Unfortunately this book wasn't for me. I found it to be very predictable and repetitive.

I think for beginner thriller/horror readers this could really work but it just wasn't for me

(A few slight spoilers ahead, don’t read this review if you haven’t finished the book!)

I have very mixed feelings about this one. I liked the premise, the horror movie director and his house full of props but I yearned for more, I wanted more creepy happenings. The pace was literally all over the place, Harry and Gabe should have moved into Bright Horses a lot sooner than they did and there should have been a slower build up of a haunted house story. Instead what we got was 40 pages of the whole book when the previous 270 pages literally nothing happened. The ending is SO abrupt, I was searching for the missing pages I thought I’d missed but nope, it just ended!

I love a good ghost story. This one kept me entertained, but at the same time it felt a little too long. I kind of figured where the story was going, so having it take so long to go there felt like a bit of a drag at some points.
By the time it reached the climax, I really just wanted it to be over which is sad. I wanted to love it.

The title is amazing, but also doesn’t really have much to do with the actual house? It felt like it was more about the “home” in the sense it’s about the family. It’s not a haunted house in the sense you think it will be. At least it wasn’t what I expected.

Either way, it was a good read, and it did feel like it fit in the horror genre, whereas some stories that focus on families feel like they are more about drama / contemp fiction.

I've enjoyed this author's books ever since her first a few years ago. In my opinion, her work has only improved, with the last being an absolute favourite that I devoured in one sitting!

Sadly this wasn't quite as good. I did enjoy it - the story is engaging, the mystery kept me turning the pages and the characters and world-building are solid. I particularly loved the premise, of the horror director building his own world and dragging an innocent family in with him (in my head, it was Guillermo del Toro and Doug Jones as the director and his actor friend!).

My main issue was that there seemed to be so much repetition. I understand that the protagonist is constantly worrying about her financial situation, her home, son and job, but this is constantly reiterated to the point of frustration.

I was glad that she's so practical, at least, with regard to paparazzi harassment, supernatural occurrences and an overbearing boss (no spoilers!). But her anxiety spilled out from the page a little too often, which made me put the book down more than I'd have liked.

Enjoyable overall, but a bit of a stressful read!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for this ARC! I love Christina Henry’s work and this sounded like such an interesting premise.

There were some really creepy moments involving a costume which kind of freaked me out and the “haunted house” setting was really atmospheric. Especially because the house belonged to a horror movie director and housed his collection of props. However, I felt like that was all rather under utilised. The horror aspects took a backseat to the mystery and family drama aspects. The plot became quite repetitive with it just following Harry’s inner turmoil and her going between decisions like a yo-yo. I didn’t particularly connect with any of the characters either.

The pacing was so off. The “action” only picked up at 80% and even then it felt cheesy and was written like a first draft. The ending was so rushed and abrupt I got whiplash. It just felt messy and like the author was trying to work with too many half-baked ideas. The pandemic is mentioned a ridiculous amount of times as well. I couldn’t believe the “twists” in this and by that I mean it was so predictable even from the Goodreads summary where this was going that I was thinking “it can’t possibly be that because that’s way too obvious”.

I don’t necessarily not recommend this, I just wouldn’t go into it expecting something groundbreaking or horrifying. It was released on 14th May so if you want to check it out it’s out now.

Christina Henry has been a bit hit and miss for me over the years, but I always gravitate back to her stories and this one did not disappoint. I thought the atmosphere of Bright Horses as a house was really well done and creepy, with the horror movie memorabilia and strange noises. I also thought the relationships between Javier, Harry and Gabe built up very well. There were elements of the plot that I found a bit predictable and the ending felt really rushed after such a slow build up of tension, but overall, I enjoyed this a lot and will continue to pick up books by this author in future.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I've been a fan of Christina Henry since I read Alice and The Girl in Red, and this one didn't disappoint — a haunted house / horror for the win! Harry is a very compelling protagonist; single mothers in the horror genre bring so much complexity to the table, and Harry deals with motherhood as well as the impending doom of the plot as well as the baggage of her past, which I think adds a very internal but intense element to the overall plot. I liked her foray into unearthing the secrets of Javier Castillo, and I loved her interaction with the setting, in particular, with a looming ghost story to contend with. If you're looking for something that's troubling, quiet but significant, but boisterous when it needs to be, you'll definitely like this book!

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Titan Books in exchange for an honest review.

It should be no surprise that I absolutely love everything Christina Henry writes at this point, and The House that Horror Built is no exception. This book tells the story of Harry, a single mother who begins cleaning the home of famous horror movie director, Javier Castillo. This involves cleaning all of the creepy props which adorn his home and following a very strict set of rules. Harry manages to successfully keep a professional distance from her boss until one day, she and her son are forced to move in with him due to her limiting financial circumstances. She then has to balance maintaining her boundaries whilst also suspecting there is something very odd about the house...

This is a hard book to pinpoint. If I had to, I'd say it was a slow-burn ghost story with a few psychological elements. Most of the book is focused on a creeping sense of dread, with only minimal horror 'stuff' actually happening. This was more than enough for me as a reader though. I found the characters interesting and I wasn't really sure where the story was going to go. I think the climax more than makes up for the slow pace of the beginning. The story gets very intense and troubled, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I am a huge fan of horror as a way of exploring human emotion and trauma, and this book does that very well in my opinion. I also like books which keep you on your toes. Which characters can you trust? Are things are sinister as they seem? This book plays with that well, and that's where the more psychological aspect comes in.

It should also come as no surprise that I am going to recommend this book. It's admittedly a little different than Henry's other, more-action filled works but I think that's a strength rather than a detriment. I think there's a lot here for horror fans to love

Overall Rating: 5/5 stars

I loved Good Girls Don't Die by Christina Henry so I was really excited for this book. However, this one was a bit of a disappointment for me.

I love the idea of a creepy mansion owned by a horror film director, filled with artefacts from his and other films. I enjoyed the horror references and the flashback stories for Javier and Harry.

However, I think this book might have been better as a short story as there wasn't enough plot or depth in the characters to make this an enjoyable read. It felt padded out with Harry's thoughts of finding a new apartment, finding a new job, not wanting to enter a friendship with her boss Javier Castillo, over and over again! I felt like I was reading the same few lines continuously.

Harry was a frustrating main character and there were far too many pages stuck inside her worries.

The plot moves along very slowly, there were a couple of creepy moments but they were very few and far between. And then the last few pages has this rushed ending that I'd predicted fairly early on in the book. And then it ends so abruptly with no epilogue to explain what happens to Harry and Gabe afterwards.

If you enjoy a tense and thrilling book then this was definitely it! Creepy and scary at times I really enjoyed this one. I loved Harry and Gabe but Harry was my favourite as she was such a good mum! Love this book

In "House of Shadows," the latest thriller from the author of "Good Girls Don't Die" and "Horseman," single mom Harry Adams takes a cleaning job at the mansion of reclusive horror director Javier Castillo. The mansion, filled with eerie props and costumes, holds dark secrets. As Harry hears mysterious noises from a locked room, she becomes entangled in a chilling mystery involving her enigmatic employer, whose career halted after his wife's disappearance. With her job and son's future on the line, Harry must confront the house's terrifying secrets, leading to a suspenseful and gripping read.

2.5* rounded up.

"The House that Horror Built" follows Harry, a single mother with a teenage son, working as a cleaner for a reclusive horror filmmaker, who lives amongst a collection of horror memorabilia and the memory of his missing wife and son. Harry is happy to work for the quietly professional, particular, and private Javier, convincing herself that the bumps from the locked room are nothing to worry about and that costume definitely didn't move, amidst her personal struggles until more circumstances converge against her.

This book looked and sounded SO cool. I couldn't wait to read it, finding a good chunk of time to dedicate to read it in full. I really could've dipped in and out. The plot meanders excruciatingly slow along an incredibly predictable road. I felt trapped, forced to endure watching them get to where I know they’re going. The 'horror' was extremely lacking, with only a handful of supernatural events. The book is primarily Harry worrying away to herself and refusing to talk about it. We have a pretty small cast, but I found them 2D and predictable (and some were pretty useless). I'm a horror fan, fellow readers will likely be horror fans, we don't need guiding gently by the hand. I did however like the horror references and the familial bonding around this. This would probably be a good entry book to horror, but for any seasoned horror lovers, this just plays out exactly as you'd expect and takes its time doing it. The dual POV didn't add anything, and frankly I didn't care about Michael, and I just wanted them to get on with it. I kept checking my progress like a kid checking the clock at school, begging for home time. It was a decent read and more enjoyable initially, but for me the slow pacing ruined the rest. Thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

dnf @ 40%.

The overuse of covid being mentioned and I could not care less about any of the characters. Didn't feel like a Christina Henry book?

“The House That Horror Built” by Christina Henry is a chilling masterpiece that combines gothic horror with a deeply human story. Henry, known for her ability to weave dark tales, excels in crafting a narrative that is as unsettling as it is compelling. The novel centers on an eerie mansion with a sinister history, where each room reveals a new layer of dread and mystery.

Henry's storytelling is captivating, her prose dripping with atmosphere and tension. She masterfully develops her characters, making their fears and emotions palpable, which heightens the horror as the story unfolds. The haunting setting, combined with the relentless suspense, keeps readers on the edge of their seats.

What sets The House That Horror Built apart is its blend of psychological depth and supernatural terror. Henry's keen insight into human vulnerability, coupled with her talent for evoking the macabre, makes this a must-read for fans of horror. It’s a spine-tingling journey into the darkest corners of the human psyche and a testament to Henry’s prowess in the genre.

This is the house that horror built.. Christina Henry style.
I really enjoyed this and was definitely picturing GdT as the reclusive horror genius!

Thank you to Netgalley, Titan Books and the author for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ever daydreamed about what it might be like to snoop around Guillermo Del Toro’s house of curiosities? In The House That Horror Built, single mum Harry Adams lives that dream — and it’s not as rewarding as you might have anticipated…

Christina Henry’s latest novel The House That Horror Built opens with a lot of promise. I’m a sucker for a haunted house story, especially one with a literal and metaphorical haunting: in this case, the memory of revered horror director Javier Castillo’s absent wife and son, coupled with a rather menacing haunted prop from one of his cult movies. I loved the characters too; Harry is a fully-realised and interesting protagonist and I warmed quickly to her relationship with her son Gabe. Castillo himself, a grumpy and reclusive horror icon, was an intriguing mystery, and I loved the fleshed out filmography that came with his story.

With the setting and circumstances established, I looked forward to some of the key plot points moving into place quickly so that the story could propel itself forward. Unfortunately, it feels like almost three-quarters of the book is used to lay the groundwork before anything can happen. I find a slow-burn narrative really satisfying when used effectively, but here, the pay-off happens far too late. In short, we’re left with a lot of build, a lot of conversation….and a lot of cleaning.

As the pages ran out I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied, and the late-stage reveal was already something I had predicted 200 pages ago. I was really disappointed about how lackluster everything became after such a strong start! Although nicely written, with great characterisation, Henry’s novel can’t balance the aspects of supernatural horror and dark thriller that it wants to play with, and the exhilaration of the final showdown just wasn’t there.

This review is included in May 2024’s episode of Fresh Blood on the Evolution of Horror podcast.

Seems like I'm in the minority but I enjoyed this book! The ending was a let down but other than that it was fine.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for the arc of this book.

Unfortunately, it was a major disappointment.
But let’s start with the things I liked:
I liked the premise, I’m a sucker for haunted houses stories, for strange sounds in the dark, for ghosts and monsters and goosebumps.
I liked Gabe, for a 14 years old teenager he’s very smart and brave, especially when things are starting to change.
I did like the idea of the book, a film director living in a house that’s haunted, and at the same time, he’s a very silent and strange guy.

Despite these things, I did not like the book. It was a major let down. First, it says that is a horror, and while it has the word “horror” in the title, there’s nothing horror about it. Nothing. There’s no creepiness, no fear, no sense whatsoever of terror.
Nothing is happening, except Harry doing a lot of cleaning and thinking about her and her son’s life. That’s all, just a lot of anxiety and future stressing and apartment hunting and a lot of complaining about the fact that she’s poor. Every 5 pages, the author reminded us that Harry is poor, she doesn’t have a lot of food, she buys everything on sale, she can’t go out because she’s poor, she doesn’t have friends because she’s poor, she can’t feed Gabe with what he wants because she’s poor and so on. I got tired and sick of getting and reading so many pages of how life is hard for Harry and Gabe.
There’s only one ghost encounter that it was pretty nice, but that’s all. There’s no gothic and mysterious atmosphere and there are a lot of things that were unnecessarily explained. For example, there’s a page where the author explains how many times did Harry (the main female protagonist) saw a rat and where did she saw them. I actually highlighted the paragraph because I was hoping for an explanation in the future, but no.
The ending was very abruptly written and very quickly and it was so easy to figure out who is the ghosts, I realised in the first 50 pages, I think.
So I’m very disappointed by “The house that horror built” which is a shame, because I love a good horror story. Unfortunately, this wasn’t one.

I have not read much of the horror genre, but if you want to get into it, this can be a nice starter book. You will definitely want to finish it in one sitting. The story can seem a bit rushed, but I really did like the book!

This was a gripping read, I thought the characters were intriguing and I'm going to keep an eye out for more from this author.