"Hetty" is not for the faint of heart, as it delves into graphic and disturbing subject matter. However, for those who appreciate horror that pushes boundaries and explores the darker aspects of human nature, this novella delivers a powerful and thought-provoking experience.

Hetty has an old school vibe that classic horror lovers will enjoy. I automatically thought of It, what with the children going missing and the small town full of secrets. The author does a great job of creating a creepy vibe within the town, from the descriptions of the old schoolhouse and pond to the sketchy characters that live on the town.

This is a supernatural story, which is right up my street. The plot line is solid, although I did feel myself dip in and out at times. Sometimes the scenes were a bit patchy and jumped between each other two much. I also feel that most of the horror was at the end. I would have liked more scenes with those creepy children. Unfortunately, I didn’t think the book is as scary as it could be.

Dane is a great character. It’s hard to decide about him at the start, but I warmed to him very much by the end. Winona I could take or leave. It is as if the author couldn’t decide what kind of woman he wanted her to be. By the end, I still couldn’t pinpoint her. Nevertheless, it isn’t enough to take away from a pretty decent horror.

I’ve said this in many reviews, and I’ll continue to say it. There are some writers whose work I will just dive into without reading the synopsis because I know they won’t disappoint. Eddie Generous is one such author. And, as a bonus, I never know what I’m going to get. Sometimes it’s a straight-up monster story like Great Big Teeth. Other times it’s a family drama with monsters like What Lurks Beneath. Occasionally it’s coming-of-age horror like various short works in his collections, and sometimes it’s just flat-out creepy-ass horror like Hetty. Generous’ work is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get. But unlike that box of chocolates, I’ve never bitten into an Eddie Generous tale and didn’t enjoy it.

Full review in link below.

Right from the beginning, I knew that Hetty would be a pretty good read. We start out with a backstory on Hetty, allowing us to understand her a little bit more. It was also a great way to build up the eerie atmosphere right from the start, and I have to say, this book did a nice job holding that atmosphere for the entire duration of the book.

In terms of the scares (which is the main reason why I chose this book), Hetty is quite generous, alright! It's a classic horror story that will chill you right to the bone and give you the creeps long after you've put it down. I could imagine the scenes quite vividly – making me wish this could be adapted into a horror film someday or something.

Overall, this is a fantastic read that I recommend to all those who enjoy spooky stories and supernatural horror. My only issue is that the constant POV switching was a bit confusing, but at least there's no space for boredom with this book.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the advance copy.

This felt very old school horror. I loved it. It doesn't get much creepier than dead school children. Hetty is the kind of book that reminds me why I love this genre.

DNF @ 50%.

It's like reading a bad movie script, really. Too much dialogue, too much brand name dropping. The scenes feel wooden, trying to be as disturbing as possible, yet failing because it's just TOO much. More deduction points for writing this:

"<I>The producers working with the publisher suggested the shorter the better, meaning lots of room for white space, many chapters, a healthy helping of dialogue—fast page flipping helped movie lovers work their way through a book</I>"

and doing the exact same thing in this book. As a reader, I felt like being taken the piss out of most of the time.

Looking at the other reviews, there's an audience for this. If you don't read much and love watching sequels of already shady horror flicks with a thin plot: this book's for you. For me, it put my irritation mode on big time.

TLDR: with nuclear winter becoming a more realistic prospect by the day at the moment, I prefer to spend my sparse reading time on better books.

DNF.. I picked this one up around Halloween and was very excited for the spooky vibes. It started out alright, but as I kept reading, something about it was off. I couldn't get myself to pick it up again after about halfway through. Sorry.

Solid horror story with an very creepy premisis. This take did a good job of capturing my interest and keeping it. Some parts were hard to read, but a major source to the tale. Recommend to horror lovers.

This book was fine, nothing special, not scary, but not uninteresting. I might have had too high of expectations based on reviews I read, but I liked it enough to finish.

This book was a tale of what happens when a town hides secrets from the townspeople. When the teacher murdered her students it became necessary for the spirit to gain new victims. When she stole a child too young for school, everyone in the town decides enough is enough. What ensues can only be described as a terrifying journey to save the little boy. I especially liked how the author balanced loss and hope so well. I would definitely recommend this book to those that love a creepy story.

Hetty by Eddie Generous is a horror genre book and has a chilling vibe where the plot is set in an abandoned school. The author has done a commendable job in writing a twisted and dark horror story. I liked the plot and climax which opens a way for a sequel. I would award 4 stars to the book as I was little bit confused at the end. But, the book is worth a one time read. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me an opportunity to read the book.

What a deliciously eery and macabre story. Hetty was scary and surprising and I was never really sure what to expect. Filled with characters and nuance and things I didn’t want to happen yet I couldn’t stop reading until I had to (the book ended eventually). Reminiscent of King and Stranger Things-this is a book that you read during daylight. With people. In public.

Really well written and just a damn fine story.

I received an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. The opinions are all mine.

I found this book to be interesting. You have a haunting oh, you have sex oh, you have missing children all a catalyst for a good horror book. I do intend to get the physical copy so I can have it on my bookshelf and I may reread this during the winter time.

TW: Domestic abuse, sexual abuse, drug usage, physical abuse of a child, death of parents, alcohol usage, violence, gory scenes, violence toward an animal.

Thank you Netgalley for the eARC! This was not the type of horror book I was expecting, but I ended up really enjoying it! This book reads like a horror movie, similar to Amityville Horror or Insidious. The writing style focuses on mundane things in the characters' daily lives so they are more human and you can relate and really feel for them when all the horror starts happening. It sort of just creeps up on you and then BAM all the horror stuff happens. I really enjoyed learning about each character's backstory and how they dealt with the trauma etc. This book is really dark though and deals with heavy-hitting topics outside of the horror and scaries that happen. If this was a movie, I would totally watch it because the story is just great. I wasn't too scared by what happened in the book, probably because I get more scared by ghosts than animals, but it's still creepy and has some good horror scenes. The schoolhouse scene reminded me a bit of the other world in Insidious. If you want a Halloween read, I would highly recommend this, but just be warned because it's dark as heck.

This book was SO good. The characters were three dimensional, I cared deeply about what happened to them, and the big evil was one of the most unique characters I've ever encountered in a spooky story. Perfect reading for scary season!

Hetty Stanley was a schoolteacher. Hetty Stanley was a prudish spinster. Hetty Stanley was a murderer. Hetty Stanley has been dead for more than a century.

Dane Butler is doing his best. His best isn’t enough, but a little luck puts him into an inherited home that shares a property line with a woman and her son. Winona and her son Casey are no better off than Dane, forcing the strangers to rely on one another.

One day, Dane looks up from his computer at the sound of Winona shouting. Her four-year-old son is missing—no boots and no coat, January in Minnesota. Hours pass. Police scour the woods and begin pointing fingers at the only plausible suspects, but one high-ranking officer knows the painful history. Children have been disappearing from the old schoolhouse property for decades, and although it is impossible, there’s only one suspect— Hetty Stanley.

To save Casey, Dane and Winona must find the link to Hetty and follow it, no matter how impossible the route seems or what trials they must face.

This is the first horror in a while that has actually spooked me out! There were elements of this novel that were absolutely terrifying and genuinely gave me chills.

I loved Generous’ characters and found myself rooting for them all and I also really enjoyed the old ghost story feels with the pinch of urban legend that was created by Hetty’s infamy in the local town.

It would have been 5 stars except for the ending being a little underwhelming and at times the plot dragged when I felt it could have been a little more exciting/dramatic.

Overall a good, scary read for the Autumn season though.

#bookreviewsbymrsc #hetty #eddiegenerous #horrorstories #ghoststories

*Copy provided by netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

Sadly, this book was not great. The characters were uninteresting, the plot was not good, the pacing was non existent and it was not horror, it was just painfully boring. It is a pity, since it was a good pitch for a horror novel and in the beginning it looked cool, but I would not recommend this one at all.

Excellent story! Totally engrossing!. Looking forward to reading more by this author! Could not put this down!

I really liked the old school horror feel of this book. The beginning threw me off a bit because it was hard to grasp what the backstory was about the school marm. I got the understanding that some kids disappeared, but really not enough particulars to help develop interest in the story. I really liked Dane as a character, however could not understand why he was interested in Winona and what his issues his past actually caused for him. It is referenced, but really doesn't give a solid story other than deaths and that he ended up with a savior. Winona was just a complete cliche and just and overly sexualized doormat of a character that seemed to live a day to day existence ignoring her troubled child and dropping him off with people she barely knows. There were many instances in this book where the story is just kind of floating and I am not really sure why people are acting the weird way they are when it is against any natural form of human nature. I ended up really finding the school marm as creepy and interesting, but the buildup around the story is just not not right and the pacing is often an issue. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.

This book has great promise but the execution is lacking. POV's switch without notice and time seems to flash back and flash forward without nary a hint making this far too confusing. I don't feel like wasting another minute of my time on this one.