Scan barcode
A review by ruthypoo2
Hell House by Richard Matheson
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This story is a classic haunted house investigation story, but with some of the most malignant entities imaginable. The set up is engaging with a wealthy old man, Rolf Rudolph Deutsch, assembling from his death bed a small team to investigate paranormal activity at The Belasco House, also known as Hell House due to its reported haunting events. The team consists of highly regarded parapsychologist, Dr. Lionel Barrett, his wife, Edith, spiritualist medium Florence Tanner, and sensitive medium Franklin Fischer, who himself has a history of surviving time spent at the Belasco House decades earlier when he was a young teen. Deutsch pays the team to either prove or disapprove the existence of spirits at the house within the timeframe of a week, taking place immediately prior to the Christmas holiday in 1970.
The action is constant and unrelenting as the group moves into the house, begins exploring the property, discussing the history of the house and outcomes of past investigations, attempting to communicate with spirits, and rationalizing the odd occurrences that start the moment they all enter the house. It's really the perfect collection of personalities for haunted house exploration: Dr. Barrett the skeptic and his wife Edith along for the ride; fully invested and spiritually open Florence; and Franklin, who warns and knows what to expect better than any of them because of his past experience being physically and mentally assaulted by the environment of Belasco House.
Although the story feels like it drags a little at times, there's actually something always happening. So many times, I was just telepathically yelling at the characters to, "GET OUT NOW!" But as you find with classic haunted house tropes, there will always be some reason why the characters can't or won't leave and rational decision-making capabilities are nowhere to be found. It was especially a treat and made that much more harrowing because this story is set in the seventies, well before cell phones and thus making it feel like the team is hopelessly alone in their quest to discover a genuine haunting and survive the quest. It's a good story and may be kind of hard to read alone.
The action is constant and unrelenting as the group moves into the house, begins exploring the property, discussing the history of the house and outcomes of past investigations, attempting to communicate with spirits, and rationalizing the odd occurrences that start the moment they all enter the house. It's really the perfect collection of personalities for haunted house exploration: Dr. Barrett the skeptic and his wife Edith along for the ride; fully invested and spiritually open Florence; and Franklin, who warns and knows what to expect better than any of them because of his past experience being physically and mentally assaulted by the environment of Belasco House.
Although the story feels like it drags a little at times, there's actually something always happening. So many times, I was just telepathically yelling at the characters to, "GET OUT NOW!" But as you find with classic haunted house tropes, there will always be some reason why the characters can't or won't leave and rational decision-making capabilities are nowhere to be found. It was especially a treat and made that much more harrowing because this story is set in the seventies, well before cell phones and thus making it feel like the team is hopelessly alone in their quest to discover a genuine haunting and survive the quest. It's a good story and may be kind of hard to read alone.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Sexual content, and Violence