Scan barcode
erikagibson126's review
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Blood, Body horror, Death, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Abandonment and Stalking
Minor: Alcohol, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Gun violence, Murder, and Cursing
lovelymisanthrope's review
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I saw this book in Barnes & Noble and was intrigued by the cover and title.
"Man, Fuck This House" follows the Haskins family as they move to their new home located in Jackson Hill. Sabrina, the mother, is bored with the life she feels like she settled for, Hal, the father, is excited to start his new job and take care of the family he is oblivious to, Michela, the daughter, is the seemingly normal one, and Damien, the son, has spent his life trying to convince his mom that he is a demon. A fresh start for this family feels like the right thing, but when Sabrina starts seeing impossible things, she believes the house is haunted. Unfortunately, no one else sees anything, so maybe she is just finally going mad?
There was something overtly pretentious about the writing in this book, which really turned me off. I think the writing and inner monologue made sense for Damien's character because of how he is trying so desperately to be portrayed, but it really did not work for me throughout the rest of the book. The writing felt stilted, and it took me the first 100 pages to really become acclimated and be able to read and stay invested in the story.
My other big grievance with this story was the extreme gore that felt like it came out of nowhere. For example, there is a scene where someone sees something, and they end up clawing their eyes out. This is a character we met for one page, and it did not feel authentic at all. Wouldn't his first reaction be that someone is playing a trick on him? Why did he immediately cut his eyes out?! I am fine with gore, but it did not feel organically written, it felt forced for a shock factor from the reader.
One thing I did enjoy (spoiler) is the perspective we receive from the house. I think I would have enjoyed this story more if the entire novella was written from the perspective of the house rather than a mix of other characters. That is such a fresh idea for a haunted house story.
I am definitely curious to read more from Brian Asman in the future.
"Man, Fuck This House" follows the Haskins family as they move to their new home located in Jackson Hill. Sabrina, the mother, is bored with the life she feels like she settled for, Hal, the father, is excited to start his new job and take care of the family he is oblivious to, Michela, the daughter, is the seemingly normal one, and Damien, the son, has spent his life trying to convince his mom that he is a demon. A fresh start for this family feels like the right thing, but when Sabrina starts seeing impossible things, she believes the house is haunted. Unfortunately, no one else sees anything, so maybe she is just finally going mad?
There was something overtly pretentious about the writing in this book, which really turned me off. I think the writing and inner monologue made sense for Damien's character because of how he is trying so desperately to be portrayed, but it really did not work for me throughout the rest of the book. The writing felt stilted, and it took me the first 100 pages to really become acclimated and be able to read and stay invested in the story.
My other big grievance with this story was the extreme gore that felt like it came out of nowhere. For example, there is a scene where someone sees something, and they end up clawing their eyes out. This is a character we met for one page, and it did not feel authentic at all. Wouldn't his first reaction be that someone is playing a trick on him? Why did he immediately cut his eyes out?! I am fine with gore, but it did not feel organically written, it felt forced for a shock factor from the reader.
One thing I did enjoy (spoiler) is the perspective we receive from the house. I think I would have enjoyed this story more if the entire novella was written from the perspective of the house rather than a mix of other characters. That is such a fresh idea for a haunted house story.
I am definitely curious to read more from Brian Asman in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Death, Torture, Gore, and Death of parent
enolarayne's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I didn’t love the writing, and it needed a lot of editing for anything above and beyond a basic spell check, but I still found myself pulled in and wondering what would happen next. 🤷♀️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Suicide, Violence, and Murder
kcraig73's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
Is this book good? No. Did I like it? Yes. Takes an absolute wild left turn in the last 1/4 of the book but still enjoyable despite jumping the shark.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Death, Suicide, Violence, and Body horror
Minor: Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Medical content, and Sexism
stars_and_ink's review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Murder, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, and Blood
rachelunabridged's review
funny
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
3.0
It started as an interesting read, but went stale pretty quickly for me. Was a fun homage to the haunted house story, and I enjoyed a lot of the subverting of the genre. Overall, felt like it was worth the read so I'd recommend it, especially since it's so short.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, and Death
Moderate: Body horror
More...