mehsi's review
5.0
Tabitha moves into a beautiful new home… but finds out that things go bump in the night. And day.
A very spooky ghost story and I am glad I decided on re-reading it. I wish I could have finished it yesterday (August 20th) as I just had 60 pages left after one and a half hours of reading, but I just was too tired (and it was way too late). So today for breakfast it was the right time to continue!
The house was just spooky and NOPE as hell, I mean slit-eyes ghosts? NO THANK YOU. Weird smells. Nope. Weird shapes flashes past you in the shadows? WELP NO. And no one believes you (which is a really tiring trope, especially given what we find out later). I loved reading about the house, about the dark corners, the spooky things that went on, the graves in the backyard, the little pet cemetery, the bells. Shadows lurking. The author did an amazing job on writing the creepy parts. While everyone treats Tabitha like she is off her rocker, I knew that what she saw was true. We see that during some of the more NOPE moments she also gets heavy nosebleeds, poor girl. At first things just happen in the house, and Tabitha is mostly safe in the flat in the house. But after a while we see that things go from OK to NOPE even there.
Next to the haunting we see that her parents struggle. We her father flirt with the receptionist (bah) and even more than that. We see how mom is struggling with staying alive as she is dealing with depression. There are hints to something that happened before the events of this book.
A warning for cheating. I would have divorced if my husband did that, I just wouldn’t be able to trust him. Thanks to my ex who cheated on me twice, now I just don’t believe cheaters can be trustful any more. Who is to say that when the next hot person hops by they won’t go for it?
I had a big suspicion about Ben from quite early on, I am not sure if it is because I read the book 8 years ago, or if it just was that obvious, but either way, I was looking forward to that reveal… and if Tabitha knows. Later on in the last part of the book we find out what happened to poor Ben…
I have to say the ending was a bit lacklustre, it just felt a bit incomplete. But I do get the meaning behind it. It just felt as if it came out of nowhere. But I am happy with it, happy for the family. Happy for Tabitha.
But all in all, this is one of my favourite books and I even updated my rating to be 5+ stars as it definitely deserves it. Sometimes I re-read books and find out that I like them less, this one I just liked more. I cannot wait to read it again in a couple of years.
I would highly recommend this spooky book to all.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
A very spooky ghost story and I am glad I decided on re-reading it. I wish I could have finished it yesterday (August 20th) as I just had 60 pages left after one and a half hours of reading, but I just was too tired (and it was way too late). So today for breakfast it was the right time to continue!
The house was just spooky and NOPE as hell, I mean slit-eyes ghosts? NO THANK YOU. Weird smells. Nope. Weird shapes flashes past you in the shadows? WELP NO. And no one believes you (which is a really tiring trope, especially given what we find out later). I loved reading about the house, about the dark corners, the spooky things that went on, the graves in the backyard, the little pet cemetery, the bells. Shadows lurking. The author did an amazing job on writing the creepy parts. While everyone treats Tabitha like she is off her rocker, I knew that what she saw was true. We see that during some of the more NOPE moments she also gets heavy nosebleeds, poor girl. At first things just happen in the house, and Tabitha is mostly safe in the flat in the house. But after a while we see that things go from OK to NOPE even there.
Next to the haunting we see that her parents struggle. We her father flirt with the receptionist (bah) and even more than that. We see how mom is struggling with staying alive as she is dealing with depression. There are hints to something that happened before the events of this book.
A warning for cheating. I would have divorced if my husband did that, I just wouldn’t be able to trust him. Thanks to my ex who cheated on me twice, now I just don’t believe cheaters can be trustful any more. Who is to say that when the next hot person hops by they won’t go for it?
I had a big suspicion about Ben from quite early on, I am not sure if it is because I read the book 8 years ago, or if it just was that obvious, but either way, I was looking forward to that reveal… and if Tabitha knows. Later on in the last part of the book we find out what happened to poor Ben…
I have to say the ending was a bit lacklustre, it just felt a bit incomplete. But I do get the meaning behind it. It just felt as if it came out of nowhere. But I am happy with it, happy for the family. Happy for Tabitha.
But all in all, this is one of my favourite books and I even updated my rating to be 5+ stars as it definitely deserves it. Sometimes I re-read books and find out that I like them less, this one I just liked more. I cannot wait to read it again in a couple of years.
I would highly recommend this spooky book to all.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
blackcatkai's review
2.0
Just because a book is meant for younger people, doesn't mean you should let so many grammatical errors into your novel. Was this even sent through an editor? It was entertaining enough, but the characters kind of sucked and everything felt kind of.....rushed and just slapped together with no real connection. The end felt like a sudden cop-out. I don't exactly recommend it, but it was far from the worst book I've ever read.....
_michelle_'s review
Abandoned by page 50-something. It's a bit more juvenile and squeaky-clean than I thought it was going to be. After [b:The Wardstone Chronicles|298567|Revenge of the Witch (The Last Apprentice / Wardstone Chronicles, #1)|Joseph Delaney|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1381497933s/298567.jpg|3496896] by [a:Joseph Delaney|146374|Joseph Delaney|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1376358484p2/146374.jpg], a horror series that technically falls into MG even if it's on the mature end of that demographic, I find my expectations to be higher than this; and not just for MG horror/ghost stories, but YA and adult, too. The more I read, the more I'm exposed to authors who can do awesome things with precious little; I want it, I expect it. Sadly, this didn't have it.
nilghias's review
1.0
It was a grand book but it just wasn't for me. I ended up flipping through the pages just getting the major points and skipping most of it. Didn't expect the twist at the end, although I feel like the story wasn't too great over all.
emmallucas's review
2.0
It's difficult with this book. It started alright but then it got really boring and unbelievable,quite stereotypical. However I never don't finish a book so I stayed around till the end. The end is the only reason it has two stars it was such a shock and it saved the book.
thebookaddictedgirl's review
4.0
4¼ Out of 5
Tabitha Grey and her family are moving into Weston Manor house, where her dad is to be Keeper. Tabs should be thrilled - after all, the house is gorgeous and a real piece of history. Only she has this feeling, like something's wrong with the house. Like something's waiting for her.
Tabitha's creative, but she isn't imagining the chills, the people no one else can see, the sounds only she can hear.
But no one will believe her. Even though she's sure she's right this time. Can she convince her family before it’s too late, before they fall apart?
I do love ghost stories and The Haunting of Tabitha Grey was a great one! Full of suspense, ghosts and mystery, I was just sucked in and couldn't stop reading! It was spooky, I just felt chills as I read, felt terrified for Tabitha. Although it wasn't that fast to begin with, that really just cranked the suspense up. I loved this - I couldn't stop reading. It was so chilling, so vivid, so real and so utterly creepy. Oh yes: This book was spooktastic!
The characters were all really believable and real. Tabitha was so very teenagery – snarky, stubborn confident and brilliantly odd. With her need to know everything, all the time, she kinda reminded me of me – I’m the embodiment of ‘curiosity killed the cat!’ But back to Tabs, she was the strongest person ever and I felt seriously furious when no one believed her, left her to be terrified on her own. Ben, Tabitha’s little brother, was really shy and sweet and innocent… Her mum was a little head-in-the-clouds – she was depressed in the past and we didn’t find out why for aaggeess… Tabs’ dad was shockingly unobservant and very logical. Now her Gran I really loved, even though she wasn’t really in the story! And all the family relationships wee rather dysfunctional, though you could see they all loved each other very much. Every single member seemed to have one issue or another, be it depression, over-active imagination or whatever. All the members were also so real, all their own people, like real live family members.
And I adored Curtis’ writing – it was beautiful and so utterly teen. I could see everything in my head (and loved the creepy, beautiful and mysterious setting), but the writing wasn’t overwhelming and didn’t slow the pace in the slightest. And the plot, in one word, was creepy! I was drawn right in from the first page and just was never let go! I loved all the spooky, ghostly going ons and all the family issues too. And while I had suspicions about how everything would end, I really and seriously did not see that last twist coming! It left me reeling!
One haunted manor house, a family on the brink of collapse, a girl seeing ghosts with no one who believes her... The Haunting of Tabitha Grey was amazing, shocking, twisty and just plain spooky! I was addicted from start to finish. I can't wait to read something else by Curtis! I love her writing and imagination!
Tabitha Grey and her family are moving into Weston Manor house, where her dad is to be Keeper. Tabs should be thrilled - after all, the house is gorgeous and a real piece of history. Only she has this feeling, like something's wrong with the house. Like something's waiting for her.
Tabitha's creative, but she isn't imagining the chills, the people no one else can see, the sounds only she can hear.
But no one will believe her. Even though she's sure she's right this time. Can she convince her family before it’s too late, before they fall apart?
I do love ghost stories and The Haunting of Tabitha Grey was a great one! Full of suspense, ghosts and mystery, I was just sucked in and couldn't stop reading! It was spooky, I just felt chills as I read, felt terrified for Tabitha. Although it wasn't that fast to begin with, that really just cranked the suspense up. I loved this - I couldn't stop reading. It was so chilling, so vivid, so real and so utterly creepy. Oh yes: This book was spooktastic!
The characters were all really believable and real. Tabitha was so very teenagery – snarky, stubborn confident and brilliantly odd. With her need to know everything, all the time, she kinda reminded me of me – I’m the embodiment of ‘curiosity killed the cat!’ But back to Tabs, she was the strongest person ever and I felt seriously furious when no one believed her, left her to be terrified on her own. Ben, Tabitha’s little brother, was really shy and sweet and innocent… Her mum was a little head-in-the-clouds – she was depressed in the past and we didn’t find out why for aaggeess… Tabs’ dad was shockingly unobservant and very logical. Now her Gran I really loved, even though she wasn’t really in the story! And all the family relationships wee rather dysfunctional, though you could see they all loved each other very much. Every single member seemed to have one issue or another, be it depression, over-active imagination or whatever. All the members were also so real, all their own people, like real live family members.
And I adored Curtis’ writing – it was beautiful and so utterly teen. I could see everything in my head (and loved the creepy, beautiful and mysterious setting), but the writing wasn’t overwhelming and didn’t slow the pace in the slightest. And the plot, in one word, was creepy! I was drawn right in from the first page and just was never let go! I loved all the spooky, ghostly going ons and all the family issues too. And while I had suspicions about how everything would end, I really and seriously did not see that last twist coming! It left me reeling!
One haunted manor house, a family on the brink of collapse, a girl seeing ghosts with no one who believes her... The Haunting of Tabitha Grey was amazing, shocking, twisty and just plain spooky! I was addicted from start to finish. I can't wait to read something else by Curtis! I love her writing and imagination!
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