This was very, very spooky. It was a great book for fall time! All of the Halloween vibes are strong! 4 stars.

3.5 stars!

Malice House follows Haven Marbury, an aspiring artist who hides in her deceased father's home after a failed marriage. While cleaning her father's seaside house, she finds a secret handwritten manuscript is disturbingly different from his Pulitzer-winning works: its interweaving short stories crawl with horrific monsters and enigmatic humans that exist somewhere between this world and the next. Desperate for money and a connection to her father, Haven decides to illustrate Bedtime Stories for Monsters as a posthumous father-daughter collab, However, it seems that everyone in the nearby vacation town wants a piece of the manuscript: her father’s obsessive literary salon members, the Ink Drinkers; her mysterious yet charming neighbor, who has a tendency toward three a.m. bonfires; a young barista with a literary forgery business; and of course, whoever keeps trying to break into her house. Will she figure out what's really going on before the monsters start coming?

I thought that this book was good, but not great. I was really interested in the idea, and I did think at times I was truly scared, but I didn't feel very attached to any of the characters. Since we're only in Haven's head, I felt in the middle we lost some of the original scary elements and I was a bit bored. Overall, just okay but I would be interested in what Megan Shepherd writes in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to Hyperion Avenue and Netgalley for an ARC in return for an honest review!

When I first tried to read this book, I stalled out after the first chapter. The plot felt like something I had encountered a million times, the old song and dance about returning to a family home after a death, only to find a dark secret buried inside. However, once I made a concerted effort to keep reading, something /sparked/. It did that same song an dance sure, but with enough fresh details that the mysteries and oddities of the world around the protagonist felt as fully alive as the magic that lay at the center of the story.

Part of it was the atmosphere. The book had a way of building up paranoia, of layering on ways that no character (including the protagonist, Haven) was quite who they seemed at first. Everything built slowly and deliberately until it all came toppling down with the orchestration of a Jenga tower. To say that I was delighted by it would be an understatement. It was genuinely such a completing dark fantasy with horror elements, that felt so so /alive/ in terms of capturing both the cruelties and the warmth of people. I had an incredible time reading it, and honestly really want to revisit it again at some point down the road!

Thank you Hyperion Avenue, Megan Shepherd, and Netgalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Megan Shepherd's debut adult novel, Malice House, takes us to the small coastal town of Lundie Bay in Washington, where illustrator Haven Marbury has just arrived after the death of her father, Amory Marbury, celebrated, award winning author, to sort through his things. Her life has hit a rough patch recently, so she's desperate for money. She's been writing online reviews of intense, gory horror movies to make ends meet.

When she discovers an old, handwritten manuscript of short stories called Bedtime Stories for Monsters, she decides to illustrate the characters in the book, even though the stories are darker than what her father has previously written. She hopes that when she's finished she can sell it as a posthumous collaboration with her father. As Haven works on her illustrations, strange things start happening - noises, things moving of their own accord. Everyone she meets in the small town seems to have some sort of agenda. Then the murders begin. Who, or what, is responsible?

Malice House kept me absolutely spellbound from start to finish. It's the kind of book you look for so you can stay up reading long into the night. It has all the different horror subgenres so there's something for everyone: it's part gothic, part creature feature, part blood and guts (though mostly off the page), part haunted house, part ghost story, and for those that want it, there's even a little romance. There's twists upon turns with thrills and chills. There's even almost another book inside the book (well not quite) since each chapter begins with a snippet of a "story" from Bedtime Stories for Monsters (which I'm dying to read btw. It's just begging to be written. Megan Shepherd will you write it please!). The ending bothered me just a tiny bit. It felt like it went on a bit too long. It might just be me though.

Malice House is like watching a spine-tingling horror movie with all the special effects. This is one you won't want to miss. I will definitely be ordering a copy for my library.

5 stars
Highly recommended for fans of: Horror, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Fiction

When I read the synopsis of Malice House, I immediately knew it was going to fit right in with spooky season. The mixture of horror and mystery sounded exactly like my cup of tea, so I was stoked to get an ARC.

After the death of her father, Malice House has been left to Haven Marbury. Haven has never had any intention of returning to Malice house, but with her marriage in shambles, she’s left with no other place to go. Upon her return, she stumbles upon a unpublished manuscript of her father’s, Bedtime Stories for Monsters. The stories are different than anything else he had published and as an artist Haven sees an opportunity to combined her art work with the stories. But when she shares her idea with her father’s bookclub, she’s met with resistance. To add to the rejection, a string of recent murders and break-ins at Malice House, have Haven questioning not just her safety but also who she really is.

The thought behind this book is incredibly intriguing. It’s unique, slightly creepy, and the vivid writing really makes the characters jump out at you. My biggest complaints with this book include pacing, some of the main character’s action, and plot follow through.

The beginning of the book had me completely engaged, the middle lagged, and the ending was highly unsatisfying. The idea of a book within a book is entertaining to say the least, and I was completely invested in learning more for about a thirds of the book. But the chaotic nature of the main character, Haven really got on my nerves. She’s definitely an unreliable narrator but at the same time makes some pretty stupid decisions. As someone who watches tons of horror movies, she makes a comment several times about her being a TDTL (to dumb to live) character in her own story. And she’s right. Haven trusts some characters she’s just met but doesn’t trust others, and has zero good reason for doing so in either instance. Almost all of Haven’s actions and decisions have zero reasoning behind them, which tends to frustrate me in a character.

In terms of the plot, I have so many remaining questions. How did this curse come to be? What actually happened in New York? Where has Kylie been all these years? Did all the Ink Drinkers die? The list goes on. My biggest question though is, what really happened in New York? It’s alluded to that Haven is leaving a domestically abusive marriage, after finding out they were never really married after all. First off: how does that happen? Second, we learn she didn’t kill her husband, but then what happened? It doesn’t have a ton to do with the Malice House plotline but it’s referenced so many times, I figured we’d get a clear understanding of what really went down. But we don’t. Also that epilogue! Is this turning into a series? I’m not sure I would pick up a second book.

Malice House had such potential but it ended up being just ‘okay’. Too many plot holes, along with a not very self aware main character and inconsistent pacing took this down a few stars for me. If you love a good magical realism book with gothic and supernatural themes than you probably will enjoy this one. If you’re looking for something dark and atmospheric for spooky, than this book will definitely be what you’re looking for.


Malice House comes out October 4, 2022! Huge thank you to Hyperion Avenue for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof.books or checkout SPEAKINGOF.ORG.

This book was such a twist and not something I was expecting when I got accepted for it. I must have forgot the whole synopsis when I decided to pick this up because it was a pleasant surprise. The cover makes it look like this would be a normal thriller, but this story had so many more add aspects to it that added to the plot.

Haven Marbury returns to her recently deceased father house expecting to clean out and sell items to get her life restarted after a mysterious accident with her ex-husband. While looking through the house she finds a manuscript locked away in the attics and figures her fathers lost stories with her added illustrations would be worth a pretty penny and that when her life starts to take a twist she was not expecting.

Haven is a complicated character dealing with a lot of anger at her father for her childhood and running from a life in NY that was not what she thought it was. This change is meant to be her restart at life instead she gets monsters, death, and a few added elements to her life that she was not expecting.

Although a lot of this story takes place dealing with real life monsters keep in mind there is a fantastical element that might not be to everyone's tastes. Although I personally really enjoyed the story and characters created throughout.

Malice House by Megan Shepherd

Haven's father, acclaimed author Amory Marbury, has died after battling dementia. She travels to Lundie Bay after inheriting his large seaside house. When going through his things, she finds an unfinished manuscript of horror stories. She decides to illustrate these stories but once her work begins, strange things happen in the house and reality begins to distort. She meets several people in the town that all seem to have ulterior motives and be harboring secrets.
This book was so much fun! A great mystery/horror with elements of fantasy. I enjoyed the book within a book plot line (would love to read Bedtime Stories for Monsters by itself!) and liked Haven as a main character. The plot was interesting and unique, definitely not the same tropes that are used over and over. The chapters were short with a quick pace. The first half was slower than the second, but once the story picked up I could not put it down. This is a great spooky read and being released just in time for Halloween!
Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

📚 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰- Malice House (👉 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟒𝐭𝐡, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐)⁣⁣⁣
𝘉𝘺 𝘔𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘯 𝘚𝘩𝘦𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘥⁣⁣⁣
⭐⭐⭐ (3/5)⁣⁣⁣
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𝐓𝐡𝐞 "𝐆𝐢𝐬𝐭": After her father's death, aspiring artist Haven Marbury returns to Malice House, where the famously reclusive, best-selling-author spent his final years. There she finds a secret manuscript of her father's, full of monsters and dangerous creatures that she feels compelled to illustrate. (Posthumous Father/Daughter collaboration, anyone?) But when grisly murders start happening in town, Haven wonders if her father's story is more truth than fiction. ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 💭: This book totally reads like a movie.... so much so, that I actually think it would have made a MUCH better film or TV series!!! As a book....I don't know. 🤣 While I enjoyed the plot (it's so unique!) I felt a disconnect through much of the story and didn't feel as compelled to turn the pages as I'd hope for a horror/thriller.⁣⁣⁣
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That being said, the strong plot, and the fantasy/horror elements really got me through this, and it makes a super great read for spooky season! 👻⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
Thank you to Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue for the free eARC in exchange for an honest review! ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝗪𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐌𝐞 👍:⁣⁣⁣
- The snippets of her father's book that begin each chapter. Loved the insight into each of the monsters (I wish there would have been even MORE monster backstory).⁣⁣⁣
- There were a few gasp-worthy moments! ⁣⁣⁣
- All the questions posed early in the story were mostly solved by the end, so 👏 for that. ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐃𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 👎:⁣⁣⁣
- So Haven was irritating. 🤣 She distrusted EVERYONE, yet gave Rafe a KEY to her HOME after knowing him for like 5 minutes. 🙄 ⁣⁣⁣
- I liked the characters okay, but wish there would have been more physical descriptors of Haven, as I never really got a clear picture of her. ⁣⁣⁣- The story was sluggish in the middle and, as a whole, could stand to be shorter.⁣⁣⁣
- There were some unbelievable moments toward the end that left me scratching my head, (but not in a good way).⁣⁣⁣
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𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐟 📖: You like monsters, scary stories, folklore, and curses. ⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: R (for violence/gore and language)⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝗪𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: Domestic Abuse; Death of a Parent

If you're looking for a new Halloween read, look no further. The premise of this book is a curse on a family that allows them to bring alive monsters from their writing and artwork.

Haven Marbury, a children's book illustrator, is the daughter of bestselling author Amory Marbury. When he dies, she goes to his secluded home in the small town of Lundie Bay to clear it out.

While going through her father's papers, Haven finds an unpublished manuscript that was written while her father suffered from dementia. Unlike his award-winning style, the manuscript appears to be a horror novel featuring an assortment of monsters. Haven adds her own drawings of the monsters to the manuscript, hoping to sell it. She shares the unpublished book and her artwork with the members of the Ink Drinkers, a literary club of which her father was a member and who work in a nearby bookstore. The club members reject her drawings, but one of them, a young woman named Kylie, befriends her..

As strange murders occur in town, including that of her father's housekeeper, an officer suspects Haven may be involved, as the killings are like those in one of her father's books. Haven grows close to her father's neighbor, Rafe, an heir to a peanut butter fortune until she discovers some grisly items that he's hiding.

This book is a perfect October/Halloween read. The monsters are well depicted, and there are quite a few twists to satisfy a reader. I would recommend, however, not to read it at night with the light off.

A good book to read during the spooking season. Haven temporarily moves into her father’s house but weird things occur and people keep turning up dead.
Lots of paranormal occurrences in the book and things begin to make more sense toward the Part of the story.
I thought there was too much going on In the plot and some should have been pared down.
Still, it’s a good horror book.

One of the best horror stories I've read in a long time. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys horror with a gothic creative edge. I loved everything about this novel.

This book was everything I wanted it to be. It had me turned pages without even realizing. It was so good!

Aspiring artist Haven Marbury has always lived in her famous author father’s shadow. Now he is dead and she has returned to their home, Malice House.

This was a great gothic read for Halloween! It was very unique and interesting. It’s one you really want to go into blind but I will say that it creates its own fantasy horror world that you are sucked into with the characters. There are some slow moments but there’s also some very exciting moments.

“They were my kind of stories. Stories of madness. Of monsters. Of magic.”

Malice House comes out 10/4.

Haven goes to spend time at her late father's estate in hopes to find a new beginning. While searching through the attic she comes across an unpublished manuscript. It's different than anything her father had ever published. It inspires her to do illustrations of the monsters in the stories, but what she doesn't realize that something horrible is going to happen. She not only inherits her father's estate but much more.

This book was very good and held my attention throughout. I didn't want to miss anything as we go along with Haven and try to solve what had and is happening. I would recommend to any fan of a good ghost story.

I had such high hopes for this book. The premise sounded amazing but sadly it just fell flat for me. The length of the book was to long in my opinion which made it drag. I thought the first half moved extremely slow & then the second half picked up which was great but I wasn't invested in it enough because of how slow the first half was.
I think my favorite part about this book was the snippets of the short stories at the beginning of each chapter, I loved those.
It was an ok read but just not for me.

This one was good. I loved the creepy atmosphere. However, towards the end it leaned more into the fantasy genre, which is a genre I haven’t quite found my niche in yet.

Malice House is a well-written dark mystery where things go bump in the night.

After leaving her marriage, with nowhere else to go, Haven Marbury moves into her late father’s house. She wants to see if there’s anything she can sell to scrounge up some sorely-needed cash. Haven’s father was a prolific author with an adoring fan base, so she’s sure there ought to be something of value.

As she’s sifting through items in the attic, she discovers a yellowing unpublished manuscript called Bedtime Stories for Monsters. It’s unlike any of her father’s previous works, but Haven is positive any publisher would jump at the chance of getting it into the hands of readers. And if Haven could attach her name and illustrations to the manuscript, it could be the break she needs to jump-start her career as an artist.

While Haven is figuring out these details, bodies turn up dead near her property, and inexplicable terrors begin to occur in her old house.

This horror/mystery solely follows Haven’s perspective. Initially, I found it engaging, but it started to lag around the middle. But then the conclusion picked up at a break-neck speed with so many things happening seemingly at once.

Since this is a horror story, there are many dark and gruesome themes throughout that may not be for everyone. The author did a stellar job of creating an ominous and disorienting atmosphere.

All-in-all, Malice House is a great read for the spooky season.

3.5

Thank you to Hyperion Avenue for providing me with an arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

https://booksandwheels.com

4.5 stars! This one will definitely creep you out. An excellent scary story by a new voice in horror. Haven Marbury is an illustrator who leaves New York (& her marriage) for Lundie Bay, WA in order to pack up her father's home. Malice House was the home to Amory Marbury, world -famous author and recluse. Amory succumbed to the dementia that wracked his once-brilliant mind. However, it also seems that he succumbed to the "demons" that were haunting Malice House. While cleaning out Malice House, Haven comes across a manuscript of her father's that has never been published. It's not his usual writings, for sure, but Haven sees potential in the "monster" stories and begins to illustrate them. And then things go from bad to much worse...

*Thank you so much to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for an e-arc of this novel.*

It started of really great, it was fun and then it just got weird. The supernatural aspects didn’t feel 100% stitched together at first and then felt weird moving forward.

This is a gothic horror haunted house just waiting to be a Netflix movie. Haven travels back to her author father's home and finds a final manuscript with stories dying to be illustrated by her hand. The stories come to life haunting her in a creepy home, as she digs deeper into her family curse. Well written, well paced, a perfect Halloween thriller.