pipbiz's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
amywoolsey_93's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
rockhoppingpenguin's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
jshep77's review
4.0
This book kept me intrigued from the start. It wasn't as scary as I had hoped but definitely creepy.
tgwilliams's review against another edition
3.0
A great classic that mostly holds up despite it’s age. Similar feel as The Shining, which was written after Burnt Offerings. Short read, highly recommend.
lpreads22's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Very, very slow burn. However, once you get into the action, you start to question your own perception of what’s unfolding on the pages in front of you.
hekate24's review
3.0
Popsugar 2021 reading challenge: The book on your TBR list with the ugliest cover
Haha I feel so mean for that. The cover is basically fine but it’s just so, so 70s and I don’t really like 70s aesthetic.
I had a longer review for this one but I accidentally clicked out of it and I don’t feel strongly enough about it to recreate the review. I think this ended up on my TBR shelf because it kept coming up in reviews of terrible haunted house books like Kill Creek. As in “forget this one, just go and read Burnt Offerings instead” type comments. My interest was peaked.
Anyway, this is was a pleasant enough start to spooky season. There are many moments in this book where I was like “is this making a point about XYZ or is really just that reactionary?” and I never could decide. Maybe a bit of both. This is a fun take on a haunted house though (“malevolent house” might be a better term for the entity at play here.) There were parts of it that felt so much like the horror/fantastical version of my intrusive thoughts that horror moments somehow looped around into being comforting.
All in all an interesting experience and I can see why this book was influential even if this isn’t a favorite or anything.
Haha I feel so mean for that. The cover is basically fine but it’s just so, so 70s and I don’t really like 70s aesthetic.
I had a longer review for this one but I accidentally clicked out of it and I don’t feel strongly enough about it to recreate the review. I think this ended up on my TBR shelf because it kept coming up in reviews of terrible haunted house books like Kill Creek. As in “forget this one, just go and read Burnt Offerings instead” type comments. My interest was peaked.
Anyway, this is was a pleasant enough start to spooky season. There are many moments in this book where I was like “is this making a point about XYZ or is really just that reactionary?” and I never could decide. Maybe a bit of both. This is a fun take on a haunted house though (“malevolent house” might be a better term for the entity at play here.) There were parts of it that felt so much like the horror/fantastical version of my intrusive thoughts that horror moments somehow looped around into being comforting.
All in all an interesting experience and I can see why this book was influential even if this isn’t a favorite or anything.
marplatense's review against another edition
4.0
I will tell you the story of this place, where a family decides to stay for a few months. You see, this place, that the family agreed to take care of during their stay, is haunted and in order to stay alive, it requires certain sacrifices from the family...