Reviews

House of Secrets by Darcy Coates

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billybolt12's review against another edition

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dark emotional fast-paced

5.0

literaryland_livin's review against another edition

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4.0

Ghosts and Shadows series review

Sophie’s high Society life comes crashing down when her father reveals the secret of the families bankruptcy. Just as she is left reeling from this revelation her world is further rocked by the marriage proposal from a wealthy stranger, Mr. Argenton. The arrangement promises to help provide for Sophie’s family and siblings so yes becomes her only answer. Once in her new home of Northwood, Sophie begins to see haunting visions of blood dripping from the ceilings and inhuman beings stalking the manor’s grounds at night. Sophie now seemly trapped in her incredibly isolated home must not only fight to survive the ancient haunted halls, but also find a way to escape its deadly grasp forever.

I live for a haunted house story especially the ones of the gothic variety! From the moment poor ill fated Sophie steps foot on Mr. Argenton’s land I was feeling intense Crimson Peak vibes which is one of my absolute favorite movies of all time! The haunting solitude is painted perfectly in both of these novels which truly enhances the overall uneasy and creepy feel of the series. I read both works mostly at night which made every tense ghost field scene more frightening. What I hadn’t suspected going into the series was for it to have such a sweet romantic aspect to it. I was more than happy with this addition as again this truly helps the series fit into the gothic horror genre. The only complaint I have if one at all would have to be the cliffhanger ending of House of Shadows. As such I highly suggest having both works in your possession when beginning this series. Book 2 House of Secrets dives into the afflictions history that haunts the Argenton’s family and how to combat against it in greater detail than its predecessor which I truly enjoyed. Overall this series had all the old-fashioned ghostly horror I was looking for in a spooky read. I loved every second of these classic gothic haunted mysteries and recommend them to anyone who is looking for a quick, fast paced haunting period piece series that will leave you questioning all the creaks you hear in the night.

chelcyreads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

laura_hart15's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

3.75

The storyline is very simplistic, but it was still very enjoyable. Had enough dark and suspenseful moments to keep me on edge. But not too dark.

Content Warnings

pinkpassionpages's review against another edition

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4.0

3.5 stars out of 5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

'House of secrets' is the second book in the 'house of shadows'-series. A series that tells the story about a monster that had a deal with the Argenton family. In book 2 the reader discovers that it all isn't over.

For years I've loved the ghost tale 'the woman in black'. An older story that totally grabbed my attention when I first read it. The 'house of shadow' series, reminds me of that story. I normally don't read gothic romance, so it's very new to me.
However, this author is amazing with words. The writing style is ideal for the genre: dark, subtle, but still filled with emotion. It took a while this time before the story really 'started'. The first fifty pages ware a bit long-winded. After that, the story went very fast. I felt like that balance was better in book one. I still enjoyed it anyway. The second book came up with lots of new elements. Very unique plot twists were added where needed. Which made me want to continue.
It's a happy ending, even when I hoped it wouldn't be one. It's a closed ending too, but I would love to read the third book. The characters a so lovely and I don't want to say goodbye yet. To me, the characters were stronger in book one. Now they lost a little of their spoken personalities.
Oh besides, I adore the twist with the old lady from the house. It was such a guess If she would be on their side or not.

To be honest: just read this series because it's absolutely amazing!