I must admit up front that I love a good haunted house story. Fortunately, this book does just that—albeit with some intriguing detours along the way. It resembles a combination between Amityville and Back to the Future, with a tinge of Blake Crouch's Dark Matter.

This was a genre bending story that I didn’t see coming. Apart from the story every character was lovable and fantastic and you found yourself really rooting for David. The best part was the pacing and flow of the book was soo well put together that you rarely felt lost even if the main character did. A true fun rollercoaster ride.

After surviving a near-death experience, David finds himself haunted by ghosts in the old Victorian house he is renovating. These tortured souls beg for his help and offer him protection from a demonic presence that wants David dead for a crime he doesn’t remember committing. Even more surprising, he soon learns these are spirits of people who are not yet dead. Is this real, is he hallucinating, or is someone trying to drive him insane? As his paranoia ramps up, he discovers the truth is even more bizarre. The haunting won’t stop until he kills a man named “Fitz.”

This book was a strange one, I loved the concept and the characterisation and at times it kind of gave me horror movie ‘Insidious’ feels what with the past residents of the house appearing as ghosts all over the show which was just downright creepy. But I guess it was more the execution of the overall plot that brought the book down for me; I feel there was room for a lot of editing which ultimately made the story, at times, long winded and convoluted which is why I didn’t enjoy it as much as I could have.

Hopstaken solo novel is as worthwhile as his co-authored Stoker/Wilde novels and more.

This is a book that deals with ghosts and hauntings but gives his own unique voice providing an atmospheric and dread that fills the pages. The ghosts that inhabit the Victorian house are well rounded characters within themselves and fully realised.

This provides the book with an inner voice that comes alive through every interval. The main character is fully realised and three dimensional given the book an extra pathos as the plot carries forward.

It is extremely well written but not at the expense of losing the kaleidoscope of emotions found within the landscape. This is sure to provide even more fans of this gifted author and one that I would highly urge readers to latch on.

Thought provoking, haunting, emotional and deeply investing, this is one that people should read and experience for themselves.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

A Man Among Ghosts by Steven Hopstaken is a gripping and haunting thriller that will leave you on the edge of your seat until the very end. The story follows David, who after surviving a near-death experience, finds himself haunted by ghosts in an old Victorian house he’s renovating. These spirits are not yet dead and are begging for his help and offering him protection from a demonic presence that wants him dead. As his paranoia ramps up, he discovers that the only way to end the haunting is to kill a man named “Fitz.”

The book starts off slowly, but once the plot kicks in, it becomes impossible to put down. The writing style does initially seem clunky, with repeated use of phrases such as ‘David imagined,’ which can be distracting at first. However, it’s worth reading through this to get to the meat of the story itself.

The characters are well-crafted and fleshed out throughout the book. There’s an excellent balance between action and introspection that provides depth to each character and their motivations. One of the strongest aspects of this novel is how Hopstaken makes readers feel as if they’re part of the story itself.

Overall, I would highly recommend A Man Among Ghosts. The chilling storyline will keep you guessing until its jaw-dropping climax while its interesting characters make you care about what happens to them next. It’s easily one of the best books I have read in awhile, despite some initial hiccups.

**ARC via NetGalley**

After surviving a near-death experience, David finds himself haunted by ghosts in the old Victorian house he is renovating. These tortured souls beg for his help and offer him protection from a demonic presence that wants David dead for a crime he doesn’t remember committing. Even more surprising, he soon learns these are spirits of people who are not yet dead. Is this real, is he hallucinating, or is someone trying to drive him insane? As his paranoia ramps up, he discovers the truth is even more bizarre. The haunting won’t stop until he kills a man named “Fitz.” Sizzles with tension, desire, and a forever-escalating sense of menace! Let this supremely enjoyable horror whisk you up, up and away. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Quite a refreshing read! This book had a bit of everything - horror, gothic setting and subtle tinges of humor. I am really happy that I got to read this book. It was really fun, and the plot was well executed! Loved it, indeed!

Advanced copy received for review via NetGalley.

What, on the surface, appears to be a standard haunted house story is anything but. Our main character, David, has a near-death experience and finds himself seeing ghosts in his newly bought house. Ghosts that are desperately trying to tell him something........

While this may sound like a plot that's been done a thousand times before. 'A Man Among Ghosts' is anything but, and at times reads almost playfully as a pastiche, shot through with sarcasm and a dry sense of with that makes this a highly unique and enjoyable read. Nods to the current state in the US with religion and Republican politics also play a part, interwoven into a tale that draws upon Stephen King's The Dead Zone (not a spoiler - it's there in the book description), but in a much more micro way.. This is very much a book about the relationships between the main characters, who are lively, slightly caricatured people.

In all, a really great read. Highly recommended.

4 Stars!

Haunted house stories have always appealed to me. Maybe it is because I lived in a haunted house when I was a child. When I saw A Man Among Ghosts by Steven Hopstaken, I knew this was a book for me. The novel promised to be something other than a normal haunted house story and it definitely lived up to that description.



David had finally decided to take the leap and purchase a house. Since prices in the Bay Area were so high, he knew that he would need to get a house that needed work, and the old house seemed to be perfect for him. When he won it at auction lower than anticipated, he felt like he had hit the lottery. Even the frequent headaches he was having could keep him down. Then came the news from the doctor: David had a brain tumor and was given six months to live. Life seemed to be ripped from under his feet right as he felt like he was getting on track. An experimental treatment saves his life and he is once more given a chance to achieve his dreams. That is when his life turned into a nightmare.



It started with messages showing up in foggy mirrors and similar simple manners of communication. The message was simple: Kill Fitz. Then the ghosts started to appear in his house and their message became more urgent. Adding to this eerie presence in the house was a couple of ghosts that seemed intent on stopping David even if they had to kill him. David learns that it is not the house that is haunted. It is him. Aided by a magician friend who does not believe in the supernatural and the magician’s girlfriend who sees the ghosts herself, David must find a way to stop the ghosts who are becoming increasingly aggressive. These are no ordinary ghosts, however, and none of the measures he takes satisfy their demands. Religious leaders and ghost hunters have nothing to combat these ghosts as they are not ghosts of the past but ghosts from the future and their demands may be too much for David to handle even if the fate of the world hangs in the balance.



A Man Among Ghosts promised not to be the traditional haunted house story and it lives up to this promise. There are many elements of the traditional story in the novel and it starts out with that same feel, but then Hopstaken turns up the stakes and takes it to a different level. In fact, the reader learns it is not a haunted house story at all as the story progresses. Hopstaken takes a new approach to haunting in which it is the person who is haunted and not the house, and it just may be that person is haunted by ghosts of something other than the deceased. Without giving too much of the story away, the comparison of this book to Stephen King’s The Dead Zone is particularly apt but it takes it to a whole different level. The concept of this novel is fantastic has Hopstaken really has come up with something new and fresh in this ghost story.



The novel does stumble a little bit in the execution as it seemed to drag and wander a little during the middle of the story, but Hopstaken does get it back on track toward the end for a satisfying climax. It just seemed as if there was too much effort spent trying to prove that they were not ghosts but rather a scam artist trying after some unknown end when this idea was both impossible and implausible. I just wanted to get through this part of the story as it seemed to just be spinning its wheels and getting no real traction. It almost seemed as if Hopstaken was trying to decide how to proceed with the story while he was writing it and that part of the story was left in when it could have been cut out. This slow middle of the story keeps it from getting five stars, but it is still one of the best ghost stories in the past several years. If you are you are looking for a fresh and entertaining take on the ghost story, A Man Among Ghosts is just that and is sure to delight fans of the genre. Highly recommended (and with a very good ending).



I would like to thank Flame Tree Press and NetGalley for this review copy. A Man Among Ghosts is available now.

After surviving a near-death experience, David finds himself haunted by ghosts in the old Victorian house he is renovating. These tortured souls beg for his help and offer him protection from a demonic presence that wants David dead for a crime he doesn’t remember committing.

What a brilliant read this was! The book combines elements of horror and mystery, weaving together facts with fictional characters to create a captivating well paced narrative. The author's attention to detail in describing the setting and characters helps to set the mood and immerse the reader in the story. The first part of the story leads you down a typical haunted house style read, then the twists and turns start coming apparent and my mind was blown.

This one would be perfect for fans of classic horror like Stephen King and the newer spins on classic horror like Grady Hendrix. My whole thoughts here were if you, like me, loved the TV show "Ghosts", this one would be perfect for you!

Title: "A Man Among Ghosts" by Steven Hopstaken

Disclaimer:

The copy I read was an uncorrected advance reading copy (ARC). This book is an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher Flame Tree Press; thank you for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Summary:

David feels as though he is starting to live his life properly when he buys an old Victorian house. However, after a near death experience, David begins to suspect he may not be the only one residing in the house. As more strange events occur, David is uncertain if he is going mad or if a cruel trick is being played on him.

Thoughts:

This book was not what I was expecting. I really liked the main character, David. I resonated with him a lot, particularly discussions revolving around mental health, and this idea of just existing rather than actually living. This is explored a lot more, during the first couple of chapters and it felt realistic to me; David discusses how he is excited about his friends being successful and moving on with their lives, but has this feeling of being alone and sad. I liked his friends, Gary and Shannon; thought they were well rounded too, and how they did care for David deeply.

In these earlier chapters, David discovers something life-changing, and I remember saying, “Oh no, poor David”, out loud, so I was invested in the character.I was enjoying the ideas the author was implementing: I had wild theories of what was happening to David because of these concepts being brought up and discussed.

Although I devoured the majority of this book in one day, it is an easy read and because of my interest in David, the story sometimes did feel like it was repeating itself in terms of plot. The way the book was written wasn’t bad, but some of the chapters could have been cut down. Other than that, the writing was good, and it was an easy read, and I was enjoying it until the ending.

The ending, for me, felt a little flat. Even so, I would consider picking up another book by the author as this one was a twist on the haunted story.


Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

I enjoyed the idea behind the story, but felt the characters and overall plot lacking. At times, the plot felt like it spiralled out of control (stopping WW3) and the ending itself felt rushed, and almost like a cop out.

This was a very entertaining novel. I was kept interested all through the night. Look forward to so much more by this author.

I think this is a very good horror: creepy, fast paced, and keeping you on the edge as the unreliable MC is not always able to distinguish his vision from the real life.
There's echo of King and Jackson but the author did a good job in delivering an original story.
Well done, perfect if you love haunted house stories.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

I have yet to find a great haunted house story. As far as I can remember this is the best so far at least. It definitely gave me the heeby jeebys and all the feels at the right moments and that’s a good balance in a scary book. Overall, it’s a safe recommendation.

A young man decides it's time to start "adulting" and buys himself a 100-year-old house. As soon as he arrives he finds out he has a brain tumour and starts hallucinating. But are these hallucinations or ghosts? If they are ghosts, there are many of them and they want something from him. Meanwhile, there is an evil one who wants to hurt him.

This was a standard ghost story I'd call mostly a cosy. There are injured ghosts and mild violence. The story was enjoyable and quick to read at under 300 pages. I found it a speed read and thought the various reasons people gave him (hallucinations, grifters, demons, ghosts) a lot of fun. Not the best writing but a very good read.

I felt like the author was using every ghost and haunted house trope that ever existed, which made me skip a lot of chapters.

Thanks NetGalley for a free copy of this book!

Truthfully what attracted me to this title was the cover. I am guilty of judging book by their covers and I fell right for this one. I love a good ghost story, and reviews on Goodreads promised this was gonna be a good one.

A Man Among Ghosts was truly an enjoyable read. Steven Hopstaken has a real knack for really frightening imagery-- and some of these scenes-- like the one of ghosts just appearing in front of him, like the family at the table, something about that just creeped me out to read. It felt like a scene in the horror movie Insidious, which is one of my most favorite movies!

However, in my opinion, A Man Among Ghosts wasn't clear to me that it knew what it wanted to be. Sometimes it felt like a semi quirky story/characters, like the tv show Ghosts. But then the scenes with the ghosts were more frightening and less personal. Some of the character dialogue and relationship built up felt rushed. I think the scary scenes would have felt more impactful if there was more of a slow build to these, like then the reader wouldn't know what was happening after the next page. I never quite understood the dimensionality of the ghosts too, what are they able to do and what can't they do?

Regardless, I had FUN reading it and am always down for a ghost story.

Rating: 2.5 leaves out of 5
-Characters: 2/5
-Cover: 3.75/5
-Story: 1.5/5
-Writing: 2/5
-Horror: 2/5
Genre: Horror
Type: Ebook
Worth?: No

Hated|Disliked|It Was Okay|Liked|Loved

Want to thank Netgalley and publishers for giving me the chance to read this book.

First thing I want to say is if Steven would find a better editor it would be a good story, or at least decent. The writing alone was just... not the best. For example, how he said someone was sitting but they were also rolling around? That part could have been TERRIFYING if I wasn't drawn out of my zone of focus. Again, with the right editor this could have gone from a 2 to at least a 4.

Definitely Not Your Standard Haunted House Story!

David is a quiet introverted man although lonely and unsatisfied with his life when he decides to buy an old Victorian home for a fantastic deal at an auction due to his friend nagging him to invest his money instead of shelling out many thousands each year on rent. Since the house is so old, naturally there will be creepy and odd noises from time to time except somewhat more than he expected. Even though the house needs a lot of work it makes David acquire important purpose in his life and helps him come out of his shell. Shortly after David moves into his new home he also receives some life altering news and then makes a very bad decision which will will have horrific consequences.

Within a short span of time David begins to hear things, sees words written on mirrors or windows and begins to see people appear in his house even a young child in her pajamas. Now, David does not believe in ghosts so he's not sure what to make of these spectral images who sometimes speak to him and the visions are so real that he calls his neighbor or friends telling them he has intruders breaking into his home. Then he starts seeing visions at his workplace and they are so real that he talks to them until they disappear or do something crazy that he can't come up with a practical explanation. David suffering from sleepless nights and shattered nerves gets himself into therapy since he finally comes to the conclusion that he' must be losing his mind because "There is no such thing as ghosts".

The wild path that David travels will change his life forever and he will have to make decisions that will affect his friends, family, co-workers and strangely even people he doesn't know. In the meantime he needs to distinguish these visions against reality and he will eventually understand he plays an enormous part in the great fight between good and evil but at what price must David pay when he can't even determine which visions are being truthful or deceitful or just using him for their own evil purposes or revenge from their past lives.

What a clever and entertaining story based on a haunted house. The first half of the book will have you thinking this is a typical haunting taking place although it will have you guessing throughout the book who and what are showing themselves to David. I have read a couple of books by the author "Steven Hopstaken" and have always been impressed by his creativity with writing and storytelling. I just loved his book "Stoker's Wilde" and would recommend it to horror readers and others since it just is such a fun ride although it does deal with the supernatural. This book is more of a dark horror although there was some light humor thrown in from time to time which was very appropriate and made the characters more enjoyable with their thoughts and actions. There was an incredible twist to the story that I never saw coming and then all the visions and puzzles that kept me guessing throughout the story finally made sense! I think almost every reader will be stumped by many of the ghosts since the twist that took place was quite unpredictable but by the end I was left shaking my head and saying Wow, I didn't see that coming. I really liked and enjoyed the character of David but I felt he was too matter of fact about several things that were taking place in the last quarter of the book where he didn't seem to be having the appropriate feelings about and with his actions. I just wanted more emotion from him although this didn't affect the great story. Some people might find this a very frightening book, for myself it takes a lot to scare me so I thought there were many spooky situations and images but I never felt scared but I loved when I would feel David's fear especially in the first half of the story.

This is an author that never lets me down and I highly recommend this book to all horror readers!

I want to thank the publisher "Flame Tree Press" and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital copy and any thoughts or opinions expressed are unbiased and mine alone!

I have given a rating of 4 CREEPY AND SPECTRAL 🌟🌟🌟🌟 STARS!!