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euzie's review
3.0
This is one of those 3 1/2 star books.
There was good and bad, a little from column a and a little from column b.
First the good. I got sucked in, the story moved along at a near perfect pace for the most part and as a BIG fan of Shirley Jackson, the stylistic homage was just lovely (I assume it was on purpose, so benefit of the doubt there)
The characters were well drawn out, the dynamic in the house was excellent. It was creepy and as a ghost story all I can say is bravo.
Now the bad.
There were a few lines that seemed so clunkily written i could have screamed. "she switched off the internet and turned on her Microsoft Word program" - ouch.
But that was a small quibble, my main gripe is the ending. Without giving anything away I felt the main ending was rushed and a bit "oh, was that... ah ok?" BUT THE EPILOGUE!! It's almost like she had 2 endings and couldn't work out how to have them both, so it seemed tacked on and rushed. which was a real shame indeed.
Overall though, I still really enjoyed most of it.
There was good and bad, a little from column a and a little from column b.
First the good. I got sucked in, the story moved along at a near perfect pace for the most part and as a BIG fan of Shirley Jackson, the stylistic homage was just lovely (I assume it was on purpose, so benefit of the doubt there)
The characters were well drawn out, the dynamic in the house was excellent. It was creepy and as a ghost story all I can say is bravo.
Now the bad.
There were a few lines that seemed so clunkily written i could have screamed. "she switched off the internet and turned on her Microsoft Word program" - ouch.
But that was a small quibble, my main gripe is the ending. Without giving anything away I felt the main ending was rushed and a bit "oh, was that... ah ok?" BUT THE EPILOGUE!! It's almost like she had 2 endings and couldn't work out how to have them both, so it seemed tacked on and rushed. which was a real shame indeed.
Overall though, I still really enjoyed most of it.
zoe_e_w's review
2.0
House of Fallen Trees is the fourth Gina Ranalli story I've read, but the first that I didn't care for. In fairness, I don't like haunting stories. I don't care for their lack of logic, weak characters, or events that can only be described as "dreamlike" because logic and continuity are both missing from the outset. This book is a habitual offender of all of these flaws, so this is going to come across as a harsh review.
Karen Lewis is a "famous writer" who somehow earns money despite being antisocial and incapable of keeping track of time. She's obsessed over her missing brother, Sean, though they haven't spoken to each other since Karen moved away to become a drunk crazy cat lady, sans the cats. (She keeps pet flames because she's too antisocial for cats.) She's phoned out of her latest daze of writing by a chilling message: two men have the carcass. This makes her think of Sean, and the "haunting message" is so chilling that she...goes back to work on her book.
But then, like a week later, the ghost realizes that Karen is an idiot and gets less subtle. At the same time that the ghost strikes her repeatedly with a clue bat, her missing brother's gay lover calls Karen to let her know that the brother she can't stop thinking about didn't talk about her at all, but he did buy a bed and breakfast in a homophobic and xenophobic redneck town to start a new life away from his homophobic and neglectful parents. (Showing that he has about the same intelligence as his sister.) Though they never made contact before, Sean's lover knows how to contact an antisocial hermit. (Logic? What's that? Sounds foreign.)
Despite being so clueless, Karen decides that she's the only one who can get to the bottom of her brother's disappearance. She takes off for Fallen Trees, Washington, where right off the bat, the locals prove that they can be stereotypical, even if'n they can't rightly spell it. After meeting the local goobers and finding out how friendly they are, Karen goes to a stranger's house and does some drunken talking about her brother with his lover and their handyman, which passes vaguely for character development.
Karen used to have psychic powers with her brother, but only when he was getting his ass kicked. She recalls how this power worked one time, and...gosh, maybe the link is still working, even if Sean is totally dead. I don't know why she'd need a psychic connection, seeing as how the ghost phoned her, sent instant messages, and typed on her laptop. If Sean's lover hadn't phoned with his address, I'm sure the ghost would have revealed the ability to use Google Maps and a printer with wireless networking. But no, Karen gets a psychic connection, I guess because this story wasn't suffering from enough tired haunting clichés yet.
But finally, the trio arrives at the haunted house, which is of course so far away from civilization that "no one can hear you scream." (Or sigh.) Everything that happens after this has already happened in a Hollywood haunting movie. The house is eccentric, as are all ghost story houses. The ghost doesn't have a clue of what subtle means any more than the redneck locals knew the meaning of hospitality. As soon as Karen is alone in the bedroom, the ghost jumps out of hiding with a full CGI special effects extravaganza. What follows is a by the numbers haunting moving in a rapid-fire attempt to generate tension. But it’s all so fast and sloppy that nothing registers. The ending was just as much a disappointment as the beginning and the middle. At no point was I scared, nor even interested in the story or the characters. There's nothing to connect me to events. Stuff happens, and characters change locations, but none of it means anything.
But my biggest complaint is, nothing original was done with the premise. In reading Suicide Girls in the Afterlife, Wall of Kiss, and Swarm of Flying Eyeballs, what made the stories great was a sense of something original and unique being added to the seemingly familiar. Here, the something original is missing, and this reads like a novelized treatment of a Hollywood ghost story. In fact, Karen's insane psychic writer reminds me a lot of Nell from The Haunting. (Well, except Nell had a personality.)
I give House of Fallen Trees two stars and would only suggest it to fans of haunting stories who love pastiche and "dreamlike narratives." Everyone else will find these worn hallways dull and routinely familiar.
Karen Lewis is a "famous writer" who somehow earns money despite being antisocial and incapable of keeping track of time. She's obsessed over her missing brother, Sean, though they haven't spoken to each other since Karen moved away to become a drunk crazy cat lady, sans the cats. (She keeps pet flames because she's too antisocial for cats.) She's phoned out of her latest daze of writing by a chilling message: two men have the carcass. This makes her think of Sean, and the "haunting message" is so chilling that she...goes back to work on her book.
But then, like a week later, the ghost realizes that Karen is an idiot and gets less subtle. At the same time that the ghost strikes her repeatedly with a clue bat, her missing brother's gay lover calls Karen to let her know that the brother she can't stop thinking about didn't talk about her at all, but he did buy a bed and breakfast in a homophobic and xenophobic redneck town to start a new life away from his homophobic and neglectful parents. (Showing that he has about the same intelligence as his sister.) Though they never made contact before, Sean's lover knows how to contact an antisocial hermit. (Logic? What's that? Sounds foreign.)
Despite being so clueless, Karen decides that she's the only one who can get to the bottom of her brother's disappearance. She takes off for Fallen Trees, Washington, where right off the bat, the locals prove that they can be stereotypical, even if'n they can't rightly spell it. After meeting the local goobers and finding out how friendly they are, Karen goes to a stranger's house and does some drunken talking about her brother with his lover and their handyman, which passes vaguely for character development.
Karen used to have psychic powers with her brother, but only when he was getting his ass kicked. She recalls how this power worked one time, and...gosh, maybe the link is still working, even if Sean is totally dead. I don't know why she'd need a psychic connection, seeing as how the ghost phoned her, sent instant messages, and typed on her laptop. If Sean's lover hadn't phoned with his address, I'm sure the ghost would have revealed the ability to use Google Maps and a printer with wireless networking. But no, Karen gets a psychic connection, I guess because this story wasn't suffering from enough tired haunting clichés yet.
But finally, the trio arrives at the haunted house, which is of course so far away from civilization that "no one can hear you scream." (Or sigh.) Everything that happens after this has already happened in a Hollywood haunting movie. The house is eccentric, as are all ghost story houses. The ghost doesn't have a clue of what subtle means any more than the redneck locals knew the meaning of hospitality. As soon as Karen is alone in the bedroom, the ghost jumps out of hiding with a full CGI special effects extravaganza. What follows is a by the numbers haunting moving in a rapid-fire attempt to generate tension. But it’s all so fast and sloppy that nothing registers. The ending was just as much a disappointment as the beginning and the middle. At no point was I scared, nor even interested in the story or the characters. There's nothing to connect me to events. Stuff happens, and characters change locations, but none of it means anything.
But my biggest complaint is, nothing original was done with the premise. In reading Suicide Girls in the Afterlife, Wall of Kiss, and Swarm of Flying Eyeballs, what made the stories great was a sense of something original and unique being added to the seemingly familiar. Here, the something original is missing, and this reads like a novelized treatment of a Hollywood ghost story. In fact, Karen's insane psychic writer reminds me a lot of Nell from The Haunting. (Well, except Nell had a personality.)
I give House of Fallen Trees two stars and would only suggest it to fans of haunting stories who love pastiche and "dreamlike narratives." Everyone else will find these worn hallways dull and routinely familiar.
april_infinite's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
david_agranoff's review
5.0
I read an early draft of this novel. To me this is Gina's best novel. It takes alot of traditional horror tropes and spins them in lots of fresh ways. I know this book is expensive but it is a fantastic horror novel.
jess_zf's review
4.0
This book was recommended by a friend was a nice, dark surprise with a bit of a sense of humor. I can now call myself terrified of small town Washington. And wind storms.
kkehoe's review
3.0
A fantastic first three quarters of a haunting ghost story/mystery that suddenly seems to fall apart and become a muddled mess in the home stretch. I was tempted to go only two stars once I'd finished, but have to stay at three based on how much I really did like the earlier parts.
sarahconnor89757's review
3.0
Mundane for the genre but Ranalli made me so interested in the characters I hardly noticed.
doomfiction's review
5.0
I was first introduced to Gina Ranalli's work through the Bizarro Starter kit. I read and really enjoyed her book SUICIDE GIRLS IN THE AFTERLIFE, so naturally I was very excited to dig into HOUSE OF FALLEN TREES.
HoFT surprised me. I wasn't expecting such a timeless horror story. SUICIDE GIRLS, while excellent in its own right, was told in a completely different voice, a different style. It seemed new, the author had a young, but solid voice - very 'punk,' for lack of a better word. The voice in HoFT is more like Richard Matheson, a classic tale told in a classic voice.
I don't want to give you any details, as there are many surprises throughout the book that I don't want to spoil for anyone who hasn't read it yet. I'll only say this - there were several moments when my skin was crawling. This is a creepy book, my friends. I highly recommend it for anyone who enjoys a good scary story.
I can't wait until payday. I'm going to order a buttload of books by Gina Ranalli... and I suggest you do the same.
HoFT surprised me. I wasn't expecting such a timeless horror story. SUICIDE GIRLS, while excellent in its own right, was told in a completely different voice, a different style. It seemed new, the author had a young, but solid voice - very 'punk,' for lack of a better word. The voice in HoFT is more like Richard Matheson, a classic tale told in a classic voice.
I don't want to give you any details, as there are many surprises throughout the book that I don't want to spoil for anyone who hasn't read it yet. I'll only say this - there were several moments when my skin was crawling. This is a creepy book, my friends. I highly recommend it for anyone who enjoys a good scary story.
I can't wait until payday. I'm going to order a buttload of books by Gina Ranalli... and I suggest you do the same.
silverdire's review
3.0
I really liked House of Fallen Trees... until the book just sort of stopped. I'm not sure how else to describe it. Mystery, spookiness, lots of momentum and then full-stop. A lot of books have the opposite problem but I really wish this author would have drawn the story out further. I wanted more interaction between the protagonist and her brother's SO and friend. I also wanted to get to know the house better. Plus, for obviously being part of the plot, the forest barely played a part other than the storm. It seemed like a huge waste of a setting to me.
exorcismofemilyreed's review
1.0
"Two men have the carcass."
I read House of Fallen Trees for book club with a few friends. I've had good luck with Grindhouse books, and the cover and synopsis for this book are awesome, so I had really been looking forward to it.
I was thrown off by the writing very early on. It seemed much more juvenile than I expected, yet the book did not seem to be directed toward a YA audience. I feel like there is potential for decent storytelling here, but this book was bogged down with unnecessary details and silly similes. It was distracting. Every time that I felt a little bit invested in the story, something would happen like saying the main character was going to mate with sleep when it was time for bed. It just didn't feel refined enough to work as a complete book.
The story starts off in an interesting way, but it heads in a nonsensical direction. I didn't really find the answers to the mysteries in this story to be satisfactory - I think the synopsis left big shoes to fill, and the different elements of this plot did not mesh well together.
The characters seem like different people in each chapter, and it was difficult to take the main character seriously. She was quite bland, and it wasn't very fun to be with her for an entire book.
I have another book from this author that I'm going to try one day. There were parts of this book that were promising, so I haven't given up hope completely. Hopefully I have better luck with a different title.
I read House of Fallen Trees for book club with a few friends. I've had good luck with Grindhouse books, and the cover and synopsis for this book are awesome, so I had really been looking forward to it.
I was thrown off by the writing very early on. It seemed much more juvenile than I expected, yet the book did not seem to be directed toward a YA audience. I feel like there is potential for decent storytelling here, but this book was bogged down with unnecessary details and silly similes. It was distracting. Every time that I felt a little bit invested in the story, something would happen like saying the main character was going to mate with sleep when it was time for bed. It just didn't feel refined enough to work as a complete book.
The story starts off in an interesting way, but it heads in a nonsensical direction. I didn't really find the answers to the mysteries in this story to be satisfactory - I think the synopsis left big shoes to fill, and the different elements of this plot did not mesh well together.
The characters seem like different people in each chapter, and it was difficult to take the main character seriously. She was quite bland, and it wasn't very fun to be with her for an entire book.
I have another book from this author that I'm going to try one day. There were parts of this book that were promising, so I haven't given up hope completely. Hopefully I have better luck with a different title.