The House that Horror Built

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

pick

Fast paced and focused. The protagonist is a fierce mother, and far from a “final girl”. I appreciated how the focus is on the situations faced by many-eviction, employment, etc.-actual horrors. I wish more was said about the setting/background, but it‘s intentional. It‘s a great story and quick-but great-read.

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Robotswithpersonality

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

so-so

I'm not sure Christina Henry wanted to write a horror novel. The majority of the work, I appreciated how well constructed the main character was, how strongly you get a sense of someone keeping poverty at bay, having escaped an oppressive, borderline abusive/neglectful, religious upbringing, survived homelessness and constantly vigilant in supporting a kid as a single parent without a high school diploma in a gentrifying area. 1/?

Robotswithpersonality 2/? I'll admit Harry bordered on too selfless to be believable in regards to always putting her son first, but it's hard to make that call as someone who's never been a parent. What might be considered secondary characters, Javier, the employer with the tragic backstory, the late coming Daniel, a gentle giant of a character actor, were also well-captured in fairly short order. I have more issues with the plot than I do the characterization. 3mo

Robotswithpersonality 3/? I could see this tagged as thriller or gothic more than horror, even if ghosts and a horror movie costume were involved. You get a lot of a mom who wants the best for her kid, and is firm in her resolve to put up with a lot to make his life better because her beginnings were miserable in a lot of ways. The mid/post-pandemic job market and real estate market are very good reasons for a character to continue on with an uncomfortable if 3mo

Robotswithpersonality 4/? not downright unsafe job. There's a decent amount of commentary woven into this woman's daily life, but it doesn't feel heavy handed.
When it comes to how things were resolved... it's a bit of a speed run. While I wish we knew more about the Bright Horses house's origins, I am glad the reporter never got to have his triumphant moment after the earlier pestering. 3mo

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Robotswithpersonality 5/? I get delaying reveals in the interest of ratcheting up the tension, but Harry's so pragmatic about the idea that she'll just have to work in a house with a haunt, even with a creepy mask that likes to move about or a wall that speaks and psychic waves that try to strangle, that you don't get anything approaching chilling until the final reveals. Was it fairly clear the wife and son had to be dead early on? Yes. 3mo

Robotswithpersonality 6/? Does the fake out of the coma and the preserved corpse reveal basically create the only spine tingle in the book? Also yes.
And here we arrive at my frequent conclusion with straightforward horror: it's often more sad than scary. Javier Castillo didn't love anything or anyone more than filmmaking, he neglected his wife and never cared enough for his son, which destroyed both relationships long before he felt it necessary to murder them both. 3mo

Robotswithpersonality 7/? Lena, it seems, spent her entire marriage in denial about her place in Javier's affections and the likelihood that having professed early no interest in children, that her husband would grow to love a kid he never wanted. Michael, afforded indulgent affection and indifference from his parents respectively, might not be able to solely blame his dysfunction on his upbringing, but it is tragic that his mother loved him enough to always take his 3mo

Robotswithpersonality 8/? side but never enough to intervene when he started acting destructive, something the book makes clear Harry is prepared to do with her son. Lena and Harry are mirror images in some actions and Michael and Gabe are more so, but it does feel a little simplistic, how Gabe is nigh flawless as a son as Harry is nigh flawless as a mother. Makes for a sharper contrast, but as much as messy family drama is not my speed, 3mo

Robotswithpersonality 9/? the seeming total lack of it here in the present tense (brief spats not withstanding) occasionally disconnected me from a sense of stakes. Speaking of: No sooner has Harry capitulated to needing to stay briefly in the haunted house because no other choice remains, than her and her son are out again, and while the reader is no doubt glad they've escaped alive, 3mo

Robotswithpersonality 10/10 we're leaving the characters in the exact circumstances Harry spends most of the book dreading: no job, no home. Interesting narrative choice for an ending. I guess reality remains the place where the greatest horrors lurk...and now I'm sad again! ☹️

⚠️child abuse 3mo

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Robotswithpersonality

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

I can see utility in possessing both options: resting bitch face and Active Murder Face. 😑😡

8 likes

Robotswithpersonality

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

Not gonna lie, if Polonius was the apt analogy brought out for any pontificating I did, I would devastated. 😩😆

Karisa 😂😂😂 3mo

9 likes1 comment

Robotswithpersonality

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

Say it louder. 👏🏻

7 likes

Addison_Reads

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

#HauntedShelf @PuddleJumper #HexesandCrows @Catsandbooks #BookRecommendations

1. The House that Horror Built- fast, spooky read with a different twist on the haunted house trope.
2. Assassination Classroom- another great manga series.
3. Edenville- this is a current read, but I'm enjoying it a lot.
4. A Sunny Place for Shady People- love this author! Great mix of horror, social commentary, and folklore.

Catsandbooks Yay! 👏🏼 💛 4mo

PuddleJumper 💛💛 4mo

23 likes2 comments

BeeMagical

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

so-so

Book 69📚 2.9⭐️

A so-so rating because most of the “meat and potatoes” happened in the last 10 pages and felt super rushed… the reveal could have been a bit more drawn out and dramatic.

Perhaps if he had been preserved IN the suit?! 🤷🏼‍♀️

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Nessavamusic

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

pick

This is a very different book. It shows inspiration from gothic and horror classics - Jane Eyre & Psycho in particular. More than a horror, this feels like a family drama/mystery. I particularly liked the mother/son relationship at the heart of the story. I can see many being very frustrated with the main character, and I definitely empathized with her but she still was crazy stubborn at times.⬇️

Nessavamusic I still really liked the atmosphere and the mystery and the highlighting of classic horror. 4.5⭐️ 6mo

49 likes1 stack add1 comment

Breanne1

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

pick

I enjoyed this horror novel even when there were times that the story felt repetitive. All in all a pick.
Book 29 of 2024

10 likes

candc320

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

pan

This was so disappointing. This is the 2nd Christina Henry book I‘ve read in about a month and I think her writing just isn‘t for me. The dialogue seems stilted and the characters one dimensional. There‘s so little horror and so much filler that I honestly started to skim so I could just figure out how it would end. And it ended just how I thought- so predictable! I did finish it, though, so there‘s that 🤷🏼‍♀️. 🌟🌟

21 likes

Read_By_Red

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

so-so

Sadly this was an extremely predictable novel; there was very little within this novel that surprised me. The story itself is rather fast-paced–I flew through it relatively quickly–but it honestly lacked any real horror. I think the most twisted thing about the entire narrative was Javier himself. I also felt as though the ending was rather abrupt and left a lot of unanswered questions; it was almost like Henry didn‘t know how to end the novel.

4 likes

candc320

The House that Horror Built | Christina Henry

Recent book hauls! I found the top book in a #LFL near me and went and got the bottom books while out celebrating Mother‘s Day. They all seem like perfect Summer reads 😍. Happy Mother‘s Day to all that are celebrating 🎉 🥂 📚

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