Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

27 reviews

dark mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Haunting of Hill House lured me into fascination before I could fully realize how enraptured I was- not unlike the book's protagonist, Eleanor, whose perception may waver from one moment to another but is drawn all the same to her fateful conclusion. It's easy to see why Hill House has gone on to influence countless other horror stories and its own adaptations, a powerful tale I will not soon forget. I found a little piece of myself inside this house and I will not be surprised if I find it leaves its mark on me as well.

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Cute story. I love the Netflix series a lot more, to be truthful

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I thought I would like this more than I did. It has all the components that should make it more compelling for me. The horror genre should be terrifying psychologically for me to be wrapped up in it. I should feel like I’m in the book. Instead, I felt like a bystander.

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challenging dark 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: No

The vibes are immaculate. The ending gave me chills. Women descending into madness is one of my favorite gothic tropes and Shirley Jackson is a master

Eleanor and Theodora are so lesbian-coded, but writers pre-21st century will do anything but make their characters openly gay (especially Theodora. She lives with a “friend?” Please, we all know what that means)

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challenging dark funny mysterious tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

As four characters come together to investigate the psychological effects of a haunted house, Eleanor narrates the effect on both her and the others. As the lively aspects of the house become increasingly creepier, Eleanor and the house mates begin to devolve. The set up of this book is incredibly interesting and I actually really enjoyed the slow burn. I think my issues stem from two parts. Part 1: no one in the house ever really addresses any haunted occurrences unless it's during or immediately after. Part 2: The last third of the book was incredibly confusing. I think if I was actually reading it and not listening to the audiobook, it might be different. Overall it was an interesting book and i'm intrigued to see how the show modernized it. 

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character

If I based everything purely on vibes, this book would have rated higher but it kind of got to the point where I was having trouble picturing what was going on and so I got confused about what was actually happening..

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
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

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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