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horrorghoul's review
4.0
TW: Murder, gory scenes, child death, toxic relationships
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:David Player has spent 30 years trying to forget the traumas of his childhood. The threats, the kidnappings, the murders. The imagined curses of a people born centuries earlier, passed from father to son, mother to daughter, generation to generation. Its climax came in human form, a monster of a man, one of the most notorious serial killers the nation has ever seen: Pee Wee Gaskins. And Gaskins had a particular hatred for the Player family, then for David, himself, who barely escaped those years with his own life intact.Now David is back, his four children in tow, visiting his parents' home, a place he has learned to cherish despite the evils that haunted his younger days. But no sooner does he return than a stranger visits their doorstep, the son of Pee Wee Gaskins. In a terrifying display, right in front of the kids, the man utters threats until he chokes on his own tongue, sparking a series of events that drag David and his family back into the days of curses and murders, onto a path of unimaginable terror, all too familiar.That path leads to an old gothic tower in the woods, a place David had blocked from his memory, a house of horrors both past and present. The House of Tongues.
Release Date: 10/29/2021
Genre: Horror
Pages: 301
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ (3. 5)
What I Liked:
• This book is creepy
• Keeps you on your toes
• The writing is really good
What I Didn't Like:
• Some parts kind of dragged
• The newspaper lady
• The ending
• The author was gulity of sexual harassment
Overall Thoughts: This book creeped me out so much. The story is written in a way I felt was easy to follow the plot and go with the characters as they learn and find out stuff.
Usually I have issues with teens in books but these teens were pretty okay.
I am shocked that the dude who The Maze Runner could pull this out of his brain. I am impressed!
It is a little weird how okay this town seems about a murderer running around and murdering people. There is an episode of Married With Children about a killer that bumps off tourist in the motel and the people are okay with. That's what this reminds me of.
There's even a cop killed outside the house and they just play Monopoly inside like it's nothing. It's ridiculous.
Final Thoughts: If you like My Bloody Valentine or The Town That Dreaded Sundown you should read this. There were seriously moments where I was freaked out.
IG|Blog
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:David Player has spent 30 years trying to forget the traumas of his childhood. The threats, the kidnappings, the murders. The imagined curses of a people born centuries earlier, passed from father to son, mother to daughter, generation to generation. Its climax came in human form, a monster of a man, one of the most notorious serial killers the nation has ever seen: Pee Wee Gaskins. And Gaskins had a particular hatred for the Player family, then for David, himself, who barely escaped those years with his own life intact.Now David is back, his four children in tow, visiting his parents' home, a place he has learned to cherish despite the evils that haunted his younger days. But no sooner does he return than a stranger visits their doorstep, the son of Pee Wee Gaskins. In a terrifying display, right in front of the kids, the man utters threats until he chokes on his own tongue, sparking a series of events that drag David and his family back into the days of curses and murders, onto a path of unimaginable terror, all too familiar.That path leads to an old gothic tower in the woods, a place David had blocked from his memory, a house of horrors both past and present. The House of Tongues.
Release Date: 10/29/2021
Genre: Horror
Pages: 301
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ (3. 5)
What I Liked:
• This book is creepy
• Keeps you on your toes
• The writing is really good
What I Didn't Like:
• Some parts kind of dragged
• The newspaper lady
• The ending
• The author was gulity of sexual harassment
Overall Thoughts: This book creeped me out so much. The story is written in a way I felt was easy to follow the plot and go with the characters as they learn and find out stuff.
Usually I have issues with teens in books but these teens were pretty okay.
I am shocked that the dude who The Maze Runner could pull this out of his brain. I am impressed!
It is a little weird how okay this town seems about a murderer running around and murdering people. There is an episode of Married With Children about a killer that bumps off tourist in the motel and the people are okay with. That's what this reminds me of.
There's even a cop killed outside the house and they just play Monopoly inside like it's nothing. It's ridiculous.
Final Thoughts: If you like My Bloody Valentine or The Town That Dreaded Sundown you should read this. There were seriously moments where I was freaked out.
IG|Blog
Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
a_potter_nerd's review
5.0
I received this as an audio galley to listen to for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for giving me access.
**THIS IS NOT PART OF THE MAZE RUNNER SERIES OR SPINOFF**
While there wasn't much information to go by for The House of Tongues at the time I listened, there was a lot a speculation that it was related to The Maze Runner, spoiler alert, it is not.
This was an epically dark and twisted story of a boy and then when he is an adult. We go back and forth between the past and present (which was a tad bit confusing in the audio format). The two story lines seemed to interrtwine with one another and secrets are being revealed. Around the halfway point, I was able to predict some twists but Dashner kept me interested the whole time.
A great, dark thriller that I would highly recommend.
**THIS IS NOT PART OF THE MAZE RUNNER SERIES OR SPINOFF**
While there wasn't much information to go by for The House of Tongues at the time I listened, there was a lot a speculation that it was related to The Maze Runner, spoiler alert, it is not.
This was an epically dark and twisted story of a boy and then when he is an adult. We go back and forth between the past and present (which was a tad bit confusing in the audio format). The two story lines seemed to interrtwine with one another and secrets are being revealed. Around the halfway point, I was able to predict some twists but Dashner kept me interested the whole time.
A great, dark thriller that I would highly recommend.
ladyreading365's review
4.0
This book was creepy and I loved it. I have given it 4.5 stars because it is so fast paced. There is plenty of action, twists and turns that might give you whiplash. It really is a great page turner of a novel. I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator was marvellous. The bit of huskiness in his voice really added to the brilliant sense of atmosphere and tension. This was especially prominent on certain characters voices. The setting of this book really added to the creepiness to the atmosphere. Let's just say the swamps held more than you bargained for. It was the little details within the book that created a real vivid picture in my mind. This freaked me out more than I expected. This book contains plenty of gory bits so beware when eating your tea as I found out to my detriment lol. This book was a dual timeline moving between two time lines for the main character as he trys to remember a past he has suppressed. This is a book that you will definitely struggle to put down and you might find yourself like me having fits of nervous laughter.
Many thanks to the author and publishing team for creating this thrilling and intricate story for us to enjoy and solve. I look forward to reading more from this very clever author.
Many thanks to the author and publishing team for creating this thrilling and intricate story for us to enjoy and solve. I look forward to reading more from this very clever author.
sphynxreads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I received an advance review copy of this book for free via Book Sirens, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I enjoyed this book more than I expected to! While the writing style took some getting used to in the beginning, it grew on me towards the end. I enjoyed how everything unfolded by following the main character from two separate timelines. Not having read a lot of horror before, I think this was mild enough that I didn't get too scared especially since I could see clearly what devices the author used to evoke fear or disgust. I found this to be a page-turner, and the resolution, despite leaving many things unanswered, was somewhat satisfying.
I enjoyed this book more than I expected to! While the writing style took some getting used to in the beginning, it grew on me towards the end. I enjoyed how everything unfolded by following the main character from two separate timelines. Not having read a lot of horror before, I think this was mild enough that I didn't get too scared especially since I could see clearly what devices the author used to evoke fear or disgust. I found this to be a page-turner, and the resolution, despite leaving many things unanswered, was somewhat satisfying.
thebookcrate's review
4.0
I am still not entirely sure what I thought of this one. On one hand, I enjoyed the creepiness and the haunts. On the other hand, I disliked the ending but not enough to hate the book as a whole. So, I think four stars is good. It's gripping and a fast read, but I do not think it's the best read.
astralbooks's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, Gore, Blood, and Death of parent
Moderate: Gun violence and Kidnapping
Minor: Domestic abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Dementia
Harry Potter shout out in the last couple of pagessucharita's review
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood and Death
landycole's review
3.0
This was really a 2.5 star instead of 3. The story was interesting and the reader is easily hooked, but when the mystery is finally revealed, it doesn’t make sense. There are a lot of things left unexplained and too many plot holes to get past. Kind of disappointing.
jayishino's review
4.0
The House of Tongues is the story of David and Andrea who are haunted by the aftermath of a murder they witness as teenager. Switching between the past and present as David's teenage trauma seeps into his adult life.
This is a bizarre but very compelling story. Part horror, part mystery David is an interesting and relatable character, and I loved Andrea's no-nonsense approach to literally everything. However, David's children are pretty flat and they are characterized mostly by David telling us how they are. While keeping them safe are David's main motivation for the things he does in the book, they remain pretty two-dimensional, and a number of the descriptors of them were repeated too many times.
Malcolm Hillgartner was a wonderful narrator, and I think he's the main reason I liked David so much. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ALC.
This is a bizarre but very compelling story. Part horror, part mystery David is an interesting and relatable character, and I loved Andrea's no-nonsense approach to literally everything. However, David's children are pretty flat and they are characterized mostly by David telling us how they are. While keeping them safe are David's main motivation for the things he does in the book, they remain pretty two-dimensional, and a number of the descriptors of them were repeated too many times.
Malcolm Hillgartner was a wonderful narrator, and I think he's the main reason I liked David so much. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ALC.