Rounded up from 3.5

I'm a sucker for a haunted house story, so when I read the synopsis for The Restoration, I knew I had to give it a read.

The Restoration is a mix of mystery and ghostly goings on which created an additive read. I devoured this book in two sittings which I haven't done in ages!

Terri is desperate for money, so she takes on the restoration of the old Miss Vandermere's childhood home, Glenvale. She moves in with her daughter Dallas, but things don't seem right and the hauntings begin. The ghost refuses to leave them alone and, along with another unwanted guest, Terri finds herself pulled into the mystery surrounding Glenvale.

I felt for Terri. Trying her best to provide for her daughter in the tough business of restoring houses, also while keeping her ex from getting full custody of her daughter.

I enjoyed the fact it showed a realistic parent/child relationship, the ups and downs. One minute they hate you, the next you're firm friends and all the other nuanced stuff that goes on in between.

The tension builds nicely, culminating in an explosive ending, which while it didn't entirely surprise me, was extremely satisfying.

I wished there had been more of a buildup at the beginning of the story. I felt the ghost showed itself a little too soon for my liking.

The Restoration is a quick spooky read that I'd recommend to any mystery lover out there who likes a ghostly twist to their stories.

This may be my first J.H. Moncrieff book, but I will certainly be on the lookout for more of her books in the future.

If your looking for thrills and chills then you had better look elsewhere. This book is all sorts of cheesy. Not to mention the main character is annoying as all get out. Why would she stay? Why put herself and her daughter in harms way? It just doesn't make any sense. In haunted house books I tend to enjoy being swept up in the atmosphere but Moncrieff didn't bother with that. I had no sense of the house that she was restoring. I couldn't visualize what was such an important aspect of the book....the house itself. This may be more successful if it was marketed as Young Adult Horror because I can't really see many adult horror fans enjoying this.

There were two reasons I knew I would enjoy The Restoration before I even read the first page. For one, I loved City of Ghosts by J.H. Moncrieff. Secondly, this book is based on the author’s real-life experience in a haunted house.

And how did I know this was a great book afterwards? It gave me nightmares! In many books based on haunted houses, it is usually the description of the house that is most creepy. However, you just can’t beat Niles to make the hair stand on the back of your neck. Who is Niles? Well, you will have to read the book to find out.

Despite this sounding like a straight-forward haunted house story, it goes a bit deeper. For one, you really don’t know which of the characters to trust. Secondly, the relationship between Terri and her daughter is complicated and provides an interesting element to the book.

The house can be seen as a character in itself. Always watching, waiting, it’s dark corners eluding discomfort and danger. It’s why haunted house stories are always a hit.

My actual review is coming later than release date. I'm behind on my review stack which is why I've stopped accepting book requests. I expect to read and review this in November. Sarah at Flame Tree Press is familiar with me and setting me up with copies and knows I will be following through with this book still. Thanks to Flame Tree and Netgalley for this digital review copy.

THE RESTORATION is an excitingly terrifying Spooky by proven author J. H. Moncrieff, who always delivers. Suspension of disbelief is immediate. The terror is Implacable. [If Death can't halt a monster, then truly no one is safe!] The juxtaposition of characters of various stripes is tense and suspenseful; the mystery of family history underlying the hauntings (multiple) is simultaneously puzzling and horrifying, as is the psychological blindness of some of the characters who persist on viewing the monster through rosy spectacles....until it's too late. One constantly worries whether there is a solution, especially as author Moncrieff unveils more and more of the essential evil in Glenvale House.


My two recommendations are:


Definitely read THE RESTORATION!
Definitely do not read at night if you live alone...

The Restoration tells the story of Terri Foxworth, a restoration expert who is hired to bring the Glenvale mansion back to its once glorious condition. She is hired by Henrietta Vandermere, who owns the estate. Terri moves into this now dilapidated old house with her 10 year old daughter Dallas and almost immediately learns that the house is haunted. This begins a mystery of how certain Vandermere family member died and who or what was ultimately responsible for their deaths. This was a fun quick story to read and I read it in one night. The haunting was sufficiently creepy, especially the ghost of Niles. This book is like a combination of a haunted house murder mystery story and it definitely worked. I could picture this as I was reading and thought it would make an entertaining movie. I especially enjoyed finding out that the author actually was inspired to write this story after spending the night at the real life Dalnavert House/ Museum in Canada, which is rumored to be haunted.

This is a real, proper haunted house ghost story. Sometimes a contemporary setting can dilute this sort of story, but not in this case. Add in some mystery and family secrets and you have a deliciously spooky read.

It was a very creepy story that kept me on the edge till the end, better not reading it before sleep or be ready for some interesting nightmare.
The author delivers a gripping, twisty and well written story using a classing trope, the haunted house, and renewing it.
Great storytelling, character and world development.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

THE RESTORATION, by J.H. Moncrieff, is the author's latest book coming to Flame Tree Press. I confess, haunted house/ghost stories have long been a favorite of mine, and this book hit all the right chords for me. At under 300 pages, the action moves forward quickly. Terri takes her daughter for the summer on a restoration project--not only for the money the job represents, but also to form a bond with her ten-year-old daughter who seems to becoming more distant to her, emotionally.

Right from the start, the unease slams into you as you meet Henrietta--the elderly owner of the dilapidated mansion. She comes across as untrustworthy, to say the least. The revelation that several contractors before Terri had been there--and abandoned--it, was something not disclosed before she was on site. You get the idea that there is a lot more that the woman is holding back--especially with her haughty denials and obvious lies.

"It must have been the wind." (Henrietta)
Right. Wind in a closed-up room . . ." (Terri)

The ghostly manifestations start shortly after. Between her daughter being reluctant to leave, and Terri desperately needing the job, there is a LOT that she comes to adjust to. There were theories and twists in this novel that I never anticipated, and even the ones I did were executed so well.

As for the ending--which you have to read for yourself--left me speechless at 3:00am!

Recommended!

*I received an arc of this book from NetGalley. All opinions are uniquely my own.**

I love a good ghost/haunted house story that gets under your skin, but this unfortunately wasn’t it. The book started promising, but I quickly lost interest. Pretty much everything is revealed early on, so you really don’t understand why the main character Terri stays put instead of leaving immediately. Especially because she has a young daughter. If the build up had been a bit slower, it would have been far more interesting.
Thank you @netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book is fast paced and has a frightening concept.
Terri moved into the home of Mrs. Vandermere with her daughter for the summer in order to restore it.
Her daughter encounters the spirit of someone who lived in the home early in the plot and the book is off and running. I felt that this was thrilling and exciting as the pacing was quick and engaging. It is different from a typical haunting in a few creative ways, which made this refreshing.
I have to give it three stars because the end was a bit rushed. It is self aware as a horror and haunting story, which is pretty humorous. The protagonist is pleasant and relatable. The backstory to one of the characters was given and her motivations were explained but, I would have liked to learn more about the background of the ghosts.
If you are a fan of paranormal horror and hauntings this book will entertain you.

The story of one woman's attempt to restore a house for hire with her daughter and the subsequent nightmare that evolves from both the haunting and the poor decisions of a series of terribly flawed characters, The Restoration bends over backward trying not to be the ghost story you're expecting while simultaneously fitting those tropes and modifying them to try and create a different narrative. If you found that statement difficult to wrap your mind around, well, the book itself is honestly a very frustrating read in most places. I'm sure there are some folks who might still enjoy this book, there are enough elements there to make it an interesting ghost story for folks who want something lighter and less traditionally gothic, but I didn't find all that much I could appreciate here.

The sole redeemable character was the impossibly teenage ten-year-old, everyone else was obnoxiously adolescent in their behavior and the villains are all downright textbook gothic right down to the dialogue. The haunting itself is constantly interrupted by the main character in ways that would drive most of us up a tree- either do the restoration or bail, quit hemming and hawing, lady! The final chapters have random anecdotal encounters with tropey scenes that do far more to interrupt the story than they do to build up the plot- honestly giving it an unpleasantly z movie feel straight out of a Syfy channel cheapie. And that ending-I won't spoil it, but oh my gosh the toxicity of where it went, particularly for the potentials the author had to work with and the implied possibilities of where it will go after the book is over. All of this is solely my view on the book-perhaps I was spoiled by reading masters like Mary Downing Hahn and Graham Masterton in the past- and I am grateful to NetGalley and Flame Tree Press for providing the review copy for me to read.

Any new release from J.H. Moncrieff is a cause for celebration and when it's another dark piece through Flame Tree Press, it's even more cause for cheering, clapping and happy dancing.

Since discovering Moncrieff's work a number of years back now, it's always apparent at the mastery at work when reading her writing. She can craft a dark story while creating fantastic, deep relationship dynamics, even in the most inhospitable of locations (think Return to Dyatlov pass).

But here, we get something "new." And I put new in quotations because if you've read any of her Ghost Writers Series you'll know she travelled to the most haunted Island in the world to research one of her books. No, I put it in quotations, because this is Moncrieff's first (at least in my opinion) really dark haunted house story - and the kicker - it's based around the events that happened when she and other writers spent the night in a haunted house.

What I liked: The story follows a mother and daughter as they move into an old house. The mother, Terri, has been hired to restore the house. She has a fantastic reputation for doing just that. But what they don't know is that Niles, a boy who once lived there, has returned and he's not too happy Terri and her daughter Dakota are there.

The story drips with dread and creepiness and it was fascinating to watch the struggle between what Terri wanted to believe and what she understood was happening. We get a number of great twists and turns as well as some fantastic backstory. I really enjoyed when we were introduced to other people who'd been in the house at one point and how things had gone for them.

Moncrieff does such a great job of using the house itself as a character too, ensuring that nothing feels safe and you never know what will be awaiting the reader in the next room.

The highlight for me here was the mother daughter relationship. They really were a team and it was great seeing how they had each other's backs, even as things progressed.

What I didn't like: Minor thing, but I found we went from 0-60 really quickly at the opening of the book. I think I would've loved a bit more time to see Niles be a bit of a trickster before revealing himself, but once he does there's no going back.

Why you should buy this: Moncrieff has delivered a really great, dark piece, about a mother who wants to provide for her daughter and a daughter who loves her mom more than anything. And we get to see them put to the test when Niles arrives and decides that he's not so happy they've moved in.

Another excellent release from Moncrieff who just keeps getting better and better.

**This review will feature on Kendall Reviews**

Terri and her 10 year old daughter Dallas move into a dilapidated old manor house. This is summer vacation for Dallas and meant to be "their summer" since she does not live with her mother full time. It's a working summer for Terri who is there to restore the house. Immediately upon moving in she finds out not only that she wasn't the owner's first choice for the job, but that there have been many others before her that either quit or were fired due to their "imaginations" and that there is one former employee in particular she is to watch out for, Gertrude, who is obsessed with the house.
Cue the strange noises and the daughter who knows more than is possible to know about the house's long dead former occupants and you have the set up for a typical haunted house story that also is a bit of a whodunit.
I found the murder mystery aspect a bit too easy to solve, and the relationship between Terri and her daughter seemed odd. Dallas seemed to go back and forth between being too mature for her age and then too immature for her age. Terri made some weird choices that you would not expect a normal mother to make. That and the fact that I could not really connect with any of the characters made this just an ok read for me.

Restoration was a new twist on the haunted house horror trope. As a single mom to an 11 year old daughter, the characters of Terri and Dallas really resonated with me. I found myself going back and forth with the decisions Terri made. Why keep exposing your daughter to an unsafe situation? And then the father showed up and I was 100% on Terri’s side, cheering her on.

The story was tight and had lots of twists. The antagonists of ghost teen Niles and his elderly sister Henrietta were monstrous and nightmare inducing. I didn’t have all the plot figured out by the end which I loved. It led me down a path, only to pull the rug out.

I love haunted house stories and this one was original and had lots of suspense and terror!

4 Stars!



Who doesn't like a good ghost story? I know that I do and have read some before from J.H. Moncrieff. When I saw she had a new ghost novel coming out from Flame Tree Press, I knew The Restoration was must-read material. Even the cover was subtle but haunting. As soon as I finished the book I was reading, I dug right into this promising book.



Terri Foxworth really needed a job and the offer to restore the Vendermere Manor it seemed like the perfect opportunity. Not only would she have steady (and well paying) work for a year, she would be able to spend at least the summer with her daughter, Dallas, and work on repairing the damage caused by her ugly divorce. Even the spooky Ms. Vandermere was not enough to completely put a damper on her enthusiasm. Neither was the moving curtains that almost seemed to be beckoning to her when she first toured the house. Not even the rumors of a possibly deranged former employee could drive here away. In spite of all the subtle warnings, it was just too good of an opportunity to pass up.



When Dallas first tells her mother that she has made a friend in teenage boy, Niles, Terri discounts it as an imaginary friend. This grows from dismissal to worry when Terri begins to think there is someone in the house with her and her daughter. Maybe it is an actor who played the long deceased Niles but maybe there is something more. When an obsessed ex-employee comes into the picture with as theory on murder, the mystery deepens and soon becomes deadly. What evil secrets does the house hold dear? Terri soon realizes that she must solve the mystery of Niles' death and the evil that grew in the family who once called this history house its home. The family, with the exception of the aged Ms. Vandermere, may be long gone, but sometimes evil will linger forever.



I have to admit that The Restoration drew me in right away. The story was creepy from the outset and promised to be a very good read from the first page. Also, I knew what Moncrieff brought to the table so my expectations were high and I was not disappointed. The story did move along a little quicker than I expected with the gothic feel that Moncrieff brings to the story so that set me on my heels just a little bit. The characters could have been fleshed out a bit more and some did feel as if they were more characters instead of real people in the book but this also served to allow the action to flow quicker. It was a bit of a trade off in style but it still works well for this book. There are ghosts to spare in this story, both good and bad, and the supernatural was just as big a character as the people in this novel.



What did surprise me about The Restoration, however, is that the novel is actually more of a murder mystery than it is a ghost story. There are a lot of ghosts and they do help drive the story, but it is more the story behind the ghosts that takes center stage rather than the ghosts themselves. This did lend a little confusion to the story as it made me wonder which direction Moncrieff was going to take at times but I still enjoyed the novel quite a bit. Moncrieff wastes few words in the story (with the seemingly unnecessary introduction of Dallas' father/Terri's ex-husband and his quick passing through the story which was a bit of a head-scratcher) and crafts a tight story that keeps the reader moving along at an almost breathtaking pace. The twists and turns were a little easy to figure out but still entertaining. In the end, what keeps this novel from being great rather than very good is that it read much like the reader was slipping back into a favored story rather than one that was entirely new. Still, I can think of few better ways to spend a couple hours and the chills that come in this story are haunting enough to keep it entertaining to the end. And could Moncrieff possibly have a sequel planned? Only time will tell.



I would like to thank Flame Tree Press and NetGalley for this review copy. The Restoration is scheduled to be released on October 19, 2021.

The Restoration Review!

Thank you so much @Netgalley and @flametreepress for this gifted copy, in exchange for an honest review!

I was very excited to dive into a paranormal read, given that spooky season is right around the corner!! The Restoration was a 3.25/5 ⭐️ for me! It read like a ya and even a middle school book at times. Obviously there is nothing wrong with those genres, but it wasn’t suppose to be, so it bothered me. The writing seemed very simple and repetitive in all of the adjectives. It made the book extremely slow at times. It was also unrealistic with the actions of the characters to me. A majority of the story was a 10 year old worried about money. I’ve met a lot of children (as a teacher) and most of the time, the last thing they think of is their parents money and how much they do/don’t have. If I had not gotten this on Netgalley, I honestly probably would have dnf it. I am glad I did go through with it though. I really enjoyed the ending!! I also loved that this book was inspired by the authors stay at a haunted house! This is a great starter paranormal read, just be aware that it reads like a ya!!! If I knew that, it would have been a higher rating!

Synopsis: Terri restores houses for a living. When she is asked to fix up a very old manor with a disturbing background, she doesn’t bat an eye. She has restored house with lots of disturbing histories, including mass murder. She moves her and her daughter into the manor with high hopes for this expensive job. Things soon turn dark and Terri and her daughter realize they are not the only presence in the house.

This review will also be shared on my Goodreads page. Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy for review! I am a sucker for haunted house books and this one was no different. Terri and her daughter Dallas move into the Vandermere home to restore it. As Terri begins her work, the secrets of the house start to show themselves. While the premise of this novel isn't new, I really enjoyed the direction the author took with it. About halfway through the story started to take a dark turn that I wasn't expecting. The end....wow! I was expecting- while not a happy ending- but an ending that wrapped the story up. However, this was not the case. I was shocked by the events of the ending of the novel and it ramped up my review to a 5/5. This is a book that would make a great foray into horror for a non-horror reader. I will certainly be recommending this!

Well, I love a ghost story, and I also love rennovation of old properties, so, of course, I was perfect for this book.

It is the story of a mother and her daughter who move into an old home in order to renovate it for the owners. Of course, they aren't aware of the "complicated history" of the family who lived there.

Moncrieff does an excellent job of giving us glimpses of the past while weaving them into present events. The reader and the characters are never sure who to trust, and there are danges from both the living and the dead. I really love the layers of this story and how it unfolds to reveal motivations you may not have guessed.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good ghost story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Flametree Press for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am a sucker for haunted house stories, so I was eager to get my hands on Restoration. The novel follows Terri, a professional historical home restorer, and her young daughter Dallas, as they attempt to live in and renovate the Vandermere mansion. Of course, this being a haunted house novel, nothing goes to plan and they quickly find that the mansion is anything but a quiet home. I loved the premise of this book—it’s kind of surprising to me that more horror novels don’t focus on this kind of historical restoration work. The only other that I can think of is Cherie Priest’s THE FAMILY PLOT. I enjoyed the detail Moncrieff brought to her descriptions of Terri’s work and the historical era of the mansion.

The novel’s first half was a genuine page-turner and kept me guessing about who the actual villain was. There were a few moments that were very creepy and some fun scares. However, the second half of the book lagged for me. The “evil” characters telegraphed their intentions and motives a little too obviously—at several moments, the villain(s) made speeches basically telling exactly what they did and why. It felt a little too Scooby Doo and somewhat incongruous with the earlier tension and pacing. However, the conclusion was satisfying and the epilogue included a nice twist.

All in all, I recommend this book for fans of classic haunted house horror. It’s quick, fun read and I’ll definitely be checking out more of Moncrieff’s work in the future.