Reviews tagging 'Chronic illness'

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

9 reviews

rodent_scribbles's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Shirley Jackson's take on the haunted house, not as a mere site of tragedy, but as a character that is itself evil on its own is beautifully executed.
Definitely a more psychological horror where the presence is more felt than seen that might not appeal to everyone but I enjoyed it.
The characters are interesting and Jackson's prose is fantastic.
Highly recommend this book for fans of Gothic and psychological ghost stories.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol

Moderate: Chronic illness, Car accident, Suicide, and Death of parent

mlewis's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Death of parent, Alcohol, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Blood, Child death, Chronic illness, and Suicide

melongin's review against another edition

mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I read it for a book club. I did enjoy it, it just didn't blow me away, although I'm not really one for the horror genre. I think my expectations were high because of the Netflix TV show based on the book. I didn't realize the book was completely different with just the house and the names of the characters being the same as the TV show.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Car accident, Mental illness, Chronic illness, Death, and Suicide

kurumipanda's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, and Suicide

Moderate: Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Chronic illness

Minor: Bullying

bethmerci's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

and they were roommates???

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide

Minor: Death of parent, Ableism, Chronic illness, and Death

mallory10100's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

i wanted to pick this up because i’m a huge fan of the netflix show and i’m so glad i did!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Misogyny, Toxic friendship, Bullying, Death, Mental illness, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide

linesiunderline's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It’s all about the dread in this classic horror story. All the gothic atmosphere, a brilliantly unsettling opening, bumps in the night, paranormal happenings, and a small cast of characters who prove to be quite captivating and elusive. The way Jackson crafts Eleanor and her unraveling is masterful. I love that you’re constantly unsettled throughout and left at the end with more questions than answers. I’m glad I finally read this one as well as We Have Always Lived in the Castle. I’d be hard pressed to choose a favourite between the two. The audiobooks narrated by Bernadette Dunne we’re very entertaining listening experiences. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Car accident, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Panic attacks/disorders, and Mental illness

davidrb's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I'm actually going to go crazy go stupid over how much I loved this book. It's slow, yeah, but Jackson uses her unique and considerable talent to build dread, just as in We Have Always Lived: the prose is gorgeous and lush, but the real star here is her character development. Eleanor is a powerful protagonist, dynamic despite her meekness and not at all what I expected, but Theo and Luke play excellent foils both to her and each other. The trio of assistants make this book more than worth the price of entry. 

Quick aside: having seen both The Haunting (movie) and The Haunting of Hill House (show), I can confidently say that the original book is my favorite when set next to its adaptations. They're all different (and all very good), but the book just does it for me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Car accident, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Grief, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

parttimerarebookdealer's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, and Suicide