“The Haunting Between Us,” by Paul Michael Winters

This book was so amazing. My number one reason why I loved it was the characters. I loved the entire M/M aspect but also the struggles each of the characters was going through, separately and together. One character has body image struggles, which I love to see how realistic and relatable issues like that represented but also it felt stronger because it was a male character who has those struggles instead of the typical female character in a book. Their relationship as a couple was beyond adorable and really added a lighthearted vibe to a gothic type of horror that was happening in the plot. One of the MMC’s is closeted to his father so I loved that he also had his own struggles with that but also being in a single-parent home and all those issues that he works through.

On top of the fantastic characters was the plot. I loved the spooky ghost house and all the horror themes. Even though it was dark and had dark imagery, the book felt light in enough places that it wasn’t all doom and gloom, I actually think the romance overshadowed all of that but in the best way. Anyways, I adored the book from beginning to end, all the characters were likeable, and it was a perfect 5 out of 5 stars.

-M/M
-Ghosts
-Haunted House

Thank you for the ARC, Netgalley.

Haunted houses and young love. Will Hugo and Cam survive the Crimson House and its ghosts?

Young me would have ate this up. It was a perfect mix of sweet gushy romance and spooky moments. The paranormal plot line was well done, if maybe a bit basic, but just creepy enough to give you chills.

After about 60%, my interest fizzled out a bit and there was a pretty big gap of not really much happening. The ending helped pull it back a bit and it was a satisfying conclusion, and overall I enjoyed The Haunting Between Us.
I liked the side characters and the romance, the ghost hunting and spooks. And if I put myself in a YA mindset, turn off my stupid adult brain, I can overlook the plot holes and just enjoy the book for what it was meant to be.

This was a great read, and it kept me on the toes, I enjoyed the way the author wrote the characters and how the story felt relatable. The twists were great, and I cannot wait to see what else the author writes.

Thank you Maelstrom Press and Netgalley for this eARC, these opinions are my own. Finished this one tonight! This supernatural thriller was so enjoyable! Cameron has spent his life in a small town wishing for a boyfriend, being bullied because he’s gay and unfit. Plus the house a crossed the street has haunted him since that night. It’s been vacant for years and is known to be haunted. On his way home he sees an old lady in the house but in one blink she’s gone. Did he just imagine it? Hugo had spent the years since his mom past moving from house to house with his dad. They flip houses and then move on. Never putting down any roots. Then they move into 16 Sycamore Lane. But weird things are happening and his dads being cagey about how they got the house. Cameron and Hugo’s worlds collide and there is an instant spark. Hugo hasn’t be anywhere long enough to really establish a relationship and he hasn’t come out to his dad. Cameron’s out but his dad doesn’t seem to want to understand. As their feelings grow so do the spooky circumstances with Hugo’s house. Can they figure out what is going on before anyone ends up hurt or worse? How will things go with their dads? A wonderfully queer supernatural story that had my flipping through the pages! Hugo and Cameron are so cute and I love their queer friend group! A spooky edge of your seat thrill ride with all the ghost hunter vibes! A not to be missed read!

Haunted house? Count me in. I really enjoyed the main characters and how all the friends interacted and stuck together. I did find the story to be very predictable and the writing a little repetitive and a bit childish. There are a few unanswered questions I still have. But overall it was a decent book

This is like if The Haunting of Hill House and Heart Stopper had a baby.
It was awesome to read each character go through growth, the blossoming relationship between Cameron and Hugo, as well as them having a solid friendship group.
I honestly couldn’t put this book down, it was truly a great read, the romance was blooming, the horror was definitely spooky as hell and the twists 👀

The Haunting Between Us

5/5 stars 🌟

Where do I begin! This book was fantastic I received this as an eARC thanks to Paul Michael Winters and NetGalley.

I couldn’t put this book down, I read it during work, during my breaks and all night long to finish it!

The Haunting Between Us gives us too amazing Main Characters, Cameron and Hugo, one who is out and proud another who worries what his Pa will think of that! They are both described perfectly, when I read a book I love seeing the story like a movie in my head and all throughout this was a full scary romantic movie with twists and turns throughout so it’s 100% a must read!

Cameron’s insecurities hit hard and had me relating with his struggles in self-image and made him extremely easy to connect and feel protective over while Hugo’s willingness to stand up and look after everyone was appreciated and needed.

I love the mystery of Crimson House and supernatural references when it comes to the equipment and terminologies they used it felt like I was in a paranormal investigation! I had my thoughts on some of the facts and I was excited when the twist happened as expected! This book throws you a full historical moment and it’s great how much Paul (author) has put into really portraying the feeling that this is a real historical place with a full heritage!

Overall the Friend group, the side characters and the growing romance to the coming out moment held a place in my heart 💜 while making me sit on the edge of my seat scared of what could happen!

I will forever keep the thought of smelling cookies to be with this book! Please buy, read and SUPPORT this book when it becomes available January 7th 2025!

"Heartstopper meets The Haunting of Hill House in this queer coming-of-age romance and ghost story.

Cameron can't believe the boy of his dreams just moved into the house of his nightmares.

Sixteen-year-old Cameron Walsh dreads the haunted Victorian mansion across the street, where the ghost of the White Lady roams the halls. When he sees her through the bay window, his ghost-hunting friend Abby wants to investigate. But then the new owners pull up, and Cameron is captivated by the brooding, handsome boy moving in. He longs for a boyfriend, but years of bullying have shattered his self-esteem.

Sixteen-year-old Hugo Cruz and his father flip old houses, moving often, fleeing from the grief at the loss of Hugo's mother. They unknowingly move into the most haunted house in Port Townsend, Washington. From day one, Hugo encounters shadows that move by themselves, locked doors without keys, and hidden rooms. He hides the mysteries from his superstitious father, not wanting to uproot their lives.

When the White Lady becomes impossible to ignore, Hugo turns to Cameron to help uncover the house's dark history. They soon form a bond that goes beyond friendship, but as their feelings deepen, the White Lady's wrath intensifies. Entangled in a web of sinister secrets, they risk not only their love but their very existence."

I think everyone who knows ghosts knows to avoid White Ladies...

I love a haunted house book and this one hit the spot for me.

Enjoyed the way it combined sinister vibes with a super sweet love story. It was feel good and a little scary and I’m here for it!

One of the coolest things about this was the group of friends surrounding the main characters. I was like teen me would have loved to have been part of this group! Having them all investigate together added a sense of fun to the creepiness.

Adored the romance, both boys were just sweethearts, even though they had a little misunderstanding to start off with. It was maybe a little fast moving for my tastes, but definitely captured those feelings of first love.

Really enjoyable read. Kept me hooked and was so easy to visualise. I’ll definitely keep an eye out for any other books by this author.

I have some very conflicted feelings with regards to this book.

I think that there is incredible value in books like this one getting published and I appreciate what they do in allowing a safe place for young people to explore their own gender and sexual identity. Books like this just weren’t available when I was the age of the target audience, and I find myself sometimes a bit envious cause I would have loved to have more access to more mainstream queer media (and wasn’t just fan made on the internet).

This book features the components of a fun haunted house story with a historical mystery at the heart of it all. However, I think that it had a bit of an identity crisis. In trying to spilt itself between the ‘Heartstopper’ vibes and the ‘Haunting of Hill House’ vibes kind of just left both facets feeling unfulfilled. I found myself feeling kind of put out by how conveniently the end of the story gets tied up and there is one plot point that is driving me to absolute madness (view spoiler).

Hugo and Cameron have their cute moments together and I commend the author for trying to tackle some important and valuable topics such as the insecurity teenagers feel in their own bodies, dealing with racism and bullying, finding community and navigating the challenges of coming out to your parents and the excitement of your first partner and managing boundaries and consent. I think that because of the personality split I mentioned above, the execution of some of these story lines felt a little clumsy and like they had been tacked on because the author wanted to talk about them and not because they organically fit in with the story.

Unfortunately for me, the writing style fell flat and the dialogue at times felt a bit cheesy and it really detracted from the overall reading experience.

And look, I will 100% acknowledge I am not the target audience for this book and that perhaps the reading experience would be significantly different if I was. It’s been a long time since I was in the YA bracket, but I still like to read some of the new releases to see how the genre is travelling. But this one didn’t work for me, and I am sad about it. I really hope that it does find its people though, cause like I said above, for a young person looking to see their own coming of age experience reflected in what they are reading this might really resonate.

On a completely random note, how stunning is that cover!

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this story.

This might be a YA book but there were honestly some scenes that freaked me out a little when I was reading at night. It's not often I go for a ghost story, but since this is targeted at a younger audience, it was the right amount of spook for me.

I couldn’t put this down!! This book was described as Heartstopper meets the haunting of hill house, and this is a pretty accurate description.

There’s spooky vibes with a malicious entity, detailed history surrounding the house and a sordid mystery surrounding disappearances. We also get some great queer representation that made me want to giggle and kick my legs in the air when our two MMC’s meet. We get some tough family dynamics as the story explores why Hugo’s dad made them move and also why Cameron’s dad is still stuck on the idea of Cameron being gay.

Truly loved this, there’s some real found family moments for the characters, solid connections and the purest romance I’ve read in a while.

I really enjoyed this as a young adult supernatural romance novel, it had that element that I was looking for and was invested in what was happening. It uses the ghost element in a unique way that works in the setting and was engaged with the characters. It had that overall feel that I wanted and was glad I read this. Paul Michael Winters has a strong writing style and can't wait to read more.

What a great story a boy moves into the most haunted house in town and makes friends with the boy across the street

With a plot points such as acceptance ,ghost hunting finding your self this really was a fantastic read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Maelstrom Press for approving my request to read an arc of this book

This eerie story follows two 16 year old boys, Cameron, who lives opposite the most haunted house in the neighbourhood, and Hugo, the boy who just moved into the house. There’s ghost hunting and young love as well as two boys wanting acceptance from their fathers.

I enjoyed this haunting tale, I only wish that Cameron had been fat on the cover as it is mentioned multiple times that he is fat in the book.

This was such an exciting book. I loved it and can't wait to suggest it to my book club. The writing was fantastic and the story was intriguing.

Many thanks to Maelstrom Press for a complimentary eARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Cameron Walsh lives opposite the scariest, most haunted house in town. Crimson House is haunted by a creepy White Lady - Cameron almost lost his leg the last time he went in, so he is in no hurry to ever return. But when Hugo Cruz and his dad move in, Cameron is irresistibly drawn back to the House and its secrets.

This is the second novel by author Paul Michael Winters, after his compelling debut novel, Together in a Broken World. This book is a real page-turner with its fair share of twists and genuinely spooky scenes. The chapters alternate between Cameron and Hugo’s viewpoints, giving us a window into their richly-drawn inner lives. Winters writes first love/puppy love really well: Cameron and Hugo are an adorable couple who you will instantly root for, just like Zach and Aiden in Together in a Broken World. The relationship and its development feel authentic: both Cameron and Hugo deal with serious issues all through the novel (note the content warnings), and as a result their growth and the emotional payoffs feel warranted towards the end.

The supporting cast are equally stellar, Winters has a knack for making even the characters with the smallest roles memorable. His descriptions paint such a vivid picture of each character, you could almost see and hear them in your mind. While homophobia and homophobic behaviour are present in this novel and treated with the seriousness it deserves, this is largely a world where most characters are supportive of Cameron and Hugo’s relationship. Matty and Cameron’s brother, Jack, are the awesome straight allies we all wish we had growing up. They have minor roles in the story, but characters like them make this a world that feels real and truly alive, despite the supernatural premise.

The Haunting Between Us is superbly well-paced and intricately plotted. I found myself going back to read sections that foreshadowed plot developments later on in the book. This is a book that draws you in and keeps you there until you reach the end (not unlike the novel’s White Lady with her tray of cookies!). Suitable for teen readers and above, this is a highly recommended read that I will go back to when spooky season comes along again next year. If you liked Winters’s first book, putting this on your shelf is a no-brainer. If you enjoy a suspenseful thriller mixed with an adorable coming-of-age story, this book is definitely for you.