A review by kbaker20
Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey

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? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Childhood trauma, family dysfunction, and a creepy house are a common combination for horror. However, the directional flows and pathways of these aspects in this book are a little different. This is revealed slowly to the reader as our main character returns to her childhood home and starts to face what she had tried her hardest to forget. Trauma becomes relative though when there are so many sources of the anguish. Vera’s return to the house forces her to relive and remember, offering another opportunity to succumb to or heal from these old wounds.

I saw the story as a new angle on the haunted house in the vein of a “good for her” storyline. Not quite feminine rage level, but you can see the hope of the spark. Movies/shows for comparison, I would say an aspect of The Haunting of Hill House with some Frailty vibes woven in.
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