Reviews

There were components of this book I really liked: I enjoyed the dual perspectives, I thought the setting of Scotland and the castle were great, and the beginning of the horror aspect was creepy. I also thought that “the incident” was well written and that the author was great at making the scenes of the book come to life. There was a lot of spice which was great. The things I didn’t like: this is supposed to be enemies/rivals to lovers but we moved to lovers way too fast. The reader never really understood why they were enemies in the first place and once we got to the castle they were both pining for each other. I also wish that we could have gone a little deeper in their hate for each other. The resolution with the ghosts felt rushed and unfinished. Lastly, I felt like the addition of Daniela to the retreat group was odd. It felt like she was only a device to show that Pen is bisexual? Both minor characters were pretty one dimensional. All in all, I enjoyed myself reading this but there was definitely room for improvement. I will say it was great to get Native representation where the BIPOC gets to exist in the world and do something like horror in a foreign place like Scotland. It just really goes to show that you can have diverse characters doing anything, not just tied to the typical tropes or settings

caradniehoff's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

krizpy's review

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dark funny hopeful informative lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

katrinaward's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I never read horror, so this was slightly out of my comfort zone, but because other reviews insisted it wasn’t *that* scary, I decided to try it. I did have to stop reading it before bed, and finished the next day, just because I am really squeamish about anything even remotely scary. I think trying to do a romance and a horror/mystery is a really ambitious and heavy lift. I think aspects of both for me could have used more development. As someone who’s lived in Oklahoma for the last ten years, I really wish the Indigenous aspects of this book had been more primary in the marketing—I would have read it sooner. More Indigenous authors and stories, please! Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC!

Content Warnings

raychilldragon's review

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4.0

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC

alexiab's review against another edition

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1.0

I really wanted to like this book, but right from the start I knew it was not going to be a good time. Every single aspect of this book is What Not To Do When Writing A Novel. Clunky dialogue, awful characters without true depth, telling instead of showing, no true motivation for the characters’ actions, no chemistry, characters without purpose. I could go on.

This book really did not open on a strong note. The entire convention conflict was clunky and awkward to read. Pen randomly exploding at a public event completely unprovoked and then having weirdly broken dialogue with her nemesis on stage had me more confused than intrigued.

Overall the prose itself is fine, but the character decisions and voice are very immature and unnatural. There’s a line with romance novels that separates reality from believability of silly events, but this just soars past that line right out the gate and doesn’t set a good tone at all.

The depth that the author is trying to achieve with the characters identities feels like a caricature rather than something authentic. It’s strange that Pen criticizes Neil for writing stereotypical characters and stories that pander to white audiences when that’s exactly what this book feels like. I was excited to see a romance with two Indigenous leads, but all their identity did was serve as unnaturally forced conflict. It was so flat and lifeless.

Overall this is not the book for me, as I really don’t think it delivers in any capacity.

breeburkitt's review

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2.25

Penelope Skinner and Neil Storm are two Native horror authors stuck in a years-long rivalry. Both are left in a writing slump after their feud publicly reaches a head. Months later, Pen and Neil find themselves coincidentally on the same writing retreat at a haunted castle in the Scottish Highlands.

Ugh I wanted to love "If I Stopped Haunting You" so badly but that just wasn't the case. The romance between Pen and Neil is just flat. It's toxic and they jump from enemies to insta-love so quickly in a way that doesn't account for the supposed years of animosity between them. Their characters are also lackluster. The author teases at back stories for both of them (really all the characters) that are never fully developed or even explored.

The same can be said about the horror aspect. The ghost story holds so much promise initially, but instead, it's underwhelming and the resolution doesn't fit all the setup. The story poses so many potential plot points and connections (i.e. Pen's connection to the castle) that fail to go anywhere.

The bones are certainly there. Unfortunately, this whole story feels like an early draft that needs a strong editor to help shape it into something great.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance copy!

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