5⭐️

<b> There was a vulture on the mailbox of my grandmother’s house. As omens go, it doesn’t get much more obvious than that.</b>

Sam is an archeological entomologist who returns to her mother’s house when her project is put on hold. The house was originally owned by Sam’s grandmother, but Sam, her brother, and their mother moved in with Grand Mae when Sam’s father died. When Sam returns to the house, she notices that her mother has lost a lot of weight, and her usual charismatic personality has dampened. Her mother repainted the once vibrantly colored walls to dull, boring shades of beige, and returned Grand Mae’s racist painting to the wall. Sam becomes concerned about her mother’s wellbeing, and begins having strange sleep paralysis dreams and noticed weird occurrences at the house. Vultures also watch the house, as if they know something sinister is hiding just below the surface.

T. Kingfisher does not disappoint. I love the life that she is able to breathe into her characters so that they feel more like friends than just characters in a story. She masterfully weaves humor and wit into an unsettling tale. Also, as a fellow lover of bugs, I really appreciated the little details and latin names for the species, and never in my life would I have been convinced that a vulture could be adorable, but now I want my own Hermes. Another excellent read!

<b>I wanted this, very much, to not be happening. But that’s life for you. Hate it, complain about it, it’s still happening.</b>

A humorous gothic horror that did the impossible…making me rooting for vultures. I loved this books!

This was a decent light book. Heft-wise it reminded me a lot of the R. L. Stine books I grew up reading, but heavier on the romance movie side plot and with some magic thrown in. It didnt really match my expectations based on the summary - it very much was not scary - but it is good for what it is.

I'm always on the hunt for a "new to me" author that will capture my interest and loyalty quickly. T Kingfisher's reviews show that she has a HUGE dedicated crowd of fans who all give her books 5+ stars, so I figured I'd try one of her books. Well, her fan club has now increased by one. The synopsis pulled me in but the charcaters and the story kept me turning the pages long after my "one more chapter" became a race to see what would happen in the next chapter. Samantha Montgomery is one of those characters that you remember....like Kinsey Millhone with a twist. A HOUSE WITH GOOD BONES is not part of a series....but it should be.

T. Kingfisher has proven once again why she’s one of my favorite authors! I had actually received an ARC of this book and somehow forgotten about it. I was THRILLED when I found this on my Kindle and flew through it in two sittings (and if I hadn’t started it after midnight, I would have finished in one sitting).

Each page is infused with Kingfisher’s trademark wit, but the book also manages to feel creepy. This is something that most authors just can’t do, but Kingfisher knocks it out of the park every single time! I was literally howling at how funny she was in this book, lol, but then I’d feel that dread in my stomach. So good!

I loved it that Sam was basically a bug archeologist! It was also cool that her neighbor kept vultures. These are the types of ‘odd’ details that always make Kingfisher’s books an excellent read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.

{3.5 stars}

"Vultures are extremely sensitive to the dead. Particularly when the dead are doing things they shouldn't be."

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Sam is an entomologist that works on archeology digs. When her project is suddenly halted, she's forced to move back into her family home since her apartment has already been sublet. When she gets there, she sees that her mother has strangely re-decorated the house to restore her mother's decor. Sam begins to wonder why her grandmother, who was not the nicest, is suddenly looming so large in their lives. As strange occurrences continue to happen and childhood memories begin to loom large, Sam has to figure out just what is going on before it overwhelms them all.

The pacing on this one was a little slow for me. I wasn't sure I cared that much for Sam throughout which kept me a little distanced from the plot. The last quarter was great though, once you got to the action, it was unique, creepy and interesting. I will never look at lady bugs or roses the same again.

Thanks to Tor Nightfire for gifted access via Netgalley. All opinions above are my own.

Well. That was deeply disturbing. And darkly funny. And so good. Really, exactly what you expect from a T. Kingfisher book! It's a bit of Southern Gothic with a bit of suburban horror, as apparently normal family weirdness (admittedly, my idea of normal may be just as messed up as the protagonist's) is elevated to extremely WTF proportions. The first few chapters are slightly unsettling but nothing major, but as the book goes on, the dread mounts higher until you really can't put it down because you need to get to the other side. And it's so worth it.

My thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan-Tor/Forge, Tor Nightfire for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

(4.5 out of 5 stars)

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher is a Southern Gothic horror novel with paranormal elements. I listened to the audiobook, which clocks in at seven hours and is narrated by Mary Robinette Kowal. We follow our main character with a first-person point-of-view.

Sam Montgomery is spending some time at her mother's house while on a sabbatical from her latest archeological dig. The house seems to be haunted by her racist and abusive grandmother, not to mention there are vultures surrounding the property at all times.

Kingfisher weaves those sorts of heavy topics into the story along with her usual snark and sense of humor. The main character is a scientist, so she keeps trying to come up with logical explanations for all of the creepy things happening around her. She is an entomologist, so please note that there are many descriptions of bugs in here.

Sam is also an unapologetic fat woman, which is always lovely to see. There are casual mentions about how she deals with fatphobia in the medical industry that all rang true for me. I felt very seen in Sam, as I am also a fat woman and an "elder Millennial."

There's a lot in here about attempting to break from toxic traits that have been passed down through generations, and how to heal from the resulting generational trauma.

CW: racism, fatphobia, verbal and emotional abuse, body horror, insects

A House With Good Bones by T. Kingfisher is a delightful book that belongs on every library shelf! I felt so lucky to get a copy for myself! I have shared on my goodreads, bookstagram, and booktok!

Coming home - Sam’s archeology dig is put on hold so she goes to her childhood home, that used to belong to her Grandmother, to pass the time.
Insects - Sam is an archeologist specializing in insects, so she is not really bothered by creepy things.
Things are weird - When she arrives at the house, her mom is acting differently, plus Sam is noticing weird pictures and items in the house.
Vultures - Not to mention that there are vultures everywhere.

T Kingfisher was on my list of authors I wanted to try and I am glad I had the opportunity to both read and listen to this book from the publisher. Despite what I mentioned about the vultures, this book actually made me like them a lot more than I thought. The book is definitely a horror story, but it is a very fast read and I will definitely be picking up more by this author.

I absolutely love this one. T. Kingfisher does it again. Another creepy story that sneaks up on you and starts from the very first page. I could not put it down!

I was immediately in love with the narrator of this book! Her descriptions of new neighborhoods in rural areas was so spot-on. And that was just the beginning of hilarious phrases I made note of while reading! I wish the book had been a little bit longer. The first half was so eerie and atmospheric that the action in the second half felt a bit rushed. I feel like the horror of the scenes could have been extended and that a little bit more of the characters’ feelings in the aftermath of all the events would have been good to include. I do recommend the book for people who enjoy supernatural stories that take place in the South and have hilariously snarky narrators. I think it could be appropriate for a YA audience and up.

T. Kingfisher has become a powerhouse of the horror genre and A House With Good Bones proves why. A sneakily creepy and terrifying tale that will have you checking your locks twice, you won't want to miss this one.

This book is basically the embodiment of that cringy self deprecating humor that was popular in like the 2010s. (think Jennifer Lawrence and when she went to every interview talking about pizza). The way we are hit over the head with this relentless quirky unfunny humor makes this reading experience insufferable. On top of that, the storyline was nonsensical. Something about flowers and a hand in a photograph. The characters were not compelling at all. The internal monologue of the MC was annoying. She thinks she’s really smart and logical and tries to display this way of thinking when lukewarm bizarre things start happening in her mother’s house but this “logical” way of rationalizing things in her internal monologue quickly just became her going in circles in her head and became really redundant to read about. Poor writing, poor execution, and poor character work.

This was so weird in the best way possible. T Kingfisher has formula and I think it really works for her. This went completely off the rails and I loved it.

A House with Good Bones is another fantastically creepy, highly readable book by an author who knows how to tell a great story!

There’s so much to love here. Southern Gothic vibe. Highly intelligent and rational main character (she has a Ph.D. in entomology!) thrust into a decidedly odd situation. Family secrets and a dark past. Childhood nightmares and memories that might not be what they seem. All of these ingredients, and more, woven into a tightly constructed, tense, yet weirdly enjoyable narrative with no wasted space or filler. No wonder I read this in a day!

The ending is great, with a big dramatic climax, a satisfying resolution, and just a little hint of lingering menace keeping it from feeling too sunshine-y and neatly wrapped up. Even though I was very creeped out at times, I had so much fun reading this book, and recommend it wholeheartedly.

T​hank you Macmillan-Tor​/Forge and Netgalley for letting me read and review this book. I LOVE T. Kingfisher and was so excited to read another book by her. My favorite book by her is What Moves the Dead, but this is a close second. I will read any book she publishes. I enjoy her dark humor, writing style, descriptions, world-building, and characters. A House With Good Bones is a horror, gothic, paranormal mystery. Kingfisher is a writing chameleon. She can write in any genre, though the horror/mysteries are my favorites.

Sam is my favorite character in this story, which doesn't always happen with main characters. Kingfisher writes strong main characters, though I love all of the characters in this story, and love to hate one of them. Sam is a relatable and wonderful character to follow. She is kind, intelligent, and digs for the truth of what is going on with her mom and her mom's house. The world-building is great, I felt like I was there with Sam, Edith, the vultures, and the other characters. I like how everything unfolded slowly over time. The book has some creepy scenes along with some dark humor and I loved it. If you enjoy horror, gothic, mystery, thrillers, and/or paranormal books, you should definitely pick this one up.

​Book ​S​ummary:
​"Mom seems off."​ ​Her brother's words echo in Sam Montgomery's ear as she turns onto the quiet North Carolina street where their mother lives alone.​ ​She brushes the thought away as she climbs the front steps. Sam's excited for this rare extended visit, and looking forward to nights with just the two of them, drinking boxed wine, watching murder mystery shows, and guessing who the killer is long before the characters figure it out.​ ​But stepping inside, she quickly realizes home isn’t what it used to be. Gone is the warm, cluttered charm her mom is known for; now the walls are painted a sterile white. Her mom jumps at the smallest noises and looks over her shoulder even when she’s the only person in the room. And when Sam steps out back to clear her head, she finds a jar of teeth hidden beneath the magazine-worthy rose bushes, and vultures are circling the garden from above.

To find out what’s got her mom so frightened in her own home, Sam will go digging for the truth. But some secrets are better left buried.

256 pages, Hardcover
​Pages: 256​
​Genres: Horror, gothic, mystery, paranormal, thriller​
​Published date: ​3/28/23​
​Stars:​ 5 out of 5

4.5*

A HOUSE WITH GOOD BONES, by T. Kingfisher deals with a very unique type of haunted house. Samantha, an entomologist, is on furlough from an archeological dig. She decides with the unexpected downtime to visit her mother, Edith--who resides in the home left to her by her deceased mother. A house that Sam knows well, as her family moved in there for years following her father's untimely death, while Gran Mae was still alive.

The suburb is the definition of "normal", until you get to the vulture perching on her mother's mailbox.... Once inside, Sam notices that her brother's warning "Mom seems off. . . . is very accurate. The once self assured woman is now an anxious wreck, constantly looking over her shoulder, forgetting things, and has lost quite a bit of weight--in an unhealthy looking way. Gone are the bright colors and changes that she had once made to the house, and back are the bland wall colors and hateful photos that her Gran Mae had previously decorated with.

One of the things I love about Kingfisher's books is the fact that she uses everyday people as characters, and changes events to make the story. These are characters that you can relate to, because they feel real. There are no stereotyped "damsels in distress" here, but a daughter that is concerned about the changes in her mother, looking for logical reasons before facing the illogical.

". . .Mailbox Vulture was now just part of the yard, like a particularly goth lawn sculpture. Gran Mae would have considered that very not-classy . . . "

Besides the vulture--who belongs to a woman that houses a tree of them--there's something about the wall of Roses her Gram poured her soul into. Even their lawn care man, Phil, claims to know nothing of how they thrive without the attention they once had.

". . . The bird did not reply. Mind you, I'm not sure what I would have done if it had."

Sam takes to uncovering her family's past--a past that is much more scandalous than she would have ever expected.

". . .I have to admit that it wasn't much of a leap . . . If you had to pick a warlock out of a lineup, you'd point at that guy every time . . ."

When things ramp up, they REALLY get going. What begins as a seemingly haunted house, evolves into something much more convoluted than I had ever imagined. I absolutely loved the way Kingfisher builds all of this up--with the characters' personalities already in place--and manages to make the shift believable in the context of the story.

"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence."

Highly recommended!

Captivating, very creepy, AND comical, A HOUSE WITH GOOD BONES is entertaining as hell. The story snags you fast, but beware- this family's Family Tree has thorny branches and twisted roots: digging into the dirt beneath will only unleash the many horrors hidden there.

A HOUSE WITH GOOD BONES by T. Kingfisher (Ursula Vernon) is entering the world today! Happy Pub Day!🌟

This author has been really pumping out the glorious, the ghoulish, and the grim these days and this novel is no exception. Thank you to the author, @netgalley and the publisher, @tornightfire for the e-ARC.

When Sam Montgomery gets a call from her brother complaining about their mother acting strange, Sam takes it upon herself to arrange an extended stay at her childhood home. Except when she arrives, her mother's normal maximalist clutter has been replaced with sterile white walls and god-fearing memorabilia from her grandmother's days of living in this same house. Sam's mom seems to be looking over her shoulder at every turn and jumps at every noise. After seeing a wake of vultures staring down at the house and finding a jar of teeth hidden under her grandmother's prize rose garden, Sam starts to think maybe more is going on than she first surmised...

This book is more spooky and spine tingly than scary until the end where it gets a bit wild. I was not expecting the outcome but I loved it. What a unique story - not quite haunted house, vaguely witchy, full of history and research and conjures up a whole lot of creepy crawly feelings. This book is also wildly witty and hilarious at times.

This is a hair raising, smart, southern gothic that melds the ordinary with the extraordinary to create a tale of generational hate and hubris along with a cautionary tale of being sucked into both in the modern world.