Maura (maura853) - , reviewed on 2/7/2018 + 542 more book reviews

My initial reaction to this was blissed-out love: a horror novel with a fresh new take on the old cliche of a troubled young couple buying the big old house that nobody wants --Don't go there, young couple!! the reader says. But they never listen -- in the strange town where no one is very friendly, and everyone seem to have secrets.

Full credit to Jemc: at every turn, just when you think you have her number, she surprises you. (In my edition, a particular, "Ahhh, yes ..." moment came on page 148 -- see what you think.) Is the nasty old house haunted? It it mental illness, of one or both of the Troubled Young Couple? Is it gaslighting? Are there natural explanations? Or is it something else -- full kudos to Jemc for keeping the questions going a lot longer than lesser efforts, that succumb to the cliches of the genre.

However: I think it all goes one about, hmmm, 50 pages too long. Short chapters can still feel very long if they are just going over and over the litany of nasty sounds, nasty smells, ghostly kids in the trees, and have the woods moved closer to the house ...

One additional point: full credit to the publisher for a stunning presentation. The cover art is spectacularly creepy, and the physical look and feel of the book actually contributes to the sense that all is not right in the world it portrays. Congratulations to Jo Ann Metsch, who is credited with the design.

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