Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

128 reviews

rodent_scribbles's review against another edition

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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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monicaa_d's review against another edition

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

4.0

I can see why this is a classic. It's timeless, creepy, and engaging. Eleanor is relatable, but as the story progresses the reader gets thrown into the uncertainty of an unreliable narrator and is left to wonder what's real. The tension builds throughout the book, and it manages to be scary without body horror or actual injury. It's terrifying in the way a haunted house is- no one touches you, but the threat feels looming. 
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laurenmiller100's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

5.0

  • Characters: 10
  • Atmosphere/Setting: 10
  • Writing Style: 9
  • Plot: 10
  • Intrigue: 9
  • Logic/Relationships: 7
  • Enjoyment: 10

Wow! What a masterwork! I am usually someone who is pretty nervous about horror media, and this was perfect. Unsettling, but not necessarily scary. 

This book was incredible. Well written with well developed characters and chilling atmosphere. The author does a great job making the house seem so hostile and the characters so loveable. The queer under stones are also incredibly progressive for the time. I really enjoyed it!
The final line of Eleanor saying “Why am I doing this?” is insanely chilling. Moreover, the fact that we only get logistical updates from the rest of the characters really speaks to gloom and resignation.
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itskenzcarter's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Ugggh. This book. What a whirlwind. It’s so different from the show. Both equally great, but the book just has something about it that I can’t quite describe. The writing was brilliant. Shirley Jackson is a fantastic author and knows how to paint a picture. But, because the book was so different from the show, it was hard to see where it was going. I couldn’t put it down and had to finish as soon as I started. This book focuses, primarily, on Nellie, more so than the actual haunting itself. However, it worked. It had a lower level of spookiness, but the parts that were spooky were so descriptive and vivid. It definitely makes your heart race at parts. I do think the book finished a little quicker than it could have. There could have been additional paranormal focuses. Other than that, I have no real negative thoughts about it. I highly recommend this book to anyone that wants something horror related. It dances on the psychological horror side of things. Now, if you are wanting to read this because of the show, please note, it’s vastly different. This book is amazing, and I think it should be on every horror fans shelf.
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madelinequinnee's review

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emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

3.5

I picked this up because i’m a huge fan of the Mike Flanagan TV adaptation, but i knew this wasn’t really going to be much like the show. I did enjoy noticing little things that were included in the show, such as the cup of stars, the Grattan poem and the quotes that were used throughout. 

I did find this slightly boring but i think that’s more because i’m not a huge fan of classics. The writing, however, was beautiful. 
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lizdaniii's review against another edition

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dark sad tense slow-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

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writteninmagic's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

2.0

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dev921's review against another edition

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

4.0

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mattyvreads's review against another edition

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

4.75

I’m obsessed with this book. Shirley Jackson’s writing is impeccable. I love that the book feels so modern, despite being written in the late 50s. It is an impressive and utterly horrifying piece of literature.
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sunn_bleach's review against another edition

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dark emotional 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

4.5

Rereading "The Haunting of Hill House" after my initial foray in 2018 showed how important rereads can be. Six years is a long time, and I've grown as person and artist (dichotomy intended). I love Shirley Jackson, but I thought this book was hella boring. Nothing's scary and nothing happens! Whats-her-face just drives into a tree! How is this the "scariest horror novel" or whatever?

... but this time, I've realized a mastery of Jackson's prose: your imagination is what makes it scary, just as the characters' imaginations bring forth the House. Jackson doesn't outright describe the pathway through the forest that Eleanor and Theo take, because she knows anything your mind uses to fill in the gaps makes it far creepier. You might read about the room in the center of the house that the characters' sing and dance and hang out in, and as we all know merriment dispels ghosts... but what if you expand outward and consider the whole house? What if you imagine this island of ostensible happiness as a silent, dark, house leans over them in what is its absolute focal point? Jackson's stark prose came off as beige in 2018, but that couldn't be further from the truth; what she did was provide me the outline, knowing what whatever I sketched in would be far more terrifying and bring me closer to Eleanor than anything else. And *that* is the horror of Hill House within the book... and without.
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