I enjoyed this fresh take on a haunted house story! I’d never heard of a spite house before this. There’s a lot going on in this book and we get several different POVs. I enjoyed the first half of the book the most, where we got to know Eric, Dess and Stacy. They had their secrets and were obviously running from something, but I didn’t realize how huge or scary their secrets were until almost the end of the book. It felt like there was almost too much happening at the end of the book, and everything wasn’t wrapped up nicely at the end, but it works in this case.

A can’t-put-down haunted house story.

On the surface The Spite House is everything I love in a scary story: a haunted house, a man with a shady past on the run, a child with mysterious abilities, and a too good to be true kindly old woman. Eric is on the run with his two daughters, and he comes across an ad for a job as “caretaker” for a house that may or may not be haunted. The money he would make from this job would set him and his girls up for a while so he goes for it. He has his own reasons for digging into the paranormal including an encounter when he was a little boy… but knowledge is going to come at a steep price.

Johnny Compton (in what I was shocked to learn is a debut novel) does an amazing job of drawing you in from the start, I was riveted and read the whole thing in one sitting. You think you know the story that you’re getting and suddenly he throws some curveballs at you! There are a couple of things that I wish we had the answer to, but unless we want the same fate as Eric we may never know…

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Right from the beginning you're hit with mystery, what the heck is going on with this family? Within the first few chapters there's a couple left leaning political view points that has absolutely nothing to do with the story, doesn't feel safe driving through "the red" with people that have blue lives matter bumper stickers. Laughable. Thankfully it was limited to that. Each chapter is dedicated to a different characters perspective, which was nice when you were looking forward to learning more about someone. It did make for some story overlapping and repetitiveness. Overall it was a slow-paced haunted house/ghost story. More mystery than horror.

This was really a 3.5 star read to me. I think that the first part of the book was very interesting. But then it falls more and more flat as Compton tries to explain the "Spite House." I think some of the origins should have been left fuzzy to make the mystery better. I felt pretty letdown by the time we got to the end of the book. It just didn't go together with what we had read before.

"The Spite House" follows Eric Ross who is on the run with his two daughters, Dess and Stacy. We don't know why Eric is on the run, but he's desperate for work. When he sees an advertisement talking about him staying in the Masson House of Degener, Texas. The woman who owns the house wants someone to stay there and take notes. After beating out some "ghost hunters" Eric and his two girls stay there and things start happening. Because it appears that Eric and his daughters have "helped" wake up the house.

There are other characters in this one, besides Eric and his two girls. We also follow Eunice (the woman who owns the house), Dana (she works for Eunice and knows more than she is saying), Max Renner (part of a husband and wife team who stayed at the house before Eric and his daughters), Millie (a reporter), Masson (who is behind the house being built) and others. The book follows everyone through a present and past timeline. The book doesn't manage to jump back and forth swiftly enough for me. I felt lost a few times because there's no set-up for some of the people and you have to keep reading to realize their connection to the overall story. I honestly thought that Compton should have just focused on Eric and his daughters and that's it.

The setting of the house was great and used to great effect. I wish that Compton hadn't tried to over explain the house's origins as I said earlier. The first lines in the book were similar to "The Haunting of Hill House" so that made me eagerly anticipate what came next.

The ending as I said was a bit of a letdown.

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

This book had so many turns ... I really went into it thinking it was a very standardized haunted house story but there's so much more at play and I don't want to spoil it at all.

We follow the Ross family, Eric, Dess, Stacy, as they are running away from the life that htey knew and are trying to start over. They have spent the past year moving from motel to motel until they make their way to Texas, and specifically, the Spite House. Eunice, owner the of the Spite House, wants to prove that ghosts or something in the afterlife exists so she invites investigators to stay in the Spite House and if they can provide proof and not run out in panic they get a hefty sum ($$$$).

Again ... sounds pretty straight forward, right? But once we learn about the true motivations of each characters its like whoa ... wait, what?

I wasn't a huge fan of the ending, but that's mostly out of personal taste because I don't like when horror mediums pull back the curtain and explains exactly why x, y, and z is happening. I personally like it when things are a little more up to interpretation.

Overall, really loved the Ross family, loved their journey and what a fun story about family, anger and .... spite!

Plot: 4
Characters: 4
Writing Style: 4
Cover: 5
Enjoyment: 4

This story is told in third POV through a plethora of characters. Ten, in total, from the dad to a journalist. I feel that they mostly stood out from one another, but I'm not sure every voice was needed. A few I agree on, others not so much, and their interactions are enjoyable. It's set in Texas and very accurate with its descriptions, and it includes roadtripping, ghost hunting, family bonding, and small town vibes. It wasn't as scary as I had hoped, but it was still worth a read. Fairly quick read, too.

*3.25 stars*

A solid haunted house story. Good atmosphere and creepiness. This was a really interesting take on anger and generational trauma.

There was a little too much repeating exposition for me. I would have appreciated learning about the history more organically through the interactions with the house and it’s ghosts and not having to have it repeated at several different points of view.

I felt like the pacing was a little off. The beginning started out really promising and then the middle just kind of lagged until the last couple chapters.

I would recommend this to someone who really loves a more cerebral and historical horror.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this work. All opinions in this review are my own.

I'll be honest, I put this book down because I was very confused. I had no idea what was happening and I really wanted to understand and enjoy this book.
Th writing style was easy to read and everything, I just feel like the book started in the middle of a story and did nothing to catch us up.

The beginning is really slow and it was hard to get into it at first. For a 272 page book, this was such a slow read.

I was not a fan of how many different POV's there were. I think there were 9-10 different ones. It made it tough to connect with the characters because we followed so many characters and it switched every other chapter.

I did enjoy the last 40% of the book, the pacing got a bit better. and the story also got more interesting. The ending was surprising and different, which I enjoyed.

I was reminded of the opening lines of Toni Morrison’s Beloved as I was reading this book. “124 was spiteful. Full of a baby’s venom.”

With a nod to Morrison (and of course Shirley Jackson), Johnny Compton has crafted a suspenseful gothic ghost story about a different kind of spiteful house that feels quite familiar (especially if you’re a seasoned ghost story reader), but also has some distinctive twists.

Eunice Houghton has been waiting for the right person to come to to the Masson House for years and solve the mystery of its curse. When Eric arrives with his two daughters, Dess and Stacy, Eunice immediately recognizes something different about Eric. She knows he’s hiding something, but he seems determined and capable - qualities that will be necessary for his grim task. However, that doesn’t ease her fears about bringing children into the house. She knows exactly what the house is capable of.

Eric, Dess and Stacy move in right away - motivated to solve the mystery of the house’s bitter ghosts in exchange for a large sum of money. As the house reveals its dark secrets, so too do Eunice and Eric. One such secret is of great interest to the ghosts in the house, and Eric is horrified to learn that it involves his young daughter Stacy. He knew they wouldn’t be able to run from the past forever, but what they’re running towards may be even more dangerous.

Taut, chilling and well-paced, The Spite House may not be a wholly unique horror novel, but fans of ghost stories and supernatural suspense will enjoy the detailed writing and recognize the many nods to horror classics. Eric wonders early in the novel, “What harm could a ghost do?” This is a pretty common sentiment in supernatural literature, and I always delight in witnessing a protagonist’s realization of how wrong they were to underestimate a ghost.

I really liked the ideas contained within this story. It had a great and original premise but it ended up being a mixed bag for me. Where it succeeded was in the creation of atmosphere. It manages to create a wonderful feeling of claustrophobia which does a good job of keeping the reader off balance and was integral to creating tension and suspense. Between the family’s paranoia and constantly being on guard to the weird layout of the house that seemed to be closing in around them, it imparted an eerie feeling of emotional suffocation.

Where this novel struggled was in maintaining momentum. I typically love a book with multiple points of views but this one had entirely too many. It bogged the book down and kept it from moving at a brisk pace and made it feel choppy. This detracted from it ever becoming truly horrifying. Still, I did love the originality of the premise and thought it was a really interesting take on a haunted house story.
Thanks to @netgalley and @tornightfire for this arc.

When Eric and his two daughters flea Maryland they stay in different hotel rooms on the way to Texas. He wants to make it there to the place he spent summers with his grandparents but there’s another reason. When they get close to their destination he season add four a house they say is haunted and to him it seems like an answer to a prayer. If they stay there a certain amount of time and report what happens he’ll get enough money to purchase his grandparents home and he and his daughters will have a safe place to live. After a quick interview with the homeowner he Stacy and Desi move in in the strangeness begins immediately but that isn’t the only thing they have to contend with. Not only are they still dealing with the reasons they fled Maryland but a reporter and a crazy man will have something to say about them staying in the haunted house. I found this book more interesting than spooky but I still enjoyed it very much. I also thought the narrator did an awesome job. I listen to headphone audio and half using the Kindle burden and I think I enjoyed the audio version with the narrator much better. That isn’t always the case but was the case this time. I would definitely highly recommend this book I have come to learn either you love or hate this book and I loved it. And highly recommend it. I received this book from NetGalley and McMillan audio but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forget any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

Eric Ross, a father who left his entire life behind is on the run with his two daughters from a mysterious past. Unable to stay in same place for too long and desperate for money, Eric comes across a strange ad for a job as a caretaker at a house. The owner is looking for proof of paranormal activity and all that Eric will need to do is stay in the house long enough to keep a detailed record of everything that goes on within. The job offers a large payout but that's not all that Eric is after, maybe this job can help him solve his mysterious past.

I love a good haunted house story and this was an intresting take on it, I enjoyed reading The Spite House start to finish. The story is told from multiple POVs, this is something I love if done well and I feel that it was. Every character brought new information to the table even with parts of the story overlapping character to character nothing felt repetitive or irrelevant.

If you love haunted houses, family secrets, gothic thrillers, small towns then you should definitely check this book out, it goes much deeper than that but I dont want to give too much away.
Overall a really fantastic read and such a strong debut, I really look forward to seeing more of what Johnny Compton puts out in the future.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan-Tor/Forge, Tor Nightfire, and Johnny Compton for sharing the digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my authentic review.

The Spite House by Johnny Compton (@comptonwrites), coming from @tornightfire on February 2, 2023, is a Gothic influenced ghost story about a hungry, haunted house. That's the best way I can describe it. While there are some slow burn aspects to the book, when the hauntings occur, the story quickly ramps up the action and the scare factor and things get creepy quickly.

Eric Ross and his two daughters, Dess and Stacey, are on the run from a past none of them asked for or completely understand. When the opportunity arises to make some decent money by providing evidence of the paranormal by staying at the Masson House in Degener, Texas, Eric jumps at the chance to be able to finally provide his daughters with some stability. But everyone involved, the owner of Masson House, the previous tenants, and the Ross' themselves all have secrets that they feel they need to keep, so nothing is ever as it seems. And when the house itself finally starts to play a part in the haunting, Eric knows that while he's in danger, he needs to follow through with the investigation in order to protect his daughters' futures.

Very rarely do books give me the creeps, but this one did. The descriptions of the initial hauntings and the claustrophobic nature of Masson House all add up to a feeling of pervasive dread throughout. Each chapter is told from a different character's POV; while this may sound confusing, it makes for an interesting read as we see the story unfold through the eyes of each of the characters. As everyone's secrets are laid out throughout the story, each person's motives become clear and while I thought there was going to be a lot of unanswered questions, but Compton ties everything up in a satisfying manner.

Another excellent release from Nightfire! If you're a fan of ghost stories and haunted houses and don't mind a little creepiness in your book, than this is for you!

A huge thank you to @tornightfire and @netgalley for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

#thespitehouse #netgalley #tornightfire #nightfire #horror #horrorbooks #bookreview #arc #frommybookshelf #frommybookshelfblog #book #books #bookstagram #gothic

I love me a good Gothic horror/haunted house story. Johnny Compton mostly achieves this but I think a simpler approach would have been more effective and frightening. I found there to be too many plot threads and a lot of aspects and questions did not get answered by the end of the book. I really wanted to know why all these characters were tied together by this same occurrence. It seemed there was something bigger going on but was never discussed.

Overall, this was a good story. I really liked the characters Compton created and I liked the overall feeling of “looming threat." Can't wait to see what he comes up with next!

3.5/5 - I really like a good haunted house novel, and I think the biggest reason why this book isn’t a 4 or 5 star book for me is that I wanted MORE of the house. I found the buildup and the story leading us to the house to be a bit dragging and repetitive, like, yes, *something* happened, that’s why they’re on the run, but let us never speak of it! But don’t forget, *something* happened! Don’t get me wrong, I liked the characters and thought their creation was full of depth without artifice and believed everything about them, but I felt an impatience for the story to get going for probably like the first 40% of the book. That being said, THAT FRICKIN’ HOUSE! So creepy, I loved it. The things it could do, the things inside of it, the anger surrounding it, the weirdness of the architecture, all great. I just wanted more of it. At about 55%, the story took off at a gallop and I couldn’t stop until I was done. Looking forward to more books by this author.

The Spite House was a creepy, creative, and entertaining haunted house story. I thoroughly enjoyed the alternating chapters in each characters perspective, as I felt that added a lot of depth to the story. The house itself enthralled me! I wish it was real so I could visit it. The ending left me a little underwhelmed, I guess I expected more action than what we saw, but it still resolved the story. Overall this was an incredibly fun read, and I’ll be recommending it to every horror lover I meet.

A father on the run with his two daughters, looking for work and stability for his girls. A mysterious job offer, made by an eclectic old woman who wants to know the secrets of an old spite house on her land.

Eric Ross and his two daughters, eighteen-year-old Dess and seven-year-old Stacey, are making their way across the country, evading authorities and staying under the radar. When Eric spies a job offer for a caretaker of a house with known paranormal activity, he only sees dollar signs and the ability to secure a future for his family. But when they arrive in Degener, Texas, and meet the owner of the property he starts to question the wisdom of bringing his daughters to such a frightening place.

I’m a sucker for a creepy cover and title. Johnny Compton is a new to me author, but I didn’t hesitate to click that request button after reading the blurb and seeing this cover. I’ve read plenty of haunted house-based horror novels, but not one where the house in question was a spite house. There are quite a few POV shifts as the story progresses from introducing Eric and his daughters, then moving to the owner of the spite house and her family’s history, and eventually onto the previous occupants of Masson House.

There are a lot of plot threads to untangle and tie up by the end. There is a tragic, dark history to the house that Eric experiences firsthand through dreams of the original owner. But he has his own reasons for seeking information about its past and how that intersects with his own family history and what sent him, Dess, and Stacey on the run.

All in all, a creepy, scary good time. I look forward to checking out this author’s backlist.

What a phenomenal debut. This is truly one of the better haunted house stories I’ve read in awhile. I’m definitely looking forward to reading more Johnny Compton books in the future.

Thank you to Johnny Compton, the publisher, and Netgalley for this ARC.

The setting for this gothic horror story, was amazing. I had never heard of a spite house before reading this book, and the concept did not disappoint. It left me with chills, and a few nightmares.
The characters in this book were well thought out and had a lot of depth to them. My favorites were Dess, Eunice, and Lafonda. I also enjoyed the dynamic between Dess and Eric, and Dess and Stacy. This book has multiple POVs which usually I do not love, but I think in this case it worked really well and helped propel the story forward.
This book covers a lot of different issues such as familial issues, the corruptible power of money, and racism. I think there was an interesting juxtaposition between the paranormal horror going on in the house,, and the horror of the microaggression that the family faces in Texas.

scare factor: 3.5
Setting: 5
Characters: 5
Overall rating: 4