This one is a very fitting release.. I’d be very upset if a book titled The September house didn’t release in September. It's a paranormal horror that absolutely shook me to my core. We follow a couple who buys their dream house, they’ve been loving there for a few years and they discover that it’s haunted and there just used to it at this point. They know that every September blood is just going to start flowing down the walls all Amityville horror style, they can’t sleep, there are some pretty grotesque spirits that wander the house but eh, life goes on you know, at least for the wife. She’s just going to have her breakfast and try to ignore it but unfortunately this year is different. It was like a slice of life horror, and honestly so fun to read.

I received a gifted galley of THE SEPTEMBER HOUSE by Carissa Orlando for an honest review. Thank you to PRH Audio, Berkley Publishing Group, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review!

THE SEPTEMBER HOUSE follows Margaret, a woman who has bought a Victorian home with her husband. It is her dream house and they manage to get an exceptional deal on it… which may be for a reason. The house is haunted and it is particularly bad each September. There is blood running down the walls, violent apparitions, and something that keeps them afraid to venture down to the basement.

When Margaret’s husband goes missing, her daughter shows up to find out what has been going on. Katherine can’t see the house’s other inhabitants, but she can certainly see that something is very wrong with her mother. Margaret is determined to stay in her beautiful home and keep her daughter from finding out the truth about the home’s dangers.

Margaret’s determination to stay in the house is strong and Katherine’s concerns are understandable. As we begin to learn more about Margaret’s past and her relationship with her husband, more questions and answers are revealed. I did want to see a little more development when it came to Margaret’s research into the house. We got some fairly extensive info dump passages about what she’s learned as she tells a friend all of the information and I think I might have wanted to follow her along when she was investigating a bit more.

This book really does an impressive job at setting up the eerie mood surrounding the house. That said, it did feel like it got a bit repetitive in a few places. I did find the body horror to be really well done, but it probably could have been tightened up a bit in a few places.

Overall I enjoyed my time with this one!

Every time I pick up a haunted house book I have to remind myself that this is one of the scariest horror tropes for me. Maybe it's living in an old home? But I keep picking them up and this one was no exception. It's creepy and scary but funny at the same time and I love how the story unfolds.

Thank you to Berkley and Netgalley for the electronic advanced copy.

Thank you @berkleypub for the free book and @prhaudio for the audio version as well. My thoughts are my own.
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GENRE: Ghost Thriller/Fiction
RELEASE DATE: 9/5/23
352 pages

If you enjoy haunted house stories, and all the thrills, chills, and gore that comes with them, then THE SEPTEMBER HOUSE by debut author Carissa Orlando is a book you will enjoy.

When Margaret and Hal finally find their beautiful dream home they’re pleasantly surprised by the reasonable price. They settle in and set about painting and decorating, and life is good…until September arrives.

Suddenly, the walls drip blood, ghosts prowl, furniture gets rearranged, and birds crash into the windows. Margaret just deals with all the spirits that she refers to as pranksters. But Hal just can’t get used to it and after a few years of this, he leaves.

Margaret continues to live inside the house, happy to make friends with a neighbor and enjoy some freedoms she is not used to. But when her daughter Katherine shows up looking for her father, Margaret tries to keep Katherine from finding out what’s really going on in the September house.

This story is told from Margaret’s point of view as she patiently describes the ghosts and the goings on, as well as the changes in her marriage as she and Hal react differently to the spirits. Margaret also conducts research on the house’s history and she make a startling discovery.

This story jumps into the problem quickly and will immediately grab the reader’s attention. I did feel the story dragged a bit as Margaret continuously describes the goings on of the spirits. But the ending is strong.

I enjoyed both the physical and audio versions. The audio did get on my nerves a bit at the end as the characters continuously shouted the same phrase over and over! So I recommend the physical print or digital version.

Margaret is convinced this house is for them. Hal likes the price. When the realtor says their was a few deaths in the house, they both only see the possibility of owning a home. Margaret and Hal want roots, a for sure place. When September rolls around, they second guess that choice. Margaret loves the old Victorian home. She can't imagine leaving. So what if the walls drip blood, ghosts stick around, and point out something dark lurking in the basement. They earned the right to stay. Margaret will not leave.

Enter their daughter Katherine, when she hasn't heard from Hal she becomes worried. He may not be the perfect father, but it still seems he's just gone. Katherine arrives in September. What will Margaret have to do to keep her safe from all the ghouls and mysteries surrounding the house?

This is a ghostly mystery with some added humor. Not all the ghosts are terrifying and horrid, some rather just have tragic circumstances. Margaret has to protect her daughter. Katherine is all grown up, she's not quite sure if her mother is alright. A basic premise made better with intriguing characters. Hal is missing but the bigger question is why September brings so much horror to the house.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book. This will be a great spooky season read.

Thanks to NetGalley & Berkley for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. Sadly, I DNF'ed at 20% of the way through.

Wasn't a fan of the confusing time jumping, dull protagonist, and bizarre plot--was it supposed to be satirical of haunted house movies? Or was it supposed to be scary? It wasn't really either but kept dipping its toes in both ideas.

This is a satirical haunted house novel that is both horrifying and surprising. I loved how unique the premise is and enjoyed the banter and dialogue. There were twists that shook me and it was truly a pleasure to read. I loved the story of mothers and daughters that was at the core of this book. Would definitely recommend!

Really enjoyed being in Margaret's head and how we went back in time to slowly learn things about her and Hal's past. The discussions of abuse and rules and being strong and flexible were done is great comparison to the haunted house.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book! It comes out September 5, 2023.

<i>The September House</i> follows Margaret as she prepares for another September in her very haunted house that she bought with her husband Hal four years prior. Margaret, someone who follows a certain set of rules to survive her life, finds her routine upended when her husband disappears and her daughter comes to try and find him.

I enjoyed this novel. I like that the novel begins in medias res of the haunting. There's ghostly action from the first very first chapter with some interspersed chapters that detail the initial months and years in the house. There's a great ghostly cast of characters, and the book is a bit more bloody and gory than I was expecting. I also wasn't quite expecting the tone. It's got a bit of a dark comedy vibe to it. It's pretty funny in some areas, and I thought Margaret's quips sometimes were hilarious.

I do think the middle chunk felt a bit long and too repetitious for my liking. It's a lot of the same things, which makes sense with how time seems to collapse a bit in the house, but it made the middle feel more slow than I would have liked.

And big content warning for abuse, particularly domestic abuse. It's quite prevalent throughout the novel and hard to read sometimes. It has a purpose, because the novel is exploring the cyclical nature of violence, but it was intense.

I think this is a fun haunted house novel going into spooky season and would definitely recommend for fans of that particular trope. It's a pretty successful haunted house story.

I love a good haunted house and The September House hit all the marks for me! Main character with mysterious motivations, gory ghosts, humour and deep undertones of haunting and trauma. The first line had me hooked and I was in a chokehold until the end.

Carissa Orlando has written this spectacularly where I was questioning whether I actually believed the ghosts were real or if Margaret was simply making them up. The characterization of Margaret is exemplary for a complex woman who slowly drops crumbs for the reader to nibble and digest. Why would this woman stay in a house and follow their "rules" when the yearly cycle brings utter chaos and destruction? The balance between humour and horror had me flipping pages as I impatiently waited to see where the journey would take me.

The arrival of Margaret's daughter Katherine allows the mystery of Margaret's character to show its face through their tense interactions. Orlando uses parallels with the home to depict the violence nature of relationships, and intertwines the power of what is familiar with that of control elevates the novel from a common haunted house story. The language, especially at the climax, is carefully chosen to create a physical response from readers. At times I felt claustrophobic, full body cringed and had wide eyes with a "nope" look on my face.

The September House is a character study set a beautiful home that has seen much trauma over the years and seeks to spill out to the living by the end of the month.

Now THIS is how you write a haunted house story 🤩

This gave me American Horror Story (season one) meets Casper vibes and I couldn’t get enough of it. It was gory, it was spooky, and it absolutely delivered!!!

Margaret and Hal are elated when they move into their dream home. It has everything you could dream of. It’s gorgeous and enviable with its wrap-around porch, and they got it at a steal of a price! So what if people have died there? It’s perfect!

At least, that’s what they said when they purchased it. Unfortunately for them, there are spirits that remain in the house. They aren’t all evil, as most of them are just pranksters, and there’s even a maid who is super helpful, but in the basement… he’s down there. The house is manageable for Hal and Katherine, until September hits.

All is well (or as good as it can be) for Margaret. She has her routine and has found her own grove with dealing with all of the chaos that goes on, until Katherine demands to speak to her father.

When Katherine asks Margaret where her father is after not returning any of her calls, and Margaret says she doesn’t know, Katherine rushes over to her parent’s home… that she has never visited before.

This was everything my spooky heart wanted. It gave me chills and the writing was so vivid it felt like watching a horror movie. The characters are well developed, the twists shocked me, and the ending delighted me.

Lastly, the audiobook was AMAZING. Kimberly Farr is a new to me narrator, and she killed it!

This publishes on September 5, 2023! This is a spooky season MUST READ!

Thank you so much NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, and Penguin Random House Audio for this advanced readers copy and listening copy in exchange for my honest review!

I cannot express how much I loved this book. Not only is it a fun and creepy haunted house story, full of appropriately gory ghosts, but it is a picture-perfect metaphor for abuse that anyone who has lived through the experience of surviving an abusive home will recognize deep in their gut.

That's just the way things are.
These things come in cycles.

That makes the book sound depressing, but it's not. It is peppered throughout with dark humor and is perfectly paced to keep the reader asking exactly what is happening with these ghosts and with the woman who is interacting with them on a daily basis.

This is one that I will have to buy a physical copy of.

4.5 stars

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 @𝘗𝘙𝘏𝘈𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 @𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘬𝘭𝘦𝘺𝘱𝘶𝘣 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘥𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺.

September has arrived, and if you’re looking for your first spooky season read, look no further. This was one wild and crazy ride, and I’m honestly a little speechless having just finished. How does a book make me laugh, cry, and jump out of my skin with fear all at the same time?

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 is an expertly plotted gothic horror that flawlessly blends elements of horror, family drama, dark comedy, mystery, and psychological/supernatural thriller with characters – both living and dead – that you can’t help but either fall in love with or be utterly terrified by. OR BOTH. I said it.

I paired reading with the audiobook version, and I have to say that narrator Kimberley Farr absolutely knocked this one out of the park.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 has everything you need in a spooky season read, and I absolutely recommend it but with some caution. See my content warnings below.

Spooky season readers, don’t miss this one!


CW: domestic abuse, alcoholism, and graphic gore

I received a digital advance copy of The September House by Carissa Orlando via NetGalley. The September House is scheduled for release on September 5, 2023.

The September House is Margaret’s dream house. In reality, it is haunted, with the residents becoming extra feisty every September. The walls run with blood, children appear and point at the basement, where something is trying to get out. Margaret is determined to stay, even when her husband abruptly leaves, triggering a visit from their semi-estranged daughter. Unfortunately, she arrives in September, when the house is most desperate to hold its secrets.

The strength of this novel is the uncertainty of the haunting. Margaret is the only person who can see all of the residents of the house. Her husband seemed to see some of them, but their daughter can see none of them. This creates uncertainty around the hauntings. Are they real, or is Margaret going insane? Even Margaret grows unsure as to what is real during the course of the novel, which leads to uncertainty for the reader as well.

This might be why the first half of the novel felt slow for me. Margaret is dealing with the normal events of the house, and since we are so close to her point of view, the events feel unremarkable to us as the reader. The second half felt much better in terms of pace, because Margaret was struggling to deal with the house and her daughter.

In the end, we learn the truth about both the hauntings and the location of Margaret’s missing husband. While I did figure out the story resolution very early in the novel, I still enjoyed watching the events unfold, including the exploration of Margaret and her family’s past. I do wish we had gotten to know Margaret’s daughter better, as she often triggers story events, and serves as a focus for Margaret’s motivation through the story.

Overall, The September House is full of creepy vibe and haunting entities. While the start felt a bit slow, the unraveling sped up to a satisfying climax.

This is an interesting read. I never really felt any sense of horror since everything was described so nonchalantly. In fact, for a while I wasn’t sure if the house was actually haunted or if it was all in Margaret’s mind. But I never wanted to stop reading it.

The book has some descriptions of gore, alcoholism, and spousal abuse which may bother some people.

The September House is a book about a haunted house. It's owners, Margaret and Hal can't believe they waited so long to finally own their own home. However, shortly after they move in, they discover that something is not quite right. By September th house is oozing blood and all its ghostly inhabitants make appearances throughout the day and night. Hal finally has enough, but Margaret is convinced they can make it work as long as they follow the "rules."
When Hal disappears, Margaret attempts to continue life in the house despite repeated calls from her adult daughter over the whereabouts of her dad. Unable to keep her away, Katherine shows up to the house for the first time. Margaret is convinced she can hide the fact the house is haunted from her daughter. What follows is a creative tale filled with both ghosts and sinister entities mixed in with dark comedy and domestic drama. I loved every second of this book. It was a refreshing take on a classic haunted house story. I received an ebook from Netgalley.com in exchange for a review

“There are rules to these things. Everything is survivable”.

When Margaret and Hal bought their dream Victorian home at a great price, they couldn’t believe their luck in finding it. But there is a reason it was so low in price; every September, the walls drip blood. All of the former inhabitants appear and they are all terrified of what’s in the basement. Margaret makes it work; she cleans up the blood and barricades the basement. It’s her home and in her mind, as long as she follows the rules everything will work out. But Hal has had enough and leaves. When their daughter Katharine can’t get ahold of him, she comes for a visit - in September.

This book was pure perfection! Told from Margaret’s perspective, we learn her back story as the history of the house unfolds around her. Without giving any spoilers, the way the author mirrored Margaret’s life in the “life” of the house was brilliant! The big twists were flawlessly executed and I was kept reading, I just didn’t want the story to end! Filled with dark humor and just the right amount of spookiness, this was easily one of my favorite reads of the year so far. I look forward to seeing what this author does next!

Thank you you to Berkley, Carissa Orlando and Netgalley for the ARC! “The September House” releases September 5, 2023.

Wait, what? This was a debut novel by this author? Well, sign me up for the next release because this was so good. Not really what I was expecting but I was drawn so deeply into this storyline that I consumed this book in literally 24 hours' time. The characters were well-fleshed out, and even the undead ones brought a gasp or a smile to my lips at times. Was this the most terrifyingly scary book I have ever read? No, but it was a great story with enough twists and turns to keep you coming back for more. I highly recommend this book and I guarantee it will be different from anything you have read before.

Many thanks to #NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the digital review copy in exchange for my honest review.

I read this book while I had a bat issue - definitely increased the scare factor all around.
Margaret follows the rules - admitting her ability to bend, compromise is her best feature. Taken for granted by those around her - husband, daughter, and the house.
The main character is obviously the house - and Katherine. Wow does she inspire movement in a stagnant situation. Lights it up.
Slow build - at times too slow for me.
I enjoyed all those living in the house - the hints of their lives ending in horror.

September House is not your typical haunted house story. It is unique because the owner, Margaret, refuses to give up her dream house despite being haunted by several disturbing ghosts. She tries to develop a set of rules in order to coexist with the spirits; however, things begin to escalate, and Margaret starts to lose control. The author created a horrifying mystery where you were never sure whether Margaret was truly haunted or if it was all in her head. I'm looking forward to seeing what Carissa Orlando creates next!