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A review by justinkhchen
The Grip of It by Jac Jemc
5.0
5 stars
Exactly the type of psychological horror I enjoy: atmospheric and open to interpretation, I've seen people calling The Grip of It 'Lovecraftian' — I'm not that familiar with the work of H. P. Lovecraft (I was more of an Edgar Allan Poe enthusiast), maybe that's a path I should investigate sooner rather than later.
I love the way horror plays out in this haunted house story, going for unsettling chill rather than shock value. Scenes with incomprehensible element would be described very matter-of-factly (no temperature drop, weird noises or any sort of formulaic buildups), yet this emotionally-detached writing style makes the encounter even more unnerving, as if the entity was acting upon its own accord, regardless whether human respond to it or not. Like living in a constant haze, the characters' muted reaction to their surrounding added an additional layer of disorientation and eeriness.
So happy to discover another haunted house story without the typical 'perfect house then suddenly HAUNTED!' switcheroo; the house in The Grip of It was soaked in dread from the get-go, yet the protagonists still fell under its spell, and what followed was a maddening downward spiral for the body and mind. Definitely unusual and defy expectation (which is why I 'get' its low score on GR), but it's exactly the type of twisted mystery I love! Recommend if you enjoy I'm Thinking of Ending Things.
p.s. great audiobook!
Exactly the type of psychological horror I enjoy: atmospheric and open to interpretation, I've seen people calling The Grip of It 'Lovecraftian' — I'm not that familiar with the work of H. P. Lovecraft (I was more of an Edgar Allan Poe enthusiast), maybe that's a path I should investigate sooner rather than later.
I love the way horror plays out in this haunted house story, going for unsettling chill rather than shock value. Scenes with incomprehensible element would be described very matter-of-factly (no temperature drop, weird noises or any sort of formulaic buildups), yet this emotionally-detached writing style makes the encounter even more unnerving, as if the entity was acting upon its own accord, regardless whether human respond to it or not. Like living in a constant haze, the characters' muted reaction to their surrounding added an additional layer of disorientation and eeriness.
So happy to discover another haunted house story without the typical 'perfect house then suddenly HAUNTED!' switcheroo; the house in The Grip of It was soaked in dread from the get-go, yet the protagonists still fell under its spell, and what followed was a maddening downward spiral for the body and mind. Definitely unusual and defy expectation (which is why I 'get' its low score on GR), but it's exactly the type of twisted mystery I love! Recommend if you enjoy I'm Thinking of Ending Things.
p.s. great audiobook!