Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
She inherits a house when her parents pass and find out the land is cursed and now she can’t ever leave.its not a bad book at all but I just kept waiting for it to be over.
Claustrophobic, unrelenting haunted house horror set at the award-winning Gallows Hill Winery, built atop former hanging grounds. The dead are restless – and they've come to torment Margot Hull, the latest in generations of Hulls to reside on the property. Sent away to live with her grandmother at a young age, Margot returns upon hearing of her parents' sudden death. Both heart attacks, the coroner said, but her first night at Gallows Hill makes it abundantly clear that darker forces are at work.
Banding together with a crew of plucky winery employees, a local witchy woman, and the best dog ever, Margot has to find a way to break the curse before it claims her life. While this novel doesn't do anything particularly innovative, the descriptions are incredibly vivid and drew me right in. There's something incredibly sinister about Margot hearing the perimeter bells go off, knowing the dead are here, then being chased around this massive empty mansion and cornered into empty rooms.
And the ending – whew! I've read a lot of haunted house novels, but this was probably one of the most visceral endings I've read in a long time. It's actually really understated compared to the rest of the novel, but so perfectly nauseating and unsettling. Overall, I enjoyed my first Darcy Coates novel, and can see her becoming a comfort horror mainstay.
Banding together with a crew of plucky winery employees, a local witchy woman, and the best dog ever, Margot has to find a way to break the curse before it claims her life. While this novel doesn't do anything particularly innovative, the descriptions are incredibly vivid and drew me right in. There's something incredibly sinister about Margot hearing the perimeter bells go off, knowing the dead are here, then being chased around this massive empty mansion and cornered into empty rooms.
And the ending – whew! I've read a lot of haunted house novels, but this was probably one of the most visceral endings I've read in a long time. It's actually really understated compared to the rest of the novel, but so perfectly nauseating and unsettling. Overall, I enjoyed my first Darcy Coates novel, and can see her becoming a comfort horror mainstay.
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
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
I rounded this up, but I'd give this book 3.5 stars.
The beginning of this book was a bit slow. Once we hit 50% of the way, then it starts to pick up. Once you learn about what is happening at Gallows Hill and some of the history, the story gets better. I wouldn't say I was scared, but I did feel the dread and stress. I enjoyed the ending and how Margot can fix up Gallows Hill and honor the dead that were buried there.
Spoilers below:
I'm glad Margot figured out how to break the curse. Exposing what her ancestor, Ephraim, had done helped to break it. Finding the 6 bodies in the barrels that contributed to the expensive wine was gross though. It's nice that she wants to honor the people who were hanged there as well. Now everyone knows how horrible Ephraim and his sons were. It was sweet that Margot's parents bodies helped her in the night and tried to protect her. I loved Marsh too. I would have been so upset if the dog had died.
The beginning of this book was a bit slow. Once we hit 50% of the way, then it starts to pick up. Once you learn about what is happening at Gallows Hill and some of the history, the story gets better. I wouldn't say I was scared, but I did feel the dread and stress. I enjoyed the ending and how Margot can fix up Gallows Hill and honor the dead that were buried there.
Spoilers below:
I'm glad Margot figured out how to break the curse. Exposing what her ancestor, Ephraim, had done helped to break it. Finding the 6 bodies in the barrels that contributed to the expensive wine was gross though. It's nice that she wants to honor the people who were hanged there as well. Now everyone knows how horrible Ephraim and his sons were. It was sweet that Margot's parents bodies helped her in the night and tried to protect her. I loved Marsh too. I would have been so upset if the dog had died.
This took me FOREVER to finish it because this was so freaking B O R I N G. I literally need up skipping to the end and I was like, oh. Figures. It took me forever to finish like yeah small things happened but then again nothing really happened. This was terrible.
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3.75, really, due to the ending, but the story was wild enough for 4. Though some of the logistics of this one were a bit far fetched, I really enjoyed the ride. Some of the more genuinely creepy set pieces out of a good chunk of horror I’ve read lately.
Good audiobook. Darcy never disappoints. Not my favorite of hers but enjoyable nonetheless. The writing was a bit more repetitive than usual; I think at least once a chapter the main character is described as licking her lips or teeth! It got kinda weird by the end.
I like that Coates carried more of an overarching literary theme: the question of whether it is an individual’s responsibility to atone for the sins of their ancestors. The Hull family benefited from the murders at the expense of being cursed. They were not punished for the ancestor’s action, but for their desire to continue profiting from it. The curse could only be lifted once someone acknowledged the wrong and took steps to make it right.
I like that Coates carried more of an overarching literary theme: the question of whether it is an individual’s responsibility to atone for the sins of their ancestors. The Hull family benefited from the murders at the expense of being cursed. They were not punished for the ancestor’s action, but for their desire to continue profiting from it. The curse could only be lifted once someone acknowledged the wrong and took steps to make it right.
Thank you to Netgalley & the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book.
This was SO spooky and scary! I‘m really not someone who gets scared easily, but this legit gave me the creeps, especially when I read it at night.
As with every domestic horror, the vibes and atmosphere just need to be right, and the author did a great job at that. I felt transported to Gallow‘s Hill and the descriptions just made shivers run down my spine.
I also love that this had supernatural elements, it just made it so much scarier!
The plot itself was also pretty original for a haunted house, which I appreciated. I really enjoyed the plot, though I think there would have been more potential for the ending.
I personally also always struggle when pets are involved in a horror story, because animal death/torture is my one trigger, and given that the ARC didn’t have trigger warnings, I was just so stressed when she had the dog for a night. (Spoiler: The dog survived unharmed). This is 100% just a personal thing, but it gravely affected my reading experience because I had a great time with the book until the dog came in, then I was just stressed and not in a good way.
Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to people who love horror. I‘m definitely going to check out the author‘s other work (hopefully with adequate trigger warnings).
This was SO spooky and scary! I‘m really not someone who gets scared easily, but this legit gave me the creeps, especially when I read it at night.
As with every domestic horror, the vibes and atmosphere just need to be right, and the author did a great job at that. I felt transported to Gallow‘s Hill and the descriptions just made shivers run down my spine.
I also love that this had supernatural elements, it just made it so much scarier!
The plot itself was also pretty original for a haunted house, which I appreciated. I really enjoyed the plot, though I think there would have been more potential for the ending.
I personally also always struggle when pets are involved in a horror story, because animal death/torture is my one trigger, and given that the ARC didn’t have trigger warnings, I was just so stressed when she had the dog for a night. (Spoiler: The dog survived unharmed). This is 100% just a personal thing, but it gravely affected my reading experience because I had a great time with the book until the dog came in, then I was just stressed and not in a good way.
Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to people who love horror. I‘m definitely going to check out the author‘s other work (hopefully with adequate trigger warnings).
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
medium-paced