I always want to like Elizabeth Hand's books but in reality they seem to be very hit or miss for me.

There's no doubt that she's a great writer. She set up distinct characters, all flawed but all somehow relatable, in this haunted house book. In a lot of horror there's an air of characters being punished for sins and in this book we have an arrogant (but insecure) actress, a timorous (but sweet), sound specialist, a driven (but jealous) playwright and a talented and charismatic (but selfish?) singer.

They all get together in a dilapidated mansion to work on a play, but the mansion is no safe place to be. There are weird giant black hares, disembodied and hateful voices, secret tiny doors, random bloodstains and trails that appear and disappear, time slips. And locals who warn them over and over about the house, but still want them (and the money they are paying for the rental) to be there.

I ended up getting a little too bored about halfway through the book. The set up was done but there wasn't much action or plot moving forward. As I think about it, that happens to me a lot with Hand's books. The setting is intriguing, the characters are compelling but then not as much is done with these things as I would like. I'm not really a fan of atmospheric gothics where it's about mood and not plot and I suppose this, while not exactly gothic, has some of the same weaknesses.

Can I say that I was sooooo excited for this one?? Unfortunately this one was such a let down. I actually purchased this book because I was convinced it was going to be super great and I ended up getting rid of it. Will not be recommending or reading another one from this author.

Elizabeth Hand’s A Haunting on the Hill is a fantastic reimagining of Shirley Jackson’s classic. Hand brings new life to Hill House, making it as creepy and compelling as ever.

The atmosphere is tense and spooky, with Hill House feeling like a living, breathing character. Hand’s descriptions make you feel every eerie creak and shadow.

The characters are well-developed and relatable, each with their own fears and struggles that blend seamlessly with the supernatural elements

A Haunting on the Hill adds on to the story created by Shirley Jackson, but it's so hard to get past the characters. They are unlikeable, self-focused.

A Haunting on the Hill is a great way of continuing on the Haunting of Hill House story. It is not the best it could ever be (I think Mike Flanagan made that happen and it won't be topped) however it is a really fun read that captures the essence of Hill House and the horrors that await those who dare to go inside. It is eerie and fun!

I DNF this one. I think you need to be in the right mindset for this one and I just was not. It jumps back every chapter to the past but doesn’t do it I. A fluid way and is a little choppy. Then when you get back to the present you’ve kind of forgotten what’s going on and I just didn’t feel up for it.

I'll admit - I've never read The Haunting of Hill House. It's a classic, so I probably should at some point. In a way, I wish I had read it before diving into A Haunting on the Hill to provide myself with a bit more background, however, I don't think it's necessary either. I like the premise that this group of creatives rents the notorious Hill House to work on their play, Witching Night. While there, strange things begin to occur.

There were certainly some aspects that felt creepy, but I won't lie, I never felt that anxious/scared feeling that I like with an intense horror novel. I was hoping this would be one of those books you don't want to read at night because it would give you nightmares, but I did not get that. The story was good and moved along, but I wanted more clarity at the end of about why this house did the things it does. Maybe that's where reading The Haunting of Hill House would have come in handy.

Either way, I liked the book and thought it was very well written with in-depth characters.

Thank you, Mulholland Books, and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5/5 stars

This was a really fun read! I am a fan of Hill House, so it was cool to read a modern retelling of sorts. It was sufficiently spooky and dreadful, as one hopes when reading a haunted house story. It did lag a little bit in the middle, and some of the playwright tropes/theater references went a bit over my head, but overall I was hooked from the beginning. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4!

The cover of this is one of my favorites of all time, the book? Not so much.

I honestly got into a huge book slump after reading this. It wasn't scary at all and it felt like it was 800 pages too long.

This was disappointing.

Don't open the door...hare else

Hand brilliantly executes this homage to Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House. With a cast of some what vaguely familiar characters renting out Hill House to prepare for an upcoming live reading of a play they all desperately need to see succeed. All hesitant to stay in the eerie house at first but before they know it the house has staked it's claim and it won't let go until it gets what it wants.

"There's defenitly something strange about Hill House, It's not what I thought it would be like. It knows we're here."

It's weird, it's eerie, it's chilling it's thrilling.

Scary? Eh not so much.

Don't get me wrong, your given the occasional jump scares here and there but the creepiness really shines through with the beautifully creepy atmospheric gothic descriptives Hand wrote on these pages. Which in turn immediately transports you to this haunted mansion in the middle of nowhere.

It felt cozy, yet unsettling all at the same time. And I loved every minute of it.

Thank you to Elizabeth Hand, @mulhollandbooks and @netgalley for the free advanced copy. I had the best time being back at Hill House.

So this book was interesting.....
I dont have much to say bc i have sooo many mixed feelings.
It had some weird moments, so creepy parts but it also had its dumb and annoying areas also.
I thought i was really gonna like this book and I wanted to but it was kinda a hard read for me.
Some parts bragged on and were slow for me and it made it hard for me to want to cont to read it. :(
The characters were really hard for me to like also. We have Holly (who had my name is it made me upset bc of how selfish she was in a lot of parts) and her girlfriend Nissa. Their relationship was odd and i was not fond of it either; just wait til you hear about it and some of the things Nissa says or does?!?!?!!? Their "friend", the other "older" actress and the other background characters, they all played such big roles in this book and it was a lot.
So there was dread and the house was creepy it had the spook fact, and honestly i was rooting for the house most of the time. Please don't come after me peeps. :)
The play was crazy and it had a lot of potential but it also felt like it was ripped off in some areas and idk.
This was just a hard book for me.....

Hopefully most of you are not like me and you all actually enjoy this book and it was better for you.
I feel bad bc i was given the opportunity to read this book (ARC) from the publisher and NetGalley. The above is my own review it is honest and voluntary.

What made Jackson’s original tale a masterpiece was the extent to which she conjured a truly convincing and haunting reality without crowding her canvas with the clichéd impedimenta of other ghost stories. Hand fails, therefore, to follow in her esteemed footsteps. So, a homage - and an undoubted page-turner - but not a work that rivals the stature of it’s inspiration.

Oof this was not a good successor to Shirley Jackson's classic. Derivative in all of the worst ways and I'm honestly disappointed it exists

A huge thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for gifting me a copy of this ARC!

I had the HIGHEST hopes for this book when I saw it was authorized to return to "Hill House." I'm a huge Shirley Jackson fan and think she is the queen of combining what I call "dread horror" with supernatural horror. I was a little disappointed overall with this book. It felt like maybe the easiest and most obvious way to return to Hill House, and it did not feel in line with what Jackson might have seen for the next chapter of this story. Overall, it was fine. Decent horror elements but A24 or Mike Flanagan won't be picking this one up anytime soon.

This book was okay. I found myself struggling to stay engaged and pushed through more than once when I contemplated DNFing. In the end, it was a so-so read for me.

Elizabeth Hand was granted the unenviable task of writing a spiritual sequel to Shirley Jackson’s legendary The Haunting of Hill House, and in my opinion she crushed it. A genuinely scary vision of Hill House, and one that somehow never feels burdened by the pressures of Jackson’s creation.

This was a bizarre take on the haunting of hill house. It was a convoluted twisty turny rendition of the story. While it was sufficiently eerie it was a little difficult to grab ahold of due to its disjointed storytelling. I liked it but wouldn’t read it again.

I had really high hopes for this book but it just felt flat to me. The setting was good, the premise was on point, and the characters were visible but also a little mysterious so it works with the book. I just can’t quite put my finger on what was missing for me. It’s a short read so I was able to get through it in a day.


Thank you publishers and @netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I absolutely loved this book. It was really well written and it was also surprising. Thank you for the arc. I really appreciate it.

A Haunting on a Hill is a chilling novel and I enjoyed my reading experience. While this book doesn't live up to The Haunting of Hill House (I'm not sure anything ever could), I found it to be rather creepy and foreboding. I recommend it to anyone looking for a spooky reading experience.