erinlynneee's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
reformed_geek's review against another edition
4.0
I saw a lot of the major plot twists and turns coming, but that didn't massively impact my enjoyment of a well-written, if by the numbers, haunted house book.
A horror content producer known for his publicity stunts invites four successful horror authors to a webcast roundtable interview at a supposed haunted house is the hook that pulled me into the book and it delivered on this concept. While I worked out the direction the story was going in, it didn't really impact my enjoyment of the ride.
The characters aren't the most inspired creations and the protagonist feels like he might well be an author surrogate. The novel isn't a particularly scary read. There is some creepy stuff, but a lot of the horror comes from acts of violence. I will also say the finale is slightly muddled - the location, timing, and movement of the characters aren't always very clear and there is a lot going on.
Scott Thomas has a background in writing teleplays and that certainly comes through in the book which feels like it was written to be adapted into a movie.
A horror content producer known for his publicity stunts invites four successful horror authors to a webcast roundtable interview at a supposed haunted house is the hook that pulled me into the book and it delivered on this concept. While I worked out the direction the story was going in, it didn't really impact my enjoyment of the ride.
The characters aren't the most inspired creations and the protagonist feels like he might well be an author surrogate. The novel isn't a particularly scary read. There is some creepy stuff, but a lot of the horror comes from acts of violence. I will also say the finale is slightly muddled - the location, timing, and movement of the characters aren't always very clear and there is a lot going on.
Scott Thomas has a background in writing teleplays and that certainly comes through in the book which feels like it was written to be adapted into a movie.
unsarahble's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Fatphobia, Grief, Death, Gore, Violence, Murder, Death of parent, and Suicide
Moderate: Car accident
wuchtorff's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
pbanditp's review against another edition
5.0
Classic haunted house story. Part Hell House and part Haunting of Hill House making for total entertainment. I don’t know why I took so long to get to this, all I’ve heard is good things so I’m glad that I stoped procrastinating. Great characters and an interesting storyline keep you glued to the page.
inkedwxtchreads's review against another edition
3.0
The epilogue is the thing that solidified this as a solid 3 star. Before that, everything was kinda everywhere for me. This book went anywhere from a 1 to a 5 star at different points for me. When it was good it was pretty good…. When it was bad it was pretty bad. But thankfully the good outweighed the bad to an extent. Not much though.
What this boils down to for me is I largely preferred the moments they were actually in the house. Especially the first time they were in it. The second time I liked it… but idk not as much. I think because the second time there wasn’t as much petty drama as there was the first time with the interview. Which is strange to say since the second time was basically a bloodbath lol. But yeah I really enjoyed the atmosphere of that first time , since they didn’t trust each other as much. The stakes felt high and I was genuinely nervous, not sure what would happen. It had atmosphere.
Then they left the house and the atmosphere was completely gone. I do enjoy the original take to a ghost story, where they get out and are still tormented until they go back essentially. But idk I guess I just wasn’t a fan of the execution?
Also wasn’t a big fan of the type of ghost story this was. I can definitely see why people like it… but it’s just not my taste. I really didn’t find it scary in any regard. Dark maybe? But not as scary as people say. The build up to the scary moments was lacking.
I loved the characters all individually, despite all of them being cliches , but I do kinda side eye the way the author approached the overweight character. He focused so much on his weight that at times it felt like it was no longer for the story and we were just getting glimpses of how he feels about overweight people? He had to mention Daniel being fat constantly. “Daniel moved his fat hand” “Daniel turned his super big body”. Idk just doesn’t sit right with me.
I really loved wainwright’s character in the beginning. He had the potential to be a super villain lol. But Sam was definitely my favorite. Hated Moore at first because the book started her as nothing more than an angry feminist. But that changed later as she developed and she grew on me. Sebastian and Kate were likable… but were also just kinda there.
I thought some of the book kinda dragged honestly and I don’t really think the parts that were supposed to be paranormal were very scary at all. They really lacked the atmosphere and tension build up. Which is weird because I know Thomas is capable.
In the first half of the book he had me on the edge of my seat a few times. So what happened? Can’t really put my finger on it.
The last two pages had hints of that atmosphere back, and managed to actually be spooky. So for that, it’s not a two star lol.
I feel like Thomas went for the shining type vibes with this. It just wasn’t as strong. Maybe if it was longer? But at the same time I definitely didn’t want this to be longer while reading it haha.
I will give it props because I was wrong about what I thought was going on. So it tricked me. But the sad part about that is… I wish I was right because I would have preferred the story to go in that direction anyway.
At the end of the day I don’t think they should have ever left the house. I get what was trying to be done with that…. But it took me out of it majorly.
What this boils down to for me is I largely preferred the moments they were actually in the house. Especially the first time they were in it. The second time I liked it… but idk not as much. I think because the second time there wasn’t as much petty drama as there was the first time with the interview. Which is strange to say since the second time was basically a bloodbath lol. But yeah I really enjoyed the atmosphere of that first time , since they didn’t trust each other as much. The stakes felt high and I was genuinely nervous, not sure what would happen. It had atmosphere.
Then they left the house and the atmosphere was completely gone. I do enjoy the original take to a ghost story, where they get out and are still tormented until they go back essentially. But idk I guess I just wasn’t a fan of the execution?
Also wasn’t a big fan of the type of ghost story this was. I can definitely see why people like it… but it’s just not my taste. I really didn’t find it scary in any regard. Dark maybe? But not as scary as people say. The build up to the scary moments was lacking.
I loved the characters all individually, despite all of them being cliches , but I do kinda side eye the way the author approached the overweight character. He focused so much on his weight that at times it felt like it was no longer for the story and we were just getting glimpses of how he feels about overweight people? He had to mention Daniel being fat constantly. “Daniel moved his fat hand” “Daniel turned his super big body”. Idk just doesn’t sit right with me.
I really loved wainwright’s character in the beginning. He had the potential to be a super villain lol. But Sam was definitely my favorite. Hated Moore at first because the book started her as nothing more than an angry feminist. But that changed later as she developed and she grew on me. Sebastian and Kate were likable… but were also just kinda there.
I thought some of the book kinda dragged honestly and I don’t really think the parts that were supposed to be paranormal were very scary at all. They really lacked the atmosphere and tension build up. Which is weird because I know Thomas is capable.
In the first half of the book he had me on the edge of my seat a few times. So what happened? Can’t really put my finger on it.
The last two pages had hints of that atmosphere back, and managed to actually be spooky. So for that, it’s not a two star lol.
I feel like Thomas went for the shining type vibes with this. It just wasn’t as strong. Maybe if it was longer? But at the same time I definitely didn’t want this to be longer while reading it haha.
I will give it props because I was wrong about what I thought was going on. So it tricked me. But the sad part about that is… I wish I was right because I would have preferred the story to go in that direction anyway.
At the end of the day I don’t think they should have ever left the house. I get what was trying to be done with that…. But it took me out of it majorly.
unlyke_li's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
bruises's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
big yawn.