A review by elliotvanz
The Spite House by Johnny Compton

dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

This might be one of the most claustrophobic books I have ever read. Between the Ross family looking over their shoulders, the secrets being kept, and the narrow walls of the spite house itself closing in around them, this book is a tense gothic tale with plenty of hidden layers. Each secret revealed feels like a dust cloth being pulled from an old piece of furniture, the shape and impression of the thing gaining sudden stark detail. This is a classic haunted house yarn with a family that you root for as they walk into the danger not out of some stupid notion but out of desperation. Reading this feels like Hill House by way of Jordan Peele.
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