Wednesday, September 25, 2019

From my TBR shelf...

Title & Author:  The Haunting of Ashburn House by Darcy Coates

Why I bought it:  I like Darcy Coates; and I like books about creepy old houses that might be haunted.

The premise:  Ashburn House holds many secrets:  there isn't a single mirror in any of its rooms; there are boxes and boxes of candles in the attic; rumor has it that the Ashburn family was murdered there; and in the woods surrounding the house, there's a solitary grave. Of course, Adrienne didn't know any of these things when she inherited Ashburn House from her Great Aunt Edith. She didn't even know Ashburn House existed. Now she's stuck in this ancient house with nothing but her cat, Wolfgang, for company, and a scant twenty dollars in her pocket. She has no WiFi, and no phone. She doesn't know anyone in town. And she's started having unsettling dreams at night about something unnatural crawling through the woods...coming for her!

My thoughts:  Adrienne seemed ill-prepared to inherit any house, let alone a haunted one. And when strange things start to happen around her, she's loath to attribute any of them to supernatural causes. Not that I blamed her. When your electricity keeps going out, your first assumption is that there's a problem with your fuse box, not that you have a ghost. And she doesn't have a lot of clues to suggest otherwise. That's one of the flaws with this book--there aren't enough clues to help the protagonist or the reader figure out the mystery. And the suspense in this one builds very slowly. It's not until the last hundred pages that things get really eerie and intense. There are a few good scares at the end, and I liked the way Coates wrapped things up, but I have to say, this isn't my favorite of her novels. Still, it's a good book for this year's R.I.P. reading challenge.

My rating:  3/5 stars.

Happy Reading!



38 comments:

  1. Thanks for the heads up about this book. It's too bad there weren't more clues about what was going on with the mystery aspect of it.

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    1. I would have liked a few more clues in the first half so that I could've tried and figure out the mystery myself.

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  2. "When your electricity keeps going out, your first assumption is that there's a problem with your fuse box, not that you have a ghost."

    Yep, that's true. LOL

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  3. I'm not sure what would convince me of a ghost, but I would be uneasy about any ancient house with odd circumstances. What is your favorite book by Coates?

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    1. Either The Carrow Hunt or Craven Manor. I enjoyed both of those. :)

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  4. No WiFi or phone? THE HORROR! :D Also, cats are not much help in creepy situations. They only make it worse.

    Sorry it didn't quite live up to your expectations but it sounds like a fun, quick and seasonal read.

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    1. Lol. Cats aren't much help in these scenarios, are they?

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  5. That definitely looks like an RIP book if nothing else! Yikes.

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  6. It's too bad about the slow build--books where there is always an underlying tension as you go, building and building, really can be quite good. But I suppose it isn't always easy to pull off. At least you enjoyed it on some level, even if you didn't outright love it.

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    1. There were things I liked about this one. But you're right...a good haunted house story is hard to pull off. :)

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  7. This sounds like it had a lot of potential to be a really scary and smart story. Sorry to hear it was a bit lacking, but happy to hear it picked up in the end. That cover is super creepy!

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    1. Yeah, it wasn't a complete disappointment. But I do wish the first part had been a little more scary and suspenseful.

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  8. I'm not sure about the slow pace in the beginning, but the premise sounds quite intriguing, though.

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    1. It's a great premise! And the ending was good, so all was not lost. :D

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  9. I don't like slow paced horror books. I want it to be a thrill ride. Great cover though! And great book for fall.

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    1. Yeah, I would have liked the pacing at the first part of the novel to be faster and more suspenseful.

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  10. I love that spooky cover! I'm sorry to hear this wasn't one of your favorites from the author.

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    1. It was still a good read, but definitely not her best. It is a cool cover though. :)

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  11. I've heard some good things about Darcy Coates and I keep meaning to read her but I probably won't start with this one.

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  12. I really need to read something by this author. Too bad this one didn't fare a tad better because that's a heck of a cover!

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  13. I haven't tried this author yet but do have a book or two on my ereaders waiting for me!

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  14. I need to try more Darcy Coates. I always hear positive things.

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  15. This seems like it would be a good selection for R.I.P. although I tend to prefer scary books that are scary right from the get-go.

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    1. I do wish this one had been a little more suspenseful and scary right from the start.

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  16. I think the pacing in this would drive me nuts, I would need more to happen sooner. Sounds vert atmospheric though.

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    1. The pacing was a bit of a problem. It does pick up at the end!

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  17. You inspired me to try a novel by Darcy Coates! I'm currently listening to The Haunting of Blackwood House by Darcy Coates, which I purchased for 99 cents from Chirp. I'm roughly 70% into this novel. Creepy house vibes galore!

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    1. She does create some very creepy haunted houses!

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  18. So you inspired me read a novel by Darcy Coates! I just finished listening to the audio version of The Haunting of Blackwood House tonight. Great premise for a storyline... And who can resist a novel about haunted house? I gave this novel a 3 out of 5 star rating as some of leading character's behavior and interactions were annoying.

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    1. Glad you gave her books a try...even though the leading character was annoying.

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    2. Apologies for posting twice.... I thought maybe it didn't go through! I do have an ebook edition of one of Darcy Coates's novels that I'll hopefully get to later on this year.

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    3. It's not you...it's Blogger! My comments disappear then reappear all the time. It's very annoying. ;D

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