A review by trin
The Grip of It by Jac Jemc

1.0

Effective horror is incredibly difficult to write. How do you sustain the suspense, let the terror build? Jac Jemc can't seem to with The Grip of It. This is a classic haunted house story, with some decent ideas --

Spoiler

I liked the mold

-- but I feel like the author runs out of steam a third of the way in. Some explanations or narrative excuses -- why would you stay in a house that is so obviously destroying your psyche?! -- arrive at least 50 pages too late, while others -- in particular, why would you be tempted to buy a house with stained walls, creepy crawlspaces, and an omnipresent humming sound in the first place? -- arrive never. The dual POVs become more and more crazed as the book progresses, but not in a bone-chilling [a:Shirley Jackson|13388|Shirley Jackson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1444840075p2/13388.jpg] way; the madness never struck me as convincing (nor could I frequently tell the voices of each half of the married couple apart). Finally, rather than provide any sort of explanation, Jemc delivers about forty, vaguely, sort of. Take your pick!!!

No, thank you; this book had already lost its hold on me 150 pages back.