Married couple, Margaret and Hal, finally find the house of their dreams. No matter if there was a murder in the house. They don't even care that multiple people died in there. Why bother? It is the house that is important. Yet it doesn't take long for things to happen in the house. Especially in September. Walls bleed, there is constant moaning and screaming, the ghosts are in their prime. Get through September and then it's not so bad. You either have to adjust or move out and Margaret is all about adjusting. Yet, when Hal disappears and their daughter, Katherine, comes looking for answers, Margaret's life and her little haunted house start to unravel.

I absolutely loved that I only knew one element of this book... and in all fairness it was a pretty obvious one. This whole book took me by surprise to be honest. I adored Margaret even when I was questioning her sanity, because I was like well yeah no wonder. I was rooting for her the whole time. She is probably one of the strongest character's that I have seen written in a long time. And I loved the little ways the author juxtaposed her strength compared to Hal. I went through about 95 theories in the last three chapters of this book. It was insane. The only issue I had was that I wished a few other things had been cleared up or explained more at the end. But overall, this is a killer horror.

Characters:

The characters are well-developed, with Margaret being a strong protagonist, Katherine revealing familial conflict, and Fredericka providing comic relief.

Writing/Prose:

The writing style combines dark humor and psychological depth, providing an engaging and relatable narrative.

Plot/Storyline:

The plot revolves around Margaret's life in a haunted house, her husband’s mysterious disappearance, and her struggle to keep her daughter from uncovering the dark secrets of their home.

Setting:

The setting is a beautifully sinister Victorian mansion that serves as the core of the haunting and impacts the characters significantly.

Pacing:

The pacing is dynamic, moving from a comedic tone to increasing suspense and intensity, especially in the final chapters.

Notes:

The story revolves around Margaret, who lives in a haunted Victorian mansion with her husband Hal, who goes missing.

The house has disturbing traits, like bleeding walls and ghostly visitors who can harm people.

Margaret adapts to life with ghosts and has established rules for coexistence with them.

The haunting intensifies in September, making it the worst month for the couple.

When Hal disappears, their daughter Katherine decides to investigate, unaware of the house's spooky reputation.

Margaret is portrayed as a strong character who deals with her troubled past and the house's challenges.

The book explores themes of domestic abuse and trauma, affecting both Margaret and Katherine in different ways.

The story blends horror with elements of dark comedy and psychological depth, leading readers to question reality and sanity.

Margaret often uses humor to cope with her challenging situation, which resonates with readers.

The author, Carissa Orlando, has a background in psychology, which helps in developing authentic characters and relationships.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Content warnings include domestic violence, psychological trauma, and themes of mental illness.

From The Publisher:

"Why run from a haunted house when you can stay and ignore the ghosts? Just when you thought you'd seen everything a haunted house novel could do, The September House comes along and delivers an eerie, darkly funny, and emotionally grounded book about the ghosts that haunt houses and marriages."- Grady Hendrix, New York Times bestselling author of How to Sell a Haunted House

A woman is determined to stay in her dream home even after it becomes a haunted nightmare in this compulsively readable, twisty, and layered debut novel.

When Margaret and her husband Hal bought the large Victorian house on Hawthorn Street-for sale at a surprisingly reasonable price-they couldn't believe they finally had a home of their own. Then they discovered the hauntings. Every September, the walls drip blood. The ghosts of former inhabitants appear, and all of them are terrified of something that lurks in the basement. Most people would flee.

Margaret is not most people.

Margaret is staying. It's her house. But after four years Hal can't take it anymore, and he leaves abruptly. Now, he's not returning calls, and their daughter Katherine-who knows nothing about the hauntings-arrives, intent on looking for her missing father. To make things worse, September has just begun, and with every attempt Margaret and Katherine make at finding Hal, the hauntings grow more harrowing, because there are some secrets the house needs to keep.

Ratings (51)

Incredible (14)
Loved It (17)
Liked It (10)
It Was OK (10)

Reader Stats (114):

Read It (51)
Currently Reading (1)
Want To Read (46)
Did Not Finish (3)
Not Interested (13)

1 comment(s)

Laura000

Incredible

9 months

Everything was incredible, it was a perfect horror and thriller.

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The September House

Carissa Orlando