Reviews

The Suffering by MJ Mars

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tabithathewitch's review

5.0

This book is everything a spooky horror book should be. Haunted houses, ghosts, gore, cursed families, the whole nine yards!

mars243's review

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4.0

Kyle's family left him the Brackenby house while he was in school. The house is very large and has been in their family for years. Many haunted stories surround the house name, however, Kyle is elated that a handful of his friends choose to live with him there, despite the rumors.
All is well until it isn't. A seance turns the house upside down and ghosts of the past start showing themselves. The group of friends must track down who all of the ghosts are, what they want, and how to banish them from the house before it's too late. These ghosts are unlike most. Each has chosen a certain houseguest to invade, manipulate, corrupt and change causing suffering in many ways.
Will Kyle and his friends be able to solve these mysteries and put an end to the torturous game these ghosts are playing?

M. J. Mars created a great haunted house story with a twist. One where each houseguest is haunted by their own ghost. The novel follows each character individually to show the suffering they are put through by these unwanted guests. This gives the reader the ability to put themselves in each characters shoes.
The story is full of twists and past/present stories. The Suffering is engaging which ensures the reader keeps turning the pages to learn more.
This is my first book by M. J. Mars and I doubt it will be the last.

the_restricted_section's review

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

As I was nearing the end of this book with only pages to go, I was going to rate it a solid 4 stars. As I read the last page, I decided to change it to 5.
Solid storyline and very well written characters. The character development is definitely the story's strength. I found them all very real and relatable.
Definitely spooky. I found myself more than a few times unable to walk through my house without turning on all of the lights. Normal sounds around my house were making me jumpy and on edge.
Great book that I highly recommend!

lauren0danielle's review

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5.0

This was so incredibly fun. Scary, yes absolutely. But fun in a way the best horror movies of our adolescence are fun. I usually take a few days to read the first 50% of a book and then a single night to finish it. This was the opposite. I read nearly half of it the night I picked it up, and purposely paced my reading after that because I did not want it to end. Delightful.