First off, thank you NetGalley for the ARC of Natasha Preston’s newest release. I have been a huge fan of Natasha Preston since I randomly picked up The Cellar about 10 years ago. She is an auto buy author for me.

With that said, I was a little disappointed with their previous release The Island. However, The Haunting was exactly the Natasha Preston book I needed.

The Haunting is set around Halloween, and hello, my favorite holiday ever. It was exactly the thrill I needed. Natasha did such an amazing job describing the events taking place in this novel. The activities they took part it (haunted house, haunted maze) I truly felt like I was there experiencing those for myself. The writing was *chefs kiss*.
The whole time I was trying to guess the plot twist, but I was dead wrong. I didn’t see that coming. My only complaint was the major cliffhanger the book ended on…….. I wanted so much more I had to turn my kindle to the side and shake it because I couldn’t believe it was over. I can’t wait to see what she gives us next.

Natasha Preston is one of my favorite authors, but this one fell short just a bit. I think the cover is misleading, as I was expecting more of a Halloween/ Supernatural story. That said, I did enjoy the story itself, but it left me hanging at the end. Not the best, but certainly not the worst. It just missed the mark for me. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the much appreciated ARC.

I really *wanted* to love this one a whole lot more than I did, but if you love horror movies then this book might be right up your alley.

It reads like a slasher movie, complete with a small town, old grudges, some secrets, and a psychopath on the loose murdering folks.

Last year Penny's town was rocked by a series of murders, culminating with the arrest of her boyfriend's dad. It cracked her world, leaving her unable to talk to her favorite person, and wondering how she could have misjudged his father so badly.

Now Halloween has returned, and with it, new murders. They aren't quite the same as last year, but the reappearance of the same mask has Penny looking for answers, and questioning everyone around her.

The characters were mostly solid, although Adi in particular felt a bit caricature-esque at times, and the pacing was well done. In fact, I was super into everything going on until the climax. Between the way things happened & a lack of *any* follow-up, or denouement dropped it from a solid 4 stars down to 3.

I’m not one to read young adult but I love Natasha Preston writing style and I can’t seem to get enough of her books!
The novel opens up with filling Penny and the small town she lives one year after her now ex-boyfriend's father went on a mass killing spree the week before Halloween killing students from her high school. Now the entire town has turned against her boyfriend, Nash, and his sister, Grace even though they had no idea what their father was up to. Soon everything takes a turn for the worst and their living deja vu, it’s Halloween and the killings start happening again. The town is in a panic, students are being found dead, and the town wonders are his own children following in his evil footsteps?

I really enjoyed The Haunting By Natasha Preston! A perfect Halloween read. I was hooked right from the start and I couldn't guess the killer. Young Adult scary story,

Exactly what I expected from Natasha Preston. Mysterious and thrilling, and just a fun, fast read. I highly recommend this.

I love Natasha Preston. After reading the island I knew I had to read this. This story follows penny whose ex (Nash’s ) father went on a murder spree the year prior. All is well until the killings start again. This story reminded me of the Scooby doo gang, I loved the friendships between penny, adi, omar, zayn and Nash. I thought I had the killer figured out and I was so wrong, the last 20 pages are wild. Overall I liked the book but wasn’t crazy about the ending.

5 out 5 stars. I absolutely loved this book. Although I was definitely expecting it to be paranormal with the title being the hauntings. I was not disappointed in the storyline. This story is about a small town where brutal murders on high school students happened for a week leading up to Halloween the year before. They thought they were pasted it once the killer was arrested but the next year it started again. Is it a copycat or is the killer out of prison and doing it again.

Jackson Whitmore was two people — one was a dad and the other was a killer. He has two children Nash and his younger sister Grace. Penny was good friends with Nash but the community and her parents tell her not to have anything to do with Nash. Penny though misses Nash and wants to talk to him. She gets a chance to speak with him but finds it difficult to know what to say. Nash and Grace are considered to be guilty by being the killer’s kids. Penny and her friend go to the costume store to get costumes for Halloween. As she going through the costumes, Penny’s foot hits something solid. She looks down and sees an arm and blood on the white shirt. Penny screams. It appears that maybe it’s the beginning of another string of murders. Why? It’s exactly one year anniversary of the murders. It doesn’t seem to matter that Jackson Whitmore is in prison. Who kill the person that was lying on the floor? What will happen to Nash and Grace?

The author has written a novel with suspenseful chases and mysterious sightings. The author has Penny make very good choices and some seem “silly” but it kept me reading. I enjoyed reading the novel. I had fun trying to figure out who the killer was.

Okay, let's just say I did not guess who the killer was. That was a fantastic thriller by one of my favorite authors. I've loved all of Natasha's thrillers, and this one lived up to the hype of her other books. It's a perfect spooky time read. It definitely had some slasher vibes, and would recommend it if you loved the new movie Totally Killer on Amazon Prime.

A year ago, Jackson, Penny's ex-boyfriend's father, goes to jail after the gruesome Halloween murders of 4 teenagers. Exactly 1 year later the murders start happening again in a similar fashion, on the same days. Is it a copycat killer? Most of the town is saying no but the teenagers know better. Penny has no choice but to try to find out as she keeps getting pulled closer and closer to the murders. From finding the first two bodies to being a target herself, she is determined to find the person and end it while trying to save herself and her friends.

This was the perfect book to start days before Halloween. I couldn't put it down and as soon as I thought I figured out who the killer was something else happened that made me completely question if I was right or not. Turns out I was not! I didn't see the twist at the end coming at all.

Thank you Net Galley for the e-ARC!

The Haunting by Natasha Preston will appeal to fans of young adult horror and thrillers. In this novel, the main character, Penny, is trying to get over her ex after she's forbidden from seeing or talking to him. The reason why is because he was arrested for a series of murder that took place during the Halloween season the previous year. When a similar murder takes place, Penny and her friends are left trying to figure out who is responsible...is it her ex, a copycat, or something else?

The Haunting is the perfect spooky season read! I love that it's set at Halloween time and the descriptions of the decorations, activities, costumes, and more provide the perfect atmosphere for this creepy murder mystery. My high school students are avid readers of "murder mystery" and thriller books and I have a few in particular that are HUGE Natasha Preston fans. I know that those readers will fly through this book...between the atmosphere, the pacing, and the drama it's the perfect read for a high school audience.

What better way to celebrate the anniversary of a serial killer’s hunting spree than by finding a dead body? Penny doesn’t want to believe the murders could be happening again—after all, it was her ex-boyfriend’s father behind them all. And he was put behind bars where he belongs. How could it be him? But the evidence of a copycat keeps piling up and pointing in the direction of none other than the son of the killer, Nash—Penny’s ex. So much so that Penny can’t help but suspect him.

But it’s Nash. He wouldn’t do that to her. And he was with her when the bodies were found. It can’t be him—unless he has a partner, or just happened to learn how to cover his tracks by a mastermind. Maybe even the man who raised him..
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I hate to say this was a total letdown for me. It started off really strong with a town still haunted by a serial massacre that occurred the previous Halloween that wanted to move on but also wanted to keep the kids of the killer ostracized. Then Penny finds a few of the victim’s bodies and decides to immerse herself into a hunt for the truth. Was all good until it became predictable.

The killer wasn’t too hard of a guess. I wasn’t too sold on their “reveal” and I feel like it was written halfheartedly. and then the ending was like an abrupt cut off—not a cliffhanger, but like there should’ve been a chapter or two left and wasn’t. I was pretty upset when i turned the page and saw “acknowledgements” instead of an epilogue at least. Really, really disappointing. I don’t know if I can recommend.

I really enjoyed The Haunting. A perfect Halloween read. I was very hooked right from the start. I think this is a perfect example of Young adult scary story, I was.a little disappointed in the end because i had some questions and they didn’t get answered. I’d like a sequel .

Overall, I enjoyed the book and have to remind myself that I can't hold it to the same standard as an adult horror novel. I despised the ending but the writing was good and I enjoyed the storyline. Preston referenced Scream a few times and that is the vibe I got from this book..."The call is coming from inside the house!" I would definitely recommend this book to YA readers but I wouldn't recommend it to adults..


Penny's trying to forget about her ex, Nash. His father was arrested for the brutal murder of four teenagers on Devil's Night last year. Penny's parents have forbidden her to have anything to do with Nash or his family. It's hard not to think of what happened as spooky season gets underway--but she's trying.

That stops when she goes to the Halloween store with her friends to find a costume. What she finds instead is ripped from a horror movie: a girl from school bleeding out on the floor of a dressing room. Stabbed.

Is a copycat killer on the loose? The adults are saying no. But Penny knows better.

Natasha Preston has done it again! Preston is the queen of YA thrillers and never fails to deliver a pulse-pounding story. Seeing our main character grapple with the murders that start popping up again in her town, a year after a previous murder spree, was a great time.

I’m not much of a scary book person but I read the synopsis and thought, why not?! It started out only slightly creepy but man! I found myself looking over my shoulder and jumping at any sounds while reading! The book was decently developed and had me wondering what was going to happen next. The ending though! I felt like it was a race and then it just ENDS! What?!

First off I LOVE her thriller books! she never disappoints when it comes to drawing you in till the very end. I was actually unable to guess who was behind all the evil in this book. The one and only thing i hate is the ending BUT that wont stop me from getting any of her new thrillers to come out. 10/10 you should read this book and her other thrillers. You will not be disappointed!

All around it was a very interesting story.

There is some stuff that was very repetitive but that is the way teenage girls think so that rang true in a sense.

I got a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley for my honest review. I’ve read almost every book from this author and have found myself ending the books wanting an actual ending. The author just stops the story without a full conclusion. The storyline was very interesting and draws the reader in. Just don’t go in expecting everything to be wrapped up in the end.