Oh man, this is the 3rd Grady Hendrix book I have read and man does he not disappoint. This is another stellar horror novel and this from a reader that doesn’t really care for horror novels. This is a spooky haunted house story about secrets in a family, how they manifest in our environment and what happens when you repress all the bad things and never talk about them and how they fester. Louise has to go back home after her parents die and her younger brother Mark who never left their hometown is there trying to take care of everything before she gets there. While there for the funeral she is trying to be civil with her brother since they don’t have the best relationship and trying to help him empty the house for sale. But strange things start happening in the house, like the tv keeps coming back on and the house is full of dolls and puppets since their mom was a puppeteer and loved dolls. There are two creepy 4ft tall dolls that look like Mark and Louise that keep showing up in the house after Louise puts them in the garage. She keeps thinking that Mark is the one doing this cuz he hates her but he refuses to go in the house saying it has bad vibes since their parents have died. This has everything I find super creepy and hate which is dang creepy dolls, creepy puppets and the idea that they are alive, talk to you and make you do bad things. Louise and Mark finally start talking about some of Louises repressed childhood memories that Mark finally remembered when he was 14 which is when he started acting out at home. He explained why he dropped out of college and how it all leads back to a specific puppet of their mothers. Just when you think the story is over and you are like yay they won, at a cost but it is finally over. Grady’s like nope this is not over it is so much worse and they finally figure out what is really going on and deal with it. I didn’t see the end coming and that twist was so good. I just really loved this and I can’t wait to see what he comes up with next.

Thanks to Berkley and Netgalley for the complimentary copy of this book in e-book form. All opinions in this review are my own.

I was not disappointed with this one at all! I'm not usually much of a horror reader, but the premise hooked me. The writing kept me hooked. And wow that was a wild ride. I will never think of dolls and puppets the same way again. Definite purchase for patrons...they'll love it.

Grady Hendrix does a brilliant job of subverting your expectations when it comes to subverting your favorite horror tropes. There is always something a little twisty or nostalgic included with your dread.

I’m still about 842 reviews behind (and they keep adding up) so let’s keep this short and sweet. I dig Grady Hendrix and will most definitely read whatever he comes up with next so I’m not super interested in bashing this latest release. What you have here is basically a twisted take on The Velveteen Rabbit. After reading and loving every damn bit of The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Vampire Slaying I knew to perhaps expect the unexpected and the possibility of maybe more than meets the eye when it came to the title here, but I mean it’s OCTOBER. I sorta just wanted a haunted house story. This featured a lot of family drama, unlikeable characters and a dead momma who had been real into making dolls - particularly puppets - when she was still alive and kicking. And at 400 pages this one was really in need of a good paring down. Not my favorite.

ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not sure what I expected going into this book, but boy was I wrong. Perfectly spooky and tense - Hendrix is fantastic at keeping the tension high. There was some very descriptive body horror, but it was not the whole book and was easy enough to skip if you don't like that.

My only complaint is that the ending got a little silly.

This book sounded right up my alley and perfect for October. While I enjoyed it, I can’t say I will be haunted by it for long.

Louise is heartbroken to find out both of her parents died in a car accident. She’s also horrified that her estranged brother, Mark, didn’t call her until the next day. He’s always been selfish that way. They do not get along whatsoever, but now have to come together to clean out their parents house and put it on the market.

But…it seems like there’s something in the house that doesn’t want it to be sold.

Strange, unexplainable things start occurring, and Louise and Mark soon realize that the house is haunted…by a puppet and dolls that their mom made.

…and that kind of lost me. I prefer “haunted house” stories involving ghosts…paranormal activity. Puppets and dolls don’t quite do it for me.

However, after my slight disappointment, I do have to say that there were many aspects of the book I enjoyed. It’s entertaining in a ridiculous way, and even sometimes funny. I loved the dynamics between Louise and Mark, which got more interesting as the story continued. I didn’t find it scary, but it’s definitely an amusing read.

3.5 stars

Thank you to Berkley for providing me with a widget of the ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Expected Publication Date: 1/17/22.

Grady Hendrix has been one of my favorite horror authors for quite a few years now. He just keeps getting better and better. Haunted house stories always make the hair on my neck stand up and this book was no exception. I wanted to stop reading (because I was scared) but I was so scared I couldn't stop reading.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

4+ stars

When Louise finds out her parents died she leaves her 5 year old daughter with her ex and goes home to Charleston. Louise and her estranged brother Mark have a lot if issues to deal with, especially with their mother's puppets.

The author does a great job pulling you into the story of both Louise and Mark. Just when you think things are getting resolved, bam, a huge twist.

Creepy and fun. Can get pretty gory at times and then I realized I said the same thing about The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires.

While reading the book I was also cleaning out my closet and I found my son's favorite bunny puppet hidden because we found a new clean version and swapped them out 20 years ago. I will admit to being a bit suspicious of Bunny but so far I'm safe.

Well worth the read.

How does Grady Hendrix manage to continuously write horror that's charming and kind of funny? I loved this so much. It's an absolute treat. It's absurd and infuriating and all the characters are so wonderfully flawed. I enjoyed this endlessly!

Grady Hendrix is an author who will surprise you with normal, every day scenes and jump into the most insane thing you've ever read! His new book, How to Sell a Haunted House has to be one of the insaniest!
San Francisco based single mom, Louise, is happily raising her adorable daughter, Poppy, when she gets a call from her long estranged brother, Mark. Their parents have both been killed in a car accident! Oh no! He has plans for their funeral that she doesn't agree with! She will have to bring herself to return to her home, which she has avoided doing for years! So, after explaining what death is to Poppy, something her mother never did, and thinking a good mom should be open about these things, she now has to leave her traumatized daughter with her ex.

Landing in Charleston, she arrives at her parents place in her rented Kia. Investigating the outside, she hears voices from within. Entering, she realizes the TV was on. Her parents must have left the house in a hurry. There was her Dad's cane, he wouldn't just leave that. Looking around she takes in all the dolls. Her mother's vast collection. The dolls fill every space, cabinet and shelf. And two of the biggest, named after her and her brother, occupy her Dad's chair. With the remote lodged between them. What could be creepier?

Maybe the fact that their mother was a Christian puppeteer, and that she had a work space filled floor to ceiling with her beloved characters, the ones she traveled with and did shows with. Louise hated the dolls. She hated the puppets. She maybe resented her brother, who her Mom always seemed to favor and make excuses for. But she was a grown-up now. She could work with him to settle everything and move on, and never look back.

Could things be that easy? People did these kinds of things every day. Except for... remember this name, PUPKIN! The beloved hand puppet their Mom had since she, herself, was a little girl.

You will have to read How to Sell a Haunted House yourself and you should, because you will never forget Pupkin, one of the most memorable and creepy (and almost sympathetic) creations in fiction. If you think Grady Hendrix had done it all in The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires, he has even outdone that moment everyone remembers (one word: raccoon)!

Thank you to NetGalley for letting me read this unforgettable craziness of a DRC!

Grady Hendrix is one of my absolute favorite horror authors - "A Southern Book Club's Guide To Slaying Vampires" was one of the most delightfully scary reads I've ever enjoyed. "How to Sell a Haunted House" hits it out of the park again, and is perfect for spooky season!

My favorite novel from Grady Hendrix before this is The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires, which is both horror but also a witty commentary on patriarchy, specifically how housewives and months are denigrated.

Like Southern Book Club, How to Sell a Haunted House is both a horror novel and something more, this time about the complications of family and intergenerational trauma. The book copy puts it very nicely:

"Sometimes we feel like puppets, controlled by our upbringing and our genes. Sometimes we feel like our parents treat us like toys, or playthings, or even dolls. The past can ground us, teach us, and keep us safe. It can also trap us, and bind us, and suffocate the life out of us."

I loved it and couldn't put it down despite typically not like horror. I particularly liked the deft hand at manipulating our perspective as readers and our relationship to Louise as our POV character. It's smart, campy, and scary.

Laugh out loud funny, but also creepy, sometimes terrifying, and surprisingly touching. Kept me guessing. Definitely the best murderous puppet book I’ll read this year!

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. How to Sell a Haunted House was a little bit different for Grady Hendrix. Yes, it still had humor and creepy haunted things, but this one had a little extra layer. This one dealt with grief and the power of undealt with emotions. Even the sections of the book are set up to go with the different stages of grief. This added an additional tug on the heartstrings and a great ending.

Louise is drawn away from her life as a single mother in California to deal with the unexpected shock of both her parents dying in a tragic accident, and is then enmeshed in an unwanted and ugly dispute with her brother Mark over the possibility of selling the old family house as part of managing their parents estate. Unfortunately for literally everyone involved, their home is thoroughly and ridiculously haunted. We're talking Ghost Central Station levels of activity in a place that neither Louise nor Mark remember being anything but maybe a little creepy due to their mother's obsession with dolls. As Louise and Mark try to deal with each other, trying to find out what is haunting their house, and the slowly dawning realization that they have a serious problem when it comes to selling said haunted home, things become more terrifying and threatening than anyone could have predicted.

A great Halloween read, fun and scary with some serious tension and horrifying situations.

One review called it "like Goosebumps but for adults". This could not be more true.

These types of stories typically get lost on me as I'm desensitized to horror. Having said that, I found myself turning the page for more and genuinely excited to get back to reading it.

Even though the horror bit was lost on me I was able to thoroughly appreciate the creativity and the well thought out storyline. The relationship between estranged, good-for-nothing, college dropout brother and overachieving sister was very well done.

In the horror parts, Hendrix provides enough detail to make the story clear and understandable but leaves room for your imagination to run wild and make it as scary as you'd like.

I will keep a few copies of this title in our store and hand-sell to anyone looking for something with relatable elements of family drama and the nostalgic thrill of a grown up "Goosebumps" novel.

I wanted to sit on this for a couple days before writing my review. I knew I liked it, it was great, Grady Hendrix is pretty much always a hit for me, but something about it made me want to let it ruminate for a bit.

I'll try to give away as little as possible as I discuss, but first and foremost the marketing for this book (and by marketing I mean title/description) did an INCREDIBLE job at keeping the real details of this book under wraps. I went into this expecting a traditional haunted house story and while the house definitely is haunted, it's got a lot more to it than that, which was a fun surprise!

I've always found this author's character work to be interesting, because all of them are almost always unbearable to some extent, but by the end I always find myself coming around to them and really rooting for them. I was SO mad at everything Mark said and did in the first like half of the book (which was the point, probably), and Louise was just kind of annoying, but the more I got into the story and what they were experiencing the more I felt for them.

Hendrix's horror is also super interesting to me, because none of it really feels in your face the way some horror can, if that makes sense? It builds, and it's tense and scary, but at the same time it's campy and funny. This book managed to include two of my most hated horror tropes (by "most hated" I mean they are incredibly scary to me) and I definitely gasped multiple times and had to put the book down more than once to take in what I had just read.

Overall, this was a blast! Probably one of my favorite books of his so far, so I definitely can't wait to pick it up when it's released.

Absolutely scarily seat of your pants amazing! I'm no a horror reader generally and I wasn't sure if I would connect with the story but omg it creeped me out. I mean dolls and puppets, how could it not. This is a spoiler...when the doll ended up attached to the daughter's hand it totally gave me the shivers. Thank you so much for the opportunity to read the arc.

My favorite Grady Hendrix book so far! I really enjoyed this, and felt appropriately scared several times. Not just a basic ghost story like I was expecting, this is a good family drama novel. Totally into it.

“A puppet is a possession that possesses the possessor” - How to Sell A Haunted House.

Grady Hendrix is Grady Hendrix . There is no predictably because quite frankly this wild creature beats to his own drum and loves throwing us for a curve ball.

I have now read 7 of 8 Hendrix books and the one thing I can tell you is the ability to be unique in every book. How many domestic thrillers can we read?

Exactly why we need vampires, sole survivors and now puppets in a haunted house.

There is no lack of creativity when we have comical dolls and possessed puppets lurking in the attic.

The dolls definitely crept me out and had me imagining “Chucky” with full body chills. Throw in a creepy puppet, Pupkin, and I was running for the hills.

The character development and family dynamic between feuding brother and sister was on point and I couldn’t help but imagine my own brother as Mark.

This book is jam packed with family secrets, curses, and history that will have you questioning just about everything.

Of course, In true Hendrix fashion there is plenty of twists to keep you nibbling on your nails.

If I have not already made it clear… 5 stars!