Review: The Haunting of Hill House

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a very weird book and parts of it were quite chilling.

This book is about a young woman named Eleanor who is invited to stay at a large mansion called Hill House by a Dr. Montague. The doctor is a professor who is writing a book about the supernatural. The house itself is described in detail with Gothic architecture and has a reputation for being haunted. There is a backstory of tragedies that are associated with the house. The other invited guests include Theodora who is more of free spirit, Luke who is to inherit the house, and Mrs. Dudley who is the housekeeper/cook. As the days progress, many strange things start happening in the house including noises and writings on the wall. Eleanor also feels a strange connection to the house.

All we have in this book is Eleanor's point of view and there are questions as to her reliability. We are forced to view reality from her eyes and there are clues that it may be quite skewed. As for Shirley Jackson's writing, there are many beautiful passages with very detailed descriptions that allow you to see what is being described. However, there was also repetition of certain phrases that threw me off at times. I found it a little jarring.

This is not your classic horror story. There are no manifestations of ghosts or vampires or the like. This is more about the house itself and the house becomes a character in its own right. This book is more of a suspenseful mystery. What I found lacking were explanations and I found it hard to connect to the main character. A lot is left open to interpretation. However, there were times that I found myself completely creeped out with the hairs standing up on the back of my arm. This is definitely a good read for October.

View all my reviews