unappealing, unoriginal writing and mediocre art. Not recommended except for readers and libraries where creepy stories are extremely popular.

The Dollhouse Family
By: M.R. Carey
2.5 / 5.0

This graphic novel was not for me. There were too many storylines going on for me. The writing was clear and I didn’t have an issue following what was happening. But, there was too much for me to focus on. I like a storyline that is straight forward. I also thought that this graphic novel would be creepier than it was. This is my fault though because I didn’t read the summary all the way through before reading it. I’m sure this novel is for someone, but it wasn’t my cup of tea.



Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Dollhouse-Family-Hill-House-Comics

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-dollhouse-family-mike-carey7

This review will appear on my blog on October 13, 2020.

A very Interesting comic indeed! I enjoyed the plot but I really enjoyed the visuals. This a first for me. I have never read a horror comic and I’m very pleased that this was my first one! I suggest that if you’re new to horror comics and really love horror stories then choose this one as you will not be disappointed!

I really don’t want to give away the plot but I can assure you that it is full of mystery and intrigue.

Really wasn't a fan of the art style. The frame narrative kind of went off the rails but the smaller arcs were entertaining.

One of my favorite books when I was a kid was called Behind the Attic Walls where a lonely young girl finds some dolls and they talk to her, so when I saw the Dollhouse Family I immediately thought about my old favorite. However, since this is for adults it is considerably different and in a very good way. When a young girl is willed an antique dollhouse she finds that the dollhouse and its inhabitants are able to talk and interact with her and she is able to visit them in the dollhouse. However we soon find that the dollhouse is more sinister than it looks and we see that it's had an impact on her family for generations. We get a good history of the dollhouse and the family in flashbacks and we watch as Alice grows up and resists the dollhouse's tempting offers. However the dollhouse moves onto her daughter and a fight for their lives ensues. I really liked this graphic novel and can't wait to see if there is going to be a continuation of the story. I received a free e-copy from NetGalley.

"Alice loves to talk to her dolls, and her dolls and dollhouse love to talk back.

When Alice is six, she is given a beautiful antique dollhouse. When things in her life get scary, Alice turns to her dolls and dollhouse for comfort. One day, they invite her to come play inside with them. As Alice's life is turned upside down in the "big" world, she is always welcomed home to the little world inside the dollhouse; the house will even grant her a wish if she agrees to live with them!

Follow Alice through the door of the dollhouse and into the demon's den."

The Crown Jewel in DC's Hill House Line.

This graphic novel didn't work as well for me as the other Hill House comics I've read. There were some great ideas, but ultimately there were a lot of struggles in following who everybody was, especially as the story spanned a number of years. That confusion really threw off the enjoyment of my reading experience, unfortunately.

Do y'all remember that episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark (or maybe it was Goosebumps) where the girl gets a dollhouse that looks exactly like her house and the dolls come to life? Or something like that. There's been multiple books and a few shows with a similar plot. Anyway, I've been chasing the high of that episode for years and sadly this wasn't as similar to it (or what I can remember of it) as I would have liked. I think I keep requesting these Horror books to review for the sake of nostalgia because I don't really read much Horror in general. If you do, then this graphic novel will be perfect for you. And Halloween *is* right around the corner.

I received a copy of The Dollhouse Family in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Dollhouse Family is the second horror story to come from Hill House Comics, the newest horror line from DC Comics. I personally am thrilled that DC is diving into the world of horror, and can't wait to see what else they come up with.
There are strange and dark things hidden throughout this world. Sometimes, those strange and deadly creatures latch onto one family in particular. This is the tale of one monster, one girl, and how her life was changed by a dollhouse.
A dollhouse may not sound like the most terrifying of subjects, but this is no ordinary dollhouse. It has captivated and tortured Alice ever since she was a little girl, forcing changes into her life that she was incapable of stopping.
Mike Carey (writer), Peter Gross (artist), Vince Locke (artist), and Chris Peter (colorist) were all involved for this second project, and boy does it get dark.

The Dollhouse Family is exactly the sort of dark and creepy story I've been hoping for from this line. It's a twisted tale, one that went on for decades before Alice ever came along, and certainly before she ever made any attempt to stop or change it.
One thing, before I dive into this review; while reading, I kept getting reminded of a similar horror story. One that involves a haunted dollhouse, that tried to influence the life of the children it became obsessed with. I can't recall where that story came from now, but it may have influenced my opinion on this tale.
The idea of taking something beautiful from anyone's childhood and turning it into a creature of horror is not new. Yet it is so painfully effective. No wonder it seems to come up, time and time again. In this case, the dollhouse is haunted, and it very much wants to take control of little Alice.
Some of what happened in this graphic novel was predictable, possibly because of that other story I read. Other parts really were a surprise, fleshing out the story and world in unexpected ways. It made for quite a chilling read!
I loved the art style used for this series. It was the perfect tone and style for this twisted tale. It was not willing to shy away from some of the more graphic elements (and imagery) in this story, and I actually think that this was the right call.
Once again, I'm finding myself enjoying the series coming out of DC's Black Label. I know that there are at least five stories in this series (Basketful of Heads, The Dollhouse Family, The Low, Low Woods, Daphne Byrne, and Plune), and I can't help but hope that there will be more as well.

On her sixth birthday, young Alice receives a bequest from an estranged great-aunt - a gorgeous 19th century dollhouse rendered with exquisite detail. The dollhouse also comes with some dollies, a mommy, a daddy, and three children. Alice is overjoyed to play with her gift, except her parents stand arguing over the dollhouse. Her mother finally agrees to let Alice keep it and she spends her next days playing with the house and its dolls. When her parents get into a loud and physical altercation, Alice runs to her room to hide where her dollies call out to her. Alice, much to her surprise, finds she can enter the dollhouse. By speaking a short poem she shrinks till she can walk right into the dollhouse. The inside is fantastic with rooms upon rooms, hidden rooms and stairwells.

This book starts with an innocent enough tale, much like the Alice of Alice in Wonderland. She is even able to shrink herself to enter into a magical and otherworldly place as does the Alice of Wonderland. But this place is dark, and has within a foreboding presence that comes to life in the form of a dark room with an ominous voice.

This twist on a childhood classic takes this book from a family friendly tale, to a ghastly one. The artistry of this book is fairly phenomenal. The colors and depictions bring the story to life in ominous and vibrant detail. My only complaint is that in some of the pages the text, both the spoken and narrator text, is the same color as the background color making it near impossible to read. Thankfully, this does not occur often but it does present a problem because it creates a gap in the story and causes the reader to halt. It is impossible not to notice this.

One other thing that I personally did not like was the interspersed pages where it appeared there was some sort of digitally rendered or photographed scene that went along with the story. The change in the medium of storytelling threw me off a bit too much.

Hill House Comics continues to turn out winners with The Dollhouse Family, a multigenerational story of cosmic horror and unexpected heroism. Bouncing around timelines (but never hard to follow) The Dollhouse Family tells the story of Alice Dealy, whose ancestor Joseph made an accidental deal with a devil over 200 years ago. Now, she's dealing with the fallout in the form of a seemingly innocent dollhouse, which keeps offering her safety and a wish in exchange for her eternal occupancy.

The Dollhouse Family juggles a lot of balls effectively, weaving several narratives from different time periods in a way that gradually reveals the extent of Alice's family history with a deep evil. Alice is an effective POV character as she continually bounces back from horrible events, building to a climactic confrontation with the spirit of the dollhouse that will hopefully repair her family's luck.

The art in this book is reminiscent of horror pulp comics, and works well with the narrative. The ending is satisfying, and also begs for a sequel.

M.R. Carey (writing as Mike Carey for this comic) still has a serious knack for unique horror stories and well written characters, particularly female characters. This time we follow Alice, a woman whose childhood was forever changed after her family inherited a dollhouse. The slow introduction to what the dollhouse does and how it affects Alice's life was very satisfying, just as the eventual tying in of the history of the dollhouse to the present day and Alice's story. Carey also has built a creepy, Lovecraftian demon mythos that I really liked, with a lot of really gross body horror imagery to go with the world building that all ties together nicely. That said, I did feel that THE DOLLHOUSE FAMILY really builds up to something... only to have it resolved VERY quickly. It felt hastily tied up at the end, and I would have liked to see a bit more pay off for the eventual climax.

THE DOLLHOUSE FAMILY is another solid horror story for the Hill House Comics label at DC, ending aside. Carey continues to have a lot of unique touches to his writing, and I was happy to finally read something of his in comic form!

I received a copy of this graphic novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I found myself really diving into this story, although I thought some of it was hard to read but that could have been from a formatting issue prior to final publication. I really enjoyed the plot and the characters, and enjoyed watching the main character grow up as the story progressed. I found the visuals striking and really enjoyed the graphics as I read, it really brought the story together. I believe that between the writing and the artwork this novel really has promise to suck people into the world of The Dollhouse Family. I will be recommending this novel to my friends who I feel will enjoy it.

The time flashes made this story hard to follow, though it did have a compelling under story. Sadly, the outdated art alongside the jarring storytelling made it less than stellar.

The most Vertigo Comics of all the Hill House titles I've read so far, which makes sense since its the one with the Vertigo writer. Just if Carey had written this back in the Vertigo days its story would have been spread over 60 issues rather than just six. But even condensed, the story drags at times and compresses too much at others. The art by Peter Gross and Vince Locke is classic Vertigo, with both the good and bad that comes with that description, and the covers/chapter breaks by Jessica Dalva are gorgeous and chilling. The story (cursed family, ancient demons, the horrors of the "real" world) just felt too much like familiar ground to get too excited about. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.

The Dollhouse Family is a creepy read that jumps from different times to give you multiple story lines that influence the "present." The plot is well thought out and merges fantasy creatures into a family history.

A great creepy read that gives you two stories for the price of one. When Alice is willed a dollhouse from her great-aunt, she has no idea the influence it will have on her life. Alice's story sucks you in and switching between her timeline and the story of its creation keeps creates a page turner of a read. What will happen to Alice and what really is the dollhouse and the people living inside? I couldn't put it down!

I really like the art style the story was a little bit lacking for me but I believe if you are able to follow the storyline you will enjoy it. For me it broke up a little too much from two different timelines.

When Alice is a child, she inherits a dollhouse unlike any other. At first, it’s just a dollhouse but then Alice learns the words that will allow her to enter the house herself. It’s a fun escape from the mess of her real life. But the dollhouse wants something from Alice and it’s only willing to wait for so long.

This is a creepy and twisted tale with!

I’ve been a fan of Carey’s work for ages but this is the first time I’ve read a comic he’s been involved with. It definitely won’t be the last!

I loved the story and the illustrations are excellent. The Dollhouse Family is an excellent horror comic!

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book!

You guys, this book was everything I needed it to be. The plot and storyline in the book gave me what I was looking for and the creep factor was there. A small girl was invited into the dollhouse by her dolls but the story only starts there. I highly recommend this author. I loved the writing. I will be looking for other works in the future from this author.