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honnari_hannya's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
Generally don't think YA horror is super effective, but this was one of the most effective I've read yet. For fans that enjoyed the mystery of Rory Power's BURN OUR BODIES DOWN, the protagonists of books like SADIE by Courtney Summers and THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES by Mindy McGinnis, or just the general vibe of Gillian Flynn's SHARP OBJECTS but age-appropriate for an older teen.
The story begins with Jane and her mother, Ruth, leaving sun-soaked California for the bitter cold of Maine after Greer (husband, father, and general impulse-control of the family) dies suddenly. They end up in Ruth's family home, which has been abandoned since Jane's grandmother passed away; Ruth has never been back since she left two decades ago, and Jane has never set foot in her mother's home town. As with all large, creepy houses, strange and inexplicable things begin to happen as dark family secrets slowly get unravelled.
Pros:
- The creepy house is very creepy. I will say that Leno has a very good instinct for writing dread, which absolutely works in her favor when she leans into the horror aspect of this story.
- Jane is such an unlikeable girl and I love that for her. I am always saying that there should be more unlikeable girls—and unlikeable in a not pretty or endearing way—in YA fiction. She is petty, easily angered, kind of standoffish; honestly one of the most believable teenagers I've read in a long while.
- Did I mention creepy house? Well, there are also creepy children.
Cons: To be honest, these are mostly personal pet peeves that other people might not care about but kept me from giving this a 4 star rating.
- The flirting is so cringy... I guess it's believably cringy? I don't know, it wouldn't kill authors to just not have a love interest.
- Leno has a tendency to overemphasize things that she has already made a point of. Whether it's repeating certain phrases, or stating someone's quirks again and again and again. It gets a little bit tiring and I sometimes glazed over it. I felt like if her editor had just cut out those parts, it would take off at least a third of the page count.
- The repetitiveness also had the effect of distancing me from Jane's emotions at times. We kept getting the same phrases and it never felt like her character got much development; her grief was present, but it was flat, which made me less interested overall in her as a character although I still think she counts as a pro of this book.
- A personal thing, but there is something about Leno's writing that I just don't get on with even though I love her ideas. There is always something a little bit off about her pacing for me—its a slow build, which I don't mind and even prefer, but it feels drawn out for no reason for at least half the book. However, I did think the pay off at the end was so much better than the only other book I read from her, which was [b:You Must Not Miss|38446644|You Must Not Miss|Katrina Leno|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1533654006l/38446644._SY75_.jpg|60073699], and she has the potential to become a favorite if only she just pushes her stories just a little bit more to the side of horror. I can tell she wants to.
Mixed feelings on this, but I would definitely pick up another Katrina Leno book if she writes another horror.
Generally don't think YA horror is super effective, but this was one of the most effective I've read yet. For fans that enjoyed the mystery of Rory Power's BURN OUR BODIES DOWN, the protagonists of books like SADIE by Courtney Summers and THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES by Mindy McGinnis, or just the general vibe of Gillian Flynn's SHARP OBJECTS but age-appropriate for an older teen.
The story begins with Jane and her mother, Ruth, leaving sun-soaked California for the bitter cold of Maine after Greer (husband, father, and general impulse-control of the family) dies suddenly. They end up in Ruth's family home, which has been abandoned since Jane's grandmother passed away; Ruth has never been back since she left two decades ago, and Jane has never set foot in her mother's home town. As with all large, creepy houses, strange and inexplicable things begin to happen as dark family secrets slowly get unravelled.
Pros:
- The creepy house is very creepy. I will say that Leno has a very good instinct for writing dread, which absolutely works in her favor when she leans into the horror aspect of this story.
- Jane is such an unlikeable girl and I love that for her. I am always saying that there should be more unlikeable girls—and unlikeable in a not pretty or endearing way—in YA fiction. She is petty, easily angered, kind of standoffish; honestly one of the most believable teenagers I've read in a long while.
- Did I mention creepy house? Well, there are also creepy children.
Cons: To be honest, these are mostly personal pet peeves that other people might not care about but kept me from giving this a 4 star rating.
- The flirting is so cringy... I guess it's believably cringy? I don't know, it wouldn't kill authors to just not have a love interest.
- Leno has a tendency to overemphasize things that she has already made a point of. Whether it's repeating certain phrases, or stating someone's quirks again and again and again. It gets a little bit tiring and I sometimes glazed over it. I felt like if her editor had just cut out those parts, it would take off at least a third of the page count.
- The repetitiveness also had the effect of distancing me from Jane's emotions at times. We kept getting the same phrases and it never felt like her character got much development; her grief was present, but it was flat, which made me less interested overall in her as a character although I still think she counts as a pro of this book.
- A personal thing, but there is something about Leno's writing that I just don't get on with even though I love her ideas. There is always something a little bit off about her pacing for me—its a slow build, which I don't mind and even prefer, but it feels drawn out for no reason for at least half the book. However, I did think the pay off at the end was so much better than the only other book I read from her, which was [b:You Must Not Miss|38446644|You Must Not Miss|Katrina Leno|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1533654006l/38446644._SY75_.jpg|60073699], and she has the potential to become a favorite if only she just pushes her stories just a little bit more to the side of horror. I can tell she wants to.
Mixed feelings on this, but I would definitely pick up another Katrina Leno book if she writes another horror.
l0ss's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Nothing really interesting happened in this book until the last chapter…just a lot of hints at a great mystery instead of actually being a great mystery book.
miss_majuu's review against another edition
4.5
Ohhhh shiiiit
What an ending! What an atmosphere! What a book!
What an ending! What an atmosphere! What a book!
purplepaste's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
lavdisy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.0
First of all, hello?!! what is going on with the ending? I'm totally stunned and left wondering about everything. I think if you were to ask me what a good unhinged ending would be for me, this is one of them. The plot starts with that great opening line, then a house full of mystery and haunted, and the main characters with their weird behavior were something I found very interesting in this book. I really liked how every secret was uncovered along Jane's journey, and how she experienced creepy encounters in her house. Also, the connection to another character was something I didn't expect. Although there were many things I liked about this book, I think it would have been better with longer pages and deeper explanations of some characters, especially about their past. Even so, I enjoyed it. As the title suggests "horrid", yeah, it definitely was a horrid experience reading this.
hgmcghee19's review against another edition
4.0
I finished this in one sitting. I couldn’t stop. It was so good. The ending is a little disappointing and leaves you with questions. Well it left me with questions. Definitely will pick up more from her.
harleyrae's review against another edition
4.0
I have no words for this book. It was a crazy rollercoaster ride. I’m still a little shocked by some of this.
I found this to be an incredibly fast paced and gripping book that had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Unfortunately though I wasn’t a fan of the ending, it just felt like there should have been more.
I found this to be an incredibly fast paced and gripping book that had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Unfortunately though I wasn’t a fan of the ending, it just felt like there should have been more.
linnaboobooks's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars.
The shortest review I can give this is: What the fuck.
The shortest review I can give this is: What the fuck.
janagaton's review against another edition
5.0
Reread 1/5/23: Just as good & creepy as the first time I read it. I love the ominous, ambiguous ending that leaves you asking some questions about what exactly happened, making for a great book club discussion. This is one of the very few books with long chapters that I've easily flown through twice now. The reveals are done spectacularly, and the eerie goings-on throughout the house are so well-executed without the predictable cringe. This is how all YA horror should be, and I will die on this hill.
First time reading 11/27/20: One of the weirdest books I've ever read but actually loved! Haha, I wasn't expecting it to be a paranormal story, but it most definitely was. It's dark, it's atmospheric, and it's all kinds of messed up, which made for such a quick, captivating read from beginning to end.
First time reading 11/27/20: One of the weirdest books I've ever read but actually loved! Haha, I wasn't expecting it to be a paranormal story, but it most definitely was. It's dark, it's atmospheric, and it's all kinds of messed up, which made for such a quick, captivating read from beginning to end.