Helpful Score: 3
Creepy, fast-paced, and with just the right amount of twisted macabre. Hell House keeps up the atmosphere throughout and delivers a good, satisfying ending. It's better written than a lot of horror novels too. Definitely a top-notch haunted house story.
Helpful Score: 2
One of the best novel-length ghost stories I have ever read. Matheson has a way of getting under your skin, it was hard to put the book down. Have read it a few times since the first.
Helpful Score: 1
The best ghost story i have ever read, looking for more
from this author.
from this author.
Helpful Score: 1
This is a classic and awesome haunted house story. Loved this book.
Helpful Score: 1
Hell House by Richard Matheson was a disturbingly awesome book. It kept my interest with each character's personal struggles being applified by the evil force within the house. I was surprized by the sensuality, but scared enough to actually have trouble getting to sleep.
Helpful Score: 1
This book was really scary. I couldn't stop reading it, I just had to know what happened in the end.
Helpful Score: 1
I loved this. It was quite scary at times!
I thought it was a really good read, similar to the writing style of the Exorcist. Used alot of language related to the paranormal investigation techniques. Although the cover depicts it's a story about demonic possession, it's actually a story about a haunted house. It's a classic and has obviously inspired similar stories such as Flesh Gothic.
Truely scary and just as good as the Diary of Ellen Broderick or Rose Red!
A rich guy hires a scientist to research a haunted house. The scientist brings his wife, and two spiritualists. Then the house takes hold of its temporary occupants. Many other books have the same theme, but Richard Matheson wrote this in 1970. Matheson sucessfully wrote many Twilight Zone and Kolchak television episodes. Very atmospheric, great character development, strong storyline. This haunted house tale does not disappoint. Warning: explicit sex, graphic violence.
I read this one to get me in the mood for Halloween, and it was really good!
They don't make them like this anymore! Loved every creepy moment of it.
They don't make them like this anymore! Loved every creepy moment of it.
I loved reading this book and it is one of my top 10 favorites. The book stats slow but once you get to the dinner table scene, I couldn't put the book down. The book is much better then the movie version. Let your imagination run wild.
A story well told. It will get your imagination rolling into high vear.
This is the best horror novel that I have ever read and I see why it is considered a classic. The horror is great, especially because of the vivid descriptions. I enjoyed the characters, but the scientist who didn't believe in ghosts got on my nerves. It wouldn't be a problem in real life, but it bugged me because it is in a ghost story. There is quite a bit of sexual scenarios caused by the ghost who haunts the house so for that reason and the violence, it is definitely only a book for adults and mature teens. I was always wondering what would happen next, such as what ghostly happening would happen next.
I was torn on this book. The atmosphere of the house and the things happening kept giving me goosebumps but when it came down to the characters interacting, I would cringe every time. Out of the 4 characters in the house, 3 got on my nerves. Only Fisher was tolerable for me. Most of the scary scenes were scary enough but some just didn't do anything for me. Then near the end the incident with the hand and Edith (if you read it you'll know what I mean) actually had me laughing. I pretty sure I wasn't supposed to find it amusing. It was still a good read. I was hoping for so much more though.
This book was just "OK" for me...I expected more creepy stuff to happen in this haunted house.
I saw the movie version of this, The Legend of Hell House, when it first came out in the early 1970s and remember it being a very good ghost story although I don't remember details of the movie.
The story is about a group of people consisting of a physicist, Dr. Barrett; his wife, Edith; and two mediums, Florence Tanner, and Benjamin Fischer, who agree to investigate the notorious Belasco House at the request of a rich man, Deutsch, who promises them each $100,000. Deutsch is dying and wants to find out if there is in fact life after death. Fischer had participated in a previous investigation of the house and was the only survivor. The house belonged to "Roaring Giant" Emeric Belasco who promoted orgies in the house and had mysteriously disappeared after a massacre occurred there in the 1920s. Florence believes that there are many ghostly entities in the house but Dr. Barrett believes that all the disturbances are merely electromagnetic radiation (EMR) and can be explained and removed by a machine he has built. But who is right? Are the ghosts and hauntings real or only leftover impressions caused by the EMR?
The novel has several very intense scenes where the investigators are attacked by the spirits or poltergeists. When the house was previously investigated, several people ended up dead or insane. I think Belasco was probably based on the real-life Aleister Crowley, who was considered the "wickedest man alive" during his lifetime. Overall, this was a pretty good supernatural thriller but it seemed to go over the top in some places and I would only mildly recommend it.
The story is about a group of people consisting of a physicist, Dr. Barrett; his wife, Edith; and two mediums, Florence Tanner, and Benjamin Fischer, who agree to investigate the notorious Belasco House at the request of a rich man, Deutsch, who promises them each $100,000. Deutsch is dying and wants to find out if there is in fact life after death. Fischer had participated in a previous investigation of the house and was the only survivor. The house belonged to "Roaring Giant" Emeric Belasco who promoted orgies in the house and had mysteriously disappeared after a massacre occurred there in the 1920s. Florence believes that there are many ghostly entities in the house but Dr. Barrett believes that all the disturbances are merely electromagnetic radiation (EMR) and can be explained and removed by a machine he has built. But who is right? Are the ghosts and hauntings real or only leftover impressions caused by the EMR?
The novel has several very intense scenes where the investigators are attacked by the spirits or poltergeists. When the house was previously investigated, several people ended up dead or insane. I think Belasco was probably based on the real-life Aleister Crowley, who was considered the "wickedest man alive" during his lifetime. Overall, this was a pretty good supernatural thriller but it seemed to go over the top in some places and I would only mildly recommend it.
This was a very good book. The action started right from the beginning, and never let up. There were no slow parts, no dull parts. Interesting and suspenseful from start to finish. Highly recommended!
