I love a good haunted house story but this one really gave me nightmares. It was definitely a nail biter to the end.

I read a copy of Gallows Hill from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book had moments of me sitting on the edge of my seat, straining my eyes at the screen of my phone, and my breath held as I read page after page. Followed by long rests between reading where I was bored and had to force myself to go back to reading. Mind you, I think these sections were a lot shorter than I’m making them seem. But the points like the tapes, and the nooses bring a life to the house and her past that make me shiver and intrigue and I want more.

The story itself is about Margot, who returns to her childhood home after her parents are found dead in their beds for their funeral and everything is left to her in their will. She comes in hopes of a future, but also to fill in the holes of what happened during her childhood, and amnesia that has haunted her since childhood, especially since her parents never came to visit her as she was raised by her nana.

As she starts learning the winery business, it becomes apparent that something is coming out at night to haunt the house and land she lives on. Through stories from the locals, diaries, and other means, she learns the bloody history of the land she now lives on. The men hanged there, and the history how her own family might have contributed.

Give me creepy tapes with puppets that are meant to teach children something, and apparently, I’m sold, though honestly, I think that it was also one of the few ties that I had to Margot and her past. Like any of her past. And this might have been the greatest weakness of the book. The main character is an ill-defined mess. One of the things focused on by the main things that this character focuses is her past, and I get it, she has amnesia, but I felt like she there was nothing to her. Like she just blossomed out of the car that she drove to the funeral. Like she didn’t need to give me a blow-by-blow of her past and job, but even when she talked about it later it was so vague that it didn’t feel real, so a book about the past just didn’t seem real to me.

Then there’s her personality, especially that first night. She’s just so susceptible to the scares of what is going on. I started to assume that whatever was going on needed someone who easily believed in ghosts and hauntings because she was so easily scared and pathetic. And while she became more bearable as the book went on, but anytime that it was just her concentrating on scares before the actual real danger happened or really interesting concepts came up, she was the reason I’d stop reading for hours.

This brings us to the horror. The past of the place is the real draw for me. I loved the setting of the place. The random nooses that would show up from time to time. The tapes, as I said. The diary, though she is remarkably, ridiculously dense about the diary. But that’s one thing about horror stories, protagonists tend to be dense about that thing.

Once the horror starts vamping up later in the book, that’s also a lot of fun, and the twist is great, even if the ending is a little bit underwhelming as a whole. So, a solid 4 star from me. There were moments I really enjoyed reading the book. Where my blood was pumping, and I just craved to read more and more. And there were moments that I just wanted to put the book down and not read it for a while. I’m interested in checking out the author’s other horror stories and think this would be a great horror read this Halloween season.

This was my first book by Darcy Coates and holy crap, I wish someone told me you shouldn't read her books at night.

This had me peeing my pants when I was up at night by myself. It was so good. I love a good story with ghosts.

I found the ending a bit flat for me to be honest. I mean, I didn't really know how it would all tie up in the end, but the way it did, just wasn't for me.

I can't wait to read more by this author. Bring on the scares!

CREEPY AF!!! Kept my adrenaline pumping from beginning to end

Margot is home for the first time since she was 8 years old to attend the funeral of her parents.
She has no memories of her life before then.
She learns that she has inherited their home and their small winery on Gallows Hill that has been in the family for centuries.
Once she moves in, strange things begin happening. Upon investigating the history, Margot learns that the land was once used as a spot to hang people and dispose of their bodies. This, along with a dark family secret has left the land cursed. Once there, no one can leave. Now Margot is in a race against time to solve the mystery, redeem her family, and break the curse forever.

I.LOVED.THIS.BOOK!!!!!!! There was no slow build. It kept my adrenaline pumping from beginning to end. Definitely not one to read alone in the dark.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

***

It's been a while since I've read a book that hooked me fully and immediately. This one did. We start with tragedy, mystery, and creepy scenery. I loved the descriptions and the chilling scenery.

This book is one where you get to watch a character unravel in many ways. She's seeking answers about her family. She's seeking answers about her home. She's seeking answers about herself.

But, there are shadows and visions and nooses popping up everywhere. It was great that this kept you and her guessing about ghouls and sanity. Wonderful read.

I think this may be my new favorite Coates book.

This was a stunningly atmospheric and dark horror novel.

Margot returns to Gallows Hill, the home and the winery that her family has owned for generations, though her return isn’t a happy one. She inherits the home and business after the death of her parents… the parents who sent her away at the age of eight; the parents she never saw or spoke to again…

It doesn’t take long to begin uncover the terrifying secrets the house and the property hold. A curse has held this family in its clutches for hundreds of years and now it’s got a hold of Margot.

The way this book is painted for the reader is so visual. You can absolutely see the events playing out in your mind. And it’s freaking terrifying! This one kept me in the edge the entire time. I read it at night, in bed, in the dark and it was absolutely scary!

Gallows Hill is an atmospheric gothic horror novel featuring a haunted house, a dark family history, and cursed lands. This book was very atmospheric and really pulled me in. It took me longer than usual to finish it because I do a lot of reading before bed and this book legitimately scared me and made me anxious to read it while home alone in the dark. Gallows Hill is well written and and even more well paced. This slow burn gothic horror was attention grabbing while not being too slow for me to lose interest.

I am not a big haunted house fan but Gallows Hill does a really good job of diversifying itself from the genre with interesting characters, a vivid backstory, a couple good twists, and a very satisfying ending. This was my first Darcy Coates book that I have read and I really can’t wait to read more from her.

Love Darcy Coates!! She didn’t disappoint; it’s exactly what I expected. Creepy, dark, erie, suspenseful. Well written. Will recommend to anyone who loves this genre

The minute I finished this book I instantly went to check and see what else Darcy Coates has written because I am obsessed. She has such an immersive writing style. I felt like I was a fly on the wall watching all of the horrifying events unfold.

If I had to compare her writing style to anyone else, I would definitely say Ann Rice. She shares the same very descriptive style of writing that puts you right there in the book. I felt the fear and dread alongside these characters, and I am beyond impressed with this story.

The dark history of the land the main character inherits is very interesting, especially how the rest of the town avoids the land at all costs. This land not only has a dark history but the generations of people who live on the land also carry such trauma and darkness as well.

I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy descriptive writing that feels like you are being chased by the terrors that haunts this book right alongside its characters.

Darcy Coates doesn't fail to deliver suspense and terror in the most delightful ghost story Gallows Hill. There are many finger biting, heart clenching scenes where ghosts are chasing Margot as they try to enact 250 year old revenge. A great plot and original story to the last page.

Margot doesn't remember anything about her childhood at Gallows Hill, but returns for her parents ' funeral only to discover a mystery revealed in townspeople's strange looks and hushed whispers. Her first nights in her newly inherited house are spent sleeplessly discovering weird noises, and feelings that ghosts lurk around every corner. But these ghosts can harm and even kill. Margot soon discovers a brutal family history that generations have kept quiet as she tries to appease the ghosts of her ancestors just to stay alive. Keep the lights on for this one and set aside a couple of hours to read at least the last half in one sitting !

It’s been more than a decade since Margot Hull last saw her childhood home. She was young enough when she was sent away that she barely remembers its dark passageways and secret corners. But now she's returned to bury her parents and reconnect with the winery that is her family's legacy—and the bloody truth of exactly what lies buried beneath the crumbling estate. Alone in the sprawling, dilapidated building, Margot is forced to come face to face with the horrors of the past—and realize that she may be the next victim of a house that never rests...

Yet again Coates doesn’t fail to deliver. I will say it again… I am yet to read a novel by Darcy Coates that I haven’t LOVED!

Filled with tension, suspense, horror, thrills, spills and everything else she can manage to squeeze between the pages, ‘Gallows Hill’ definitely kept me hooked right to the very last full stop.

My favourite thing about Coates is her ability to create these fantastic protagonists that you feel like you’ve known forever. You’re right there with them in that moment and you can’t help but root for them and laugh and cry with every obstacle they face; you really care how their story turns out. This is exactly how I felt for Margot… and I wanted, no, I needed for her story to end well. You’ll just have to read the story to see if I get my wish or not.

Coates will remain a firm favourite and I can’t wait to check out some more of her work.

I absolutely love Darcey Coates, and this one did not disappoint. I enjoy reading horror/ mystery novels in the dark at night. On several occasions I had major goose.bumps! Which is what I am looking for in a good book! Thank you NetGalley for.this advanced copy!

This is the third Darcy Coates book I have read over the last year and I say each one has gotten better and better in my opinion. The first book I gave 3 stars, the second I gave 4, and this one was a 4.5 for me. I enjoyed the idea of a haunted house style book but with an added element of a family curse.

This book looks at a girl named Margot, who inherits the house from her parents who just died in a rather unsettling manned while in bed. She enters Gallows Hill thinking that she will spend a bit of time there and settle the affairs before she returns to her rental apartment and a job going no where. She decides to stay for a while and figure out the whole winery business for the sake of the workers and little does she know that she can't leave. The hill now has her captured and escaping is not possible.

This made me feel uncomfortable in parts especially with the horror elements of the house and her trying to maneuver a life that she did not ask for. I think when I look for horror novels I want them to be scary, but I need them to have a bit of heart and emotion as well as form a connection the characters and their stories. Darcy Coates wrote characters extremely well to the point that I even understood and connected to her parents who were dead from the beginning of the story.

If you like a horror that is more classic zombie scary this book is a good one to pick up!

4.5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

If you love horror movies and gothic horror this is a book for you. Gallows Hill reads like an independent, low-budget horror film that successfully builds tension out of nothing but silences and thoughts that teeter on the edge of madness.

The story begins with Margot at the funeral of her parents whom she’s never met. And no, she’s not adopted. That’s the first mystery. The rest is classic haunted house and horror flick stuff. Very gothic horror; the scares are all Margot’s. The story is told from her perspective, though in 3rd person not first. The readers are silent witnesses, like ghosts trailing her in her every move, watching her. Nothing is left out of the reader’s sight; chapters pick up exactly where they’ve left off. Every detail is accessible to the reader.

Coates evokes a proper sense of dread with well-chosen words; her descriptions are succinct and sparse, giving the images that are spun in the mind an appropriate filter of blue-grey darkness. There’s always a sense that Margot could escape this, that this is just all in her mind, and real life is just beyond the gate, down the road, in the town nearby. But the reader becomes quickly acquainted with Margot and knows that that’s not possible; like Margot, we are compelled to read on to discover the history of her, her family, this place.

The story unfolds in a matter of days. Most of the events take place at Gallows Hill and the house; it is the hill on which the house is built, the hill in which the cellars of the winery were dug. She inherits Gallows Hill, a winery and an estate that has belonged to her family for hundreds of years. That’s the second mystery; the people who work and live on the estate are a strange cast. Even the townsfolk are an odd bunch. Their interactions with the estate and the land will compel the reader to read on: What happens after dark? Why does the land need a blessing? The reasons given are mundane and reasonable; there’s a normal explanation for everything, but the reader — like Margot — will find them unsatisfactory.

The ending is satisfying. It is explosive and a tad Hollywood-esque. But it does answer every question and its brings the story to a complete and organic close. You’ll close the book feeling like Margot got what she needed. A really great, creepy Halloween read!

Gallows Hill by Darcy Coates
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you to NetGalley & Poisoned Pen Press for the Opportunity to read this book.

|Summary|
This book is about the a family who owned a winery, the Hull’s. One Day Mr. & Mrs. Hull are found dead, leaving their daughter, Margot to inherit the family business. She slowly learns the rumors around town about the winery being cursed is unfortunately true & becomes terrified of being its next victim.

|Thoughts|
I did enjoy this book, I do think it is a good story, I just do not think this Author’s writing is for me. For goodreads / net galley purposes I will rate it as a 3 star read but it’s around a 3.3 rating. With that being said, this is a good book, it’s just really not what I was expecting, super slow burn & there were times that I felt like things were being dragged out, by that I mean could have explained things much simpler. But with all that being said, I’m glad I read this book, I think it’s a good spooky read, good to jump into the season with.

Darcy Coates has been a firm favorite when it comes to horror writers and this boom is no different, I absolutely loved this

Deliciously creepy! I have come to love love love Darcy Coates! A terrific & creepy haunt without all the blood and gore. Exactly how I like it. A super fun read and a great ending!

I have been a fan of Darcy Coates work for a while now and Gallows Hill definitely did not disappoint! She brings on the terror and horror in full force!

From the moment Margot first sets foot on Gallows Hill, the story pulls you in very quickly and doesn't let go until the very end. I would love to see one of her novels adapted into a film!

Gallow's Hill Hits all the right spots, Margo was sent away from her home as a young child, only her to return after the death of her parents. With a wine business and employees now under her care, she has to come to terms with the loss of her parents, her new life, as well as a house and land that seem to want her gone.

I won't say much else because I don't want to spoil it, but I absolutely loved reading it and I wholeheartedly recommend it!

3 stars

cozy horror isnt my perferred genre but i respect Darcy coates' ideas and writing enough to still pick up her titles.

In Gallows Hill, Margot returns to her family vineyard after being sent away at age 8. Her parents have passed away and she has inherited the family home and business. I won't say more about the plot, because part of what I loved about this book was the unraveling of the many mysteries. The less you know, the better.
This book was amazing! I felt genuine dread and terror while reading and the author perfectly captured these emotions. The plot was engaging, with several twists and surprises that I did not expect. All of the loose ends tied together nicely, giving a satisfying conclusion. My only disappointment was that there wasn't more Marsh!