The House that Horror Built by Christina Henry was an unexpected hit for me. Having read the author’s last book and not enjoying it, I went into this one with low expectations. I am happy to say that I need not have worried. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and will eagerly read from this author again in the future. Having said that, I do think that this book will be quite divisive. Those picking up this book expecting a spooky, scary tale may be disappointed. The horror elements in this book are very light and are really not the driving force of the plot. This is a relatively slow paced mystery story that still manages to be entertaining and intriguing. The main characters were fully realised and the relationships between them were nuanced and interesting. This book really shines a spotlight on the mother-son relationship and I really enjoyed that element. My only slight disappointment with this book is that the ending, while good, felt a little rushed. I would have quite liked a little more at this point.

With thanks to Titan Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an early copy of this compelling book in exchange for an honest review

I loved the beginning with all the horror movie talk and we did get creepy atmosphere but there was barely any horror elements. It seemed more like a cosy horror and that’s not my jam.

Okay so I really enjoyed this. I enjoyed the setting of the movie fan working for the big-time horror director, and seeing all the props etc around his house. Sounds like the ideal job even though I’d definitely get sacked for getting nothing done.

I also enjoyed the back story of both Javier and Harry and felt they added a decent amount of depth to the storyline.

I did want the book to be a little more creepy, but I feel like I’m always looking for more but that might just be a me thing. There was a decent level of creepiness, and I will say I 100% did not see the twist coming and I think that makes things so much more enjoyable.

Atmospheric and entertaining, weird and wonderful.

✩✩✩✩

Thank you to @netgalley and @titanbooks for the eArc.

What I loved -

- The dual timelines! Super fun and added more weight to the storyline.
- Harry's love of horror in the initial chapters!
- The Sten costume... ekkk! It gave me murder house american horror story vibes.
- The fast pace of the novel... I read it in two sittings and I'm very grateful to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this before publication.

If you're a fan of Grady Hendrix (particularly How to Sell a Haunted House) you will love this!

Thank you again! 5 stars from me!

The House that Horror Built is the first book I've read of Christina Henry's and sadly it didn't give me a good first impression.

There wasn't much horror elements in it considering it literally has the word horror in the title, I don't think referencing some horror movies really counts.

The character Harry was incredibly annoying and constantly talked about the pandemic and being a poor single mom. She had no personality trait other than feeling hard done by and resentment for those around her that had money.

By the time the story finally got to the point it was about 95% of the way in and gave a rushed conclusion.

I wanted to DNF this book so many times but gave it the benefit of the doubt as I've seen so many recommendations for Christina's other books.

3.5 rounded down

Henry’s writing is really engaging and I really liked the characters in this. Unfortunately, the ending felt really rushed and quite predictable which was a shame. This book has definitely made me more interested in reading Henry’s other works which is a big plus!

I normally really enjoy Christina Henry's books but unfortunately this one just fell a bit flat. There was minimal horror and it actually felt like nothing really happened for the first 80% of the book. It took me much longer to read than I normally take and this was because I just wasn't really drawn in or kept interested.
Such a shame as I had high hopes for this one!

2.5

I want to preface this by saying that Alice and Lost Boy are up there with some of my favourite books and I believe Henry (who is an autobuy author for me) has a knack for making deeply layered comments on sexism and misogyny in her work. This is why it pains me to say, I did not enjoy this book. For a few reasons.

I'll start with the positives, the setting was intriguing, I have a very strong mental image of the mansion in which the majority of the plot unfolds - titled Bright Horses. And the first 30% of the book kept me interested in the hope that the narrative was about to advance. Which as I'm about to elaborate on, it did not.

Unfortunately outside of those points, I am truly struggling to find more positive notes. Arguably, nothing substantial really occurs until the final chapter and while I'm sure this was intended to built tension, that only really works if the events that do occur in said final chapter are not predictable and expected from the halfway point.

Harry as a main character is likeable but I often found myself questioning her decisions. Realistically, who (spoilers) hears knocking from a locked room and cries of "help me" more than once, only to proceed to ignore it for months believing it was their imagination? I understand that this is potentially a comment on self-doubt and not feeling like you have a voice but that's just one example of an incident that would send even the most self-doubting person flying out the front door. Instead, Harry proceeds to ignore these signs, even endangering her son in the process.

Genre-wise, this was not a horror, or a Thriller. This read as a YA suspense novel that buckled on the suspense. And to top that off, this book is not YA, it's intended for adults. The horror references throughout are ample but lack nuance.

There are then also 11 references to the pandemic. There's a fine line between a book being set in that era and addressing it as relevant and then a book using it as deus ex machina. Some in this book drive the convenience of the narrative. Such as (spoilers) Gabe taking home classes in order to be in the mansion more, or Harry's job search being more complicated requiring her to have to stay in the mansion.

I really and truly hate to say it but this book was a huge disappointment for me. I finished it and immediately found myself wondering if I'd missed a portion because so little had occurred. Henry will continue to be an autobuy author for me but I'm going to hope this book was an outlier in her oeuvre.

Thanks for netgalley for arc!

Thanks to NetGalley, Titan Books, and Christina Henry for the complementary ebook copy in exchange for my honest review!

The premise of this book drew me in straight away as I adore horror movies and I adore books which are culturally aware and lean into their genres in a more self aware way. We follow Harry a single mother living on the bread line and post pandemic, struggling to find work to keep her and her teenage son off the streets. Thankfully she finds a job as a cleaner in a large manor house - never mind that the place is kinda creepy and she's convinced she's heard strange noises and that the costumes she cleans seem to move. The place is owned by a reclusive movie director famous for his horror movies and the disappearance of his wife and teenage son, and what starts out as a rather clinical working relationship between the two grows more complex as the lonely man starts showing a keen interest in her son. As Harry finds her family drawn further into the haunted house and it's eccentric owner, is it the haunting presence she has to fear or it's owner?

I really enjoyed the first half of this book and found the writing style to be readable. I really liked all the various horror movie and lore references and it was clear that the author had a clear passion for the genre which inspired and influenced the story. The plot itself is a fun concept and whilst I enjoyed the initial half, I unfortunately began to lose interest in the latter part as the story pacing seems to slow down and it felt like not much was really happening. Whilst I initially appreciated Harry as a character and found her to be quite realistic with her grounded worries and anxiety I found this got to be rather repetitive later on, to the point that it was taking the focus away from the main mystery plot line. Ultimately, I found the conclusion to the mystery to be somewhat disappointing and predictable and the ending was rather anti-climatic. It's a shame as I'd really hoped the story could have gone a different direction but if you're familiar with horror movies (which this book definitely presumes you are) but the ending was just rather weak and we never got a resolution as to Harry's problems.

Overall, I found this to be an easy read, leaning more into the thriller/mystery genre than horror which unfortunately lost steam halfway through.

I really wanted to love this book but sadly it didn’t hit the mark for me. Too much pandemic talk (I don’t like avoiding it but this just felt a little OTT), the ending was pretty much obvious from the start. This author is incredible in the horror genre, this just fell a little short for me. I won’t be put off future reads for sure.

I've heard such incredible thing's about Christina Henry books and have been so excited to read one. I requested this one as I absolutely love a haunted house story.

The premise of the book sounded so good and it definitely sucked me in. However, I felt the execution was lacking.

I'm fairly new to the horror genre, however for me personally I want my heart rate to increase at, at least one scene in the book.

This book had a couple of creepy scenes but nothing that got my heart racing.

Having said that, I did enjoy this book even though it read more like a YA book for me.

I would still recommend as the story did capture me but the horror element eas lacking for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced e book in exchange for an honest review.

Rated 3 75 ⭐️ Rounded up

I can’t imagine a day where I’ll reach my haunted house story limit. There’s something about a menacing presence causing havoc in the place that’s supposed to be safe, one where the harsh realities of the world aren’t supposed to intrude, that never gets old.

This haunting introduces us to Harry, a single mother with the weight of the world on her shoulders. She’s just gotten a new job cleaning the home of a reclusive horror movie director, a man whose work Harry is a fan of.

“That door was always locked, and it wasn’t her job to be curious about it.”

This is a story where the characters are as haunted as the house. It’s more character driven than I was expecting and I surprised myself by enjoying this, even when it seemed to be taking away from the haunting I picked up the book to experience.

I liked Harry, who’s doing her best to keep her head above water. Her love for her son, Gabe, and her efforts to give him a better life endeared her to me. Gabe, an absolute sweetheart, oftentimes seemed too good to be true but I had a soft spot for him as well. Mr Castillo, Harry’s employer and a man with a troubled past, was the one I kept wanting to know more about.

Much of the book unfolded as I expected it to but I definitely wasn’t right about everything. There’s the expected strange noises and other spooky goings on scattered throughout the book but it isn’t until near the end that things really heat up.

I had hoped for more scares but I have a pretty high threshold for horror so it takes a lot to rattle me. This isn’t my favourite haunted house book but it was a fun read.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this book.

A good story I liked most of the book but Harry keep worrying about her job even though there's no indication that she was even close to being sacked. Beside that I enjoyed the creepiness of the house she cleans. Good characters and plotting. Thanks to Titan books and Netgalley for a review ARC.

I start again by saying I absolutely love Christina Henry, from her Alice series through to my favourite; Near The Bone.

The House That Horror Built is a much slower burn than I'm used to from Henry. The bulk of the plot centers around Harry as an impoverished single mother and her struggles to provide for her teen son in a post-Covid Chicago.

Personally I'm not so much a fan of being reminded of Covid and the lasting impacts of lockdown several times in a fiction novel. Perhaps I'm not the only one who doesn't want to revisit that time in our lives so soon after.

The setting and characters are well written and enjoyable but unfortunately I found the mystery of Mr Castillo's past to be thinly stretched and terribly predictable. Having guessed what was to come before the quarter mark of the story I dragged my way through hoping for a surprise. Instead I found a plot hole.

It pains me to write a negative review for an autobuy author but The House That Horror Built doesnt align to the many previous five star reads I've had from Christina Henry.
I will still look forward to her next novel with hope.

A creepy atmospheric haunted house vibe horror. However I couldn’t connect to the characters and it all felt a chore to read. Don’t get me wrong, some bits were creepy but overall an ok read. Thanks NetGalley 💪🏻

The House that Horror Built by Christina Henry is a standalone horror novel featuring a single mother, a creepy house and some chilling gothic vibes.

The story is a slow burn type horror which takes a while to fully build up but this allows us time to understand the characters and their situation. I liked the mystery and supernatural elements. I’m a huge fan of horror so I loved the idea of a haunted house owned by a mysterious horror director filled with horror props and references. I also liked the reference to the rhyme The House that Jack Built.

The story was fairly short and I read it in an afternoon. The ending was great and I felt really made the slow burn worth it. The story has vibes of Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier but I’m not sure if that was intentional or not. If you’re a fan of that style of story you will love this.
I’ve only read one other Christina Henry book before this but so far I’m really enjoying her style and looking forward to reading some of her other more well known books.

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC to review!

2 stars!

Now let me start off by saying the start of this got me so excited. The sheer mention of The Lost Boys and how that opened a door to Harry loving horror was the exact same as me when I was a kid. So, after that part I was so ready.

However, I found myself wanting to put this down a lot. I didn't find myself wanting to find out more. Which really made me sad because I was so invested at the start. Clearly, this didn't hit off with me, and I didn't find it to be really horror, but it might work out for another reader!

This was a weird read. A lot of it was atmospheric and creepy, but I expected more somehow. The plot just didn’t live up to my expectations.

I did want to keep reading and find out what was behind the weird occurrences in the horror directors house. I thought there might be some really mind blowing twist, but I wasn’t surprised at all. Barring a few of the intricate details, it was pretty much what I’d suspected from the beginning.

An ok read with some fun supernatural horror elements. I enjoyed that the horror was happening within the house of a horror filmmaker. The props and memorabilia created a cool sinister atmosphere. It was pretty well written and engaging. However, it didn’t feel like the most original plot and the reveals at the end were pretty predictable.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

Christina Henry is a really good author of creepy horror works and I enjoyed what I've read of her previous work. I was excited to dive into her newest novel then, which has a premise that really spoke to me.
Sadly, this one wasn't for me at all. While the writing was solid, the pacing was too slow and nothing really happened. The horror elements of this book are barely there at all, everything is incredibly predictable and most of the book was more of a study of the main character and her parenting and money struggles. To be frank: I was sadly very bored very early on, and even when the "mystery" started to unravel more and more I could not bring myself to care. I wasn't invested at all and didn't feel any connection to the main character, either. The book also suffers from something that always annoys me: a major child character that just clearly does not act or talk like a child. The ending is very abrupt, too.
Really, it was all just so... bland? A horror book that I read at night, aka the scariest time of the day, that doesn't manage to even remotely scare me, instead put me to sleep in even it's most "horror" moments, is just not an engaging horror nor reading experience. I would have dnf'ed this one had it not been an arc.
Still, I liked how much love for horror films was put in these pages, and I'm not even much of a fan of horror films. I just love people being passionate about things, I guess? Anyway, that love and the general writing quality are what made me give this two instead of one stars. I hope others might enjoy this one more.

Review will be shared during publication month.

I jumped into this as soon as I received it, I've heard such good things about Christina Henry and this is my first book I've read of hers. While I enjoyed it I felt like it didn't really get going until over halfway through. For me the build up wasn't what I wanted it to be, I was hoping for something a bit creepier and with more happening but it just fell a bit flat in places. I didn't really warm to the characters either which I think really takes me out of a story. I will try some of the authors other books in the future though