. My father-in-law was getting aggressive, but fell and broke his hip and never recovered. This story was so true to life it was painful. Well written and very true.
2 people found this helpful
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TX granny
4.0 out of 5 stars Thought provoking
Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2024
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I’m an elderly woman with an elderly husband. My mother died in a nursing home from a brain tumor that left her with dementia. So many things in this book were familiar and made me think “What if I’m left in this situation” . Very real and very thought provoking.
2 people found this helpful
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Laurie
5.0 out of 5 stars Touching, emotional story!
Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2024
Verified Purchase
An emotional, touching read on a very tough subject that so many families can unfortunately relate to.
Bernadette, a registered nurse in a trauma unit is asked by her mother on Christmas to help her father die.
How do you do that? Is it ethical?
Would there be guilt?
There is so much to consider and yet while watching and living with a victim of dementia it is overwhelming and so very difficult for all involved.
This is a detailed look into the emotions family see and feel and it is well done!

I was so invested in this story that I read it in a day and I am sure others will too!
One person found this helpful
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AMK
3.0 out of 5 stars Heavy thoughtful story of euthanasia
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2023
This book deals with the emotional issue of euthanasia. Bernadette is an ICU nurse who has vowed never to put her father in a nursing home. But his dementia is so bad the family can’t handle it any more. Her mother wants her to help her father die. She is deeply torn as would any family would be faced with situation. Her sister is involved with her young children and her mother keeps pressuring her. The characters are well developed and real. The story is heart rendering.
2 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Felt like my autobiography
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2024
Verified Purchase
As a nurse with a father in memory care I struggled with all the same issues and thoughts. I wanted to end the financial drain and the emotional strain and guilt my mother felt for leaving him there everyday after visiting.
2 people found this helpful
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Jeanne A. Craig
5.0 out of 5 stars An absorbing story
Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2024
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I loved reading this book with its difficult story. The characters were so likeable that I hated to leave them. but following them, especially Bee as she faced nearly overwhelming obstacles and watching her learn to deal with them made for a very satisfactory read.
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Amie Violet Minken
5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling story of difficult choices
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2023
Verified Purchase
This book was excellent in so many ways. The story is gripping, suspenseful, and fascinating, yet feels just like real life, because each character is multidimensional; written with beautiful qualities but still desperately flawed. The choices offered to the main character, Bernadette, are impossible to make, but even inaction is a choice. There are portions that are poignant and sad and then moments that are so full of joy and humor that you truly feel transported into a complex portion of someone's life. The pacing of the story is superb, and revelation of details from past and present are timed perfectly. The explorations of relationship dynamics are expertly crafted. I couldn't put this one down, and I cannot wait to read this author's next book!
3 people found this helpful
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Tonja Owens
4.0 out of 5 stars Heartbreaking Story
Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2024
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Just finished this book. It is a story of trauma and accidents and misunderstandings. It is a book of how families deal with unforeseen tragedy and work together. It makes you wonder if they did the right things…and leaves you wondering if you would do the same. Highly recommend especially if you are involved in any sort of family trauma.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Sue S
4.0 out of 5 stars a family tale of difficult choices in life
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 6, 2024
Verified Purchase
Bernadette’s life is unconventional in many ways, but life as part of a large, busy and loving family keeps her grounded and secure. When her father develops dementia, things start to unravel and her mother’s request to help him
to die rather than put him in a home raises uncomfortable questions about how any of us can control the end of life. A thoughtful read which makes you consider your own mortality.
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