Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

75 reviews

mcmolls's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I had a hard time getting into this, for several reasons. The tense relationship between the two main characters (siblings) hit a little too close to home, and the first half of the book is a very slow burn. I'm glad I stuck with it, though, because once it picks up, it absolutely takes off. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, Blood, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death of parent

vixenreader's review

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced

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

4.25

An exciting, and yet heartfelt, horror novel of how failing to address the grievances of the past will come back to haunt generations to come. Plus if you are afraid of dolls and puppets, this book is nightmare-fuel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child death, Gun violence, Vomit, Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Minor: Racism, Xenophobia, Pregnancy, and War

Be aware that this book features estrangement within families, unstable sibling relationships, unresolved generational trauma, children drowning, cult-like behaviour, 9/11 and the Iraq War, bad exes, mother-daughter relationships, sewing needles as weapons, eyeball trauma, and killer dolls/puppets/imaginary dogs.

allisonsmith120's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Self harm, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting

Minor: Animal death, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

sheebsbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Cursing, Gun violence, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

elindseyr190's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, Grief, and Death of parent

Moderate: Child death, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting

meganmoisant's review

dark tense

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Medical content, Car accident, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and War

shubka's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

3.75

This book definitely makes me never want to be around puppets or dolls ever again! Full of twists & turns I never could have guessed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Gore, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Torture, Grief, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship

leastrawberryfields's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting

kaneebli's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

3.0

weird

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Abandonment

liahopkins's review

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? Yes

5.0

Grady Hendrix you are a fucking genius. It's my third book of his that I have read, and it was so good, just a smidge behind my best friends excorcism. At first, I was a bit put off by the puppets, because they kept creating this image of a low budget horror movie in my head, with mediocre acting, shaky cameras and excessively dramatic music. But that's just the charm of Grady Hendrix's writing: it's bizarre and wild and full of blood and gore, and you're jaw keeps dropping because you can't believe the crazy shit that's happening, and then he hits you with the most heartbreaking, raw family conflicts and feelings, that feel so honest and human. The way the characters process their grief in this book is so well-done and real, and the last chapter just pulls at your heartstrings in the most perfect way. Finishing this book definitely was my last straw on my route to becoming a full-blown Grady Hendrix fangirl.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Gore, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Self harm, and Car accident

Minor: Vomit and Gaslighting