Actual rating 4.5.

I absolutely loved this book - I think it was my first from the author, but I can totally see why people are so obsessed! The writing is sumptuous, atmospheric and eerie, whilst the story itself is just that perfect level of gothic and creepy for me, whilst maintaining some great humour and romance 🫶 Loved all the characters and their weird and wonderful relationships, and basically couldn’t put it down! The perfect spooky season (or any season!) read 🎃

I feel like this book just wasn’t for me.
The writing flows semi well but I think the pacing isn’t the best and it kind of just jumps into unusual activity without it being explained and I just feel like it’s not for me.
Overall story is interesting and makes for a nice spooky season read but just not my vibe.
3.5⭐️

A Creeping Gothic thriller, Starling House is a well written book with interesting characters and easily imagined environment. While I enjoyed the premise of the plat, I found it hard to believe that Opal's Mother had lived a poverty life in the town all that time and revised to reachout to be rather for help for the sake of her Children. But the actual Supernatural elements were so well written that you forgot all that.

I also didn'tthink there was a need to keep using the word Ugly in relation to Arthur's looks. Overall, an entryable title that I would place in the young adult section.

I don’t even know what to say about this book. I wasn’t going to read. I knew it was coming out soon, but I hadn’t heard the description and I didn’t enjoy Once and Future Witches. Then I heard a booktuber talk about it, and since I’m easily influenced, I decided to get it on Netgalley.

Best decision of the month.

This book crawled under my skin and stayed there. I will be thinking about it for a long, long time. It was well-written and atmospheric, and I found myself rooting for the characters from the very beginning.

Our setting is a supposedly haunted house, and our protagonists are Opal, resident criminal just trying to survive, and Arthur, heir to said haunted house. I loved both of them from the very beginning, even if their motives and actions were questionable. The romance gave me so many feelings. At its core, it’s about two lonely people finally finding their home and it made me want to sob. It’s so beautiful and was so beautifully written, you can’t help but fall in love with them. And it’s not just Arthur and Opal, but their entire found family consisting of Opal’s brother, and their lesbian aunts (seriously goals).

This book is more of a fairytale crossed with some horror and mythology elements, but I absolutely adored it. You have to read it.

Audio Book

The narrator has a lovely voice 👌
Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Books/Macmillan Audio for an advance review copy of this book; here's my honest review from the heart.

I love the lyrical and atmospheric feel of this book. I feel myself as Opal and feel very intrigued by Starling House.
Situated on the outskirts of Eden, a little town, is a dilapidated estate known as Starling House. Although the town's citizens steer clear of it, Opal can't help but be drawn to the house and its reticent heir, who are both starting to feel a lot like home. But to save Starling House and themselves from what lies ahead, Opal and Arthur must cooperate to navigate the complex past of the property.
I was immediately drawn in by the contemporary writing style that contrasted with the gothic and unsettling elements of the plot, and I went through it in one sitting.

Everything about Arthur and Opal's slow-burning relationship was built, and I adore how they brought the gradual development of Arthur and Opal's connection. I loved how they revealed more and more of their vulnerabilities to one another as the narrative went on. Throughout the entire thing, Arthur's brooding kindness had me in stitches!


Perfect for the spooky season with its gothic and horror vibes. It got that excellent October feeling

THIS BOOK HAS ALL THE VIBES!!
Let me tell you I absolutely love Alix E. Harrow shr does all my favorite tropes:
- Portal Fantasy: TenThousand Doors of January
- Witches: Once and Future Witches
And now.... gothic haunted house with Starling House.
The writing style is beautiful and Natalie Naudus is one of my all time favorite audiobook narrators (Poppy War). The only thing I am struggling with and why I havent finished the book yet is the footnotes. I dont mind them but they really disrupt storytelling through audio. I didnt get the ebook from the publisher so I will wait for my finished copy to arrive but absolutely loved everything so far!!

I like the premise of this book. One of my favourite tropes is a sentient house.

I didn't get far into this audiobook. Not because I wasn't enjoying the narration or the actual story but rather because I think reading it would be better. I found that the footnotes took me out of the story and I had to quickly find my place in the story again. This applied more to the footnotes that involved historical background.

I would recommend listening to the audio and also reading at the same time.

** Ps. I had to add a star rating but this does not reflect my feelings about the book

I thought this book was about a haunted house, but it’s actually all much more magical, strange, unique, dreamlike and even a little melancholic! And after a while it will no longer look like a haunted house but a cosy home full of stories!
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This book has stories within stories, myths surrounded by rumour, magic, fairytales, monsters both human-shaped and otherwise. It has gorgeous family dynamics, It features a town with a history of skeletons in its closet and mysteries as well as present day tragedies… and so much more.
Starling House is romantic and sad and sweet and devastating and hopeful and melancholic. It’s all about the vibes, the feeling, the stories!
If you love this kind of stories as I do, you will love it!!
•
I also really liked the characters: the two MC Opal and Arthur are really well written and all the other characters are great too! They are all misunderstood, hated, strange, they do not fit into any standard that society and their town imposes and for this reason they are unique and tragically beautiful!
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If you are looking for a perfect read for this period, Starling House is for you! It’s a dark, gothic, and autumn story but it’s never too horror or too dark and I found this balance truly perfect!
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Thanks to netgalley panmacmillan Audio and alix e. harrow for providing me with this e-ARC!

In Eden, a dying little town in Kentucky, Opal struggles to keep herself and her younger brother afloat. Living permanently in a cheap motel room and working dead-end jobs, she lost all hope for a better life. Her only goal is to send her brother to a good college and get him out of Eden forever. So when she receives an unexpected job offer from the reclusive Arthur Starling, the last heir of the presumably haunted Starling House, she accepts it without delay. She has always been fascinated by The Underland, a rather grim tale written by E. Starling, and the mysterious house. Soon, she discovers more about Eden’s dark history and the role of Starling House and its guardians...

I recently listened to the audiobook of this novel and absolutely loved it. It is a gothic tale where past and present intertwine. I enjoyed the fact that despite the haunted house theme, the author did not rely on the standard scary scenes. The narrative instead builds a mysterious and gothic atmosphere, where you are not sure anymore if there is anything supernatural about the house or not. Especially considering the small town setting, with a cast of gossipy and prejudiced locals. The characters in this novel are delightfully imperfect and hard to like, which I found refreshing. Opal’s rough life left a mark on her, and Arthur’s loneliness made him secretive and untrusting. The relationship that developed between them felt natural, even though it wasn’t incredibly romantic or ideal.

To summarise, this is a gothic, haunted house tale that focuses on the characters rather than giving the reader a heart attack. Perfect for the spooky season.

oh i lovvvved this one

just the right mix of spooky & gothic, alix e. harrow's writing is so good at building tension and atmosphere. she really nails the 'creepy unknown' feel of a haunted or abandoned house, not knowing what could be around any given corner and feeling like the house itself is alive. this one also really hits on that small town, southern gossip kinda story that just adds to the cloying feel.

i really enjoyed the inclusion of footnotes and stories told within the story as a way to add additional context and detail without being too overwhelming for the main plot. i was hooked on opal and arthur's relationship from the first time they met, and loved watching it develop over the book. opal was a great main character to follow, headstrong and stubborn but haunted by grief; arthur provides her counterpoint, a tortured heir to a haunted estate. the two of them work together to overcome not only the history of starling house, but also their respective grief and sorrow. the writing is very detailed, with drawn out descriptions and intricately plotted scenes which to some may feel overbearing. but i loved it.

i ALSO wanted to shout out the narrator, natalie naudus, who did a really great job at recognising the tension and what the atmosphere of the book called for. also very clever how her tone changed to make the footnote parts more obvious!

i absolutely loved this from beginning to end, the vibes were immaculate!
the writing is so beautiful and atmospheric that it’s the perfect spooky read! the story is full of secrets, intrigue, and mystery that you can’t help but read on!! and the narration was done really well that made the book that much more atmospheric!

it’s a character driven gothic tale and the main characters are so well written and i absolutely loved them, and most importantly you’ve got a SENTIENT house!!
the dynamic between opal and arthur is so wonderful and i loved seeing it grow and them two coming together.
i cannot recommend this book enough, go read it NOW

the narrator did a fantastic of in bringing this book to life, the gothic and creepy elements really shined through and I felt that. however, the characters were 1 dimensional to me. the plot relied heavily on miscommunication which is a trop i hate. I think it wanted to do a number of things and missed at all of them.
There is nothing unique about this book, the main character is broke, trying to get her brother to college out of own and works stupid hours to save for that to the point she wouldn't; even buy herself a coat - the irony is that there was no reason for her to be a martyr about it. I did not like Opal at all. And I did not feel any of the romance in this book. I only giving this 2 stars because of the narrator.

Starling House is engaging and atmospheric.
Small town secrets are slowly exposed with a satisfying conclusion. The book is character driven focusing on their lives and emotions. We have a plucky and unlucky FMC, alongside a prickly mysterious MMC. The romance is a slow burn, it’s a beauty and the beast retelling after all. There’s also a sibling relationship that I feel was done well.
The audio really is able to set the mood of the book and I loved it and would recommend. Although the book is a must have as it has the most gorgeous illustrations throughout.
This is perfect autumn read. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio Uk for an Audio-ARC. This is a voluntary review of my own thoughts.

I really enjoyed this fabulous reimagining of beauty and the beast. It really is the perfect dark Gothic fairytale for autumn and became my escape at a time when the world turned dark.

Alix .e.harrow is a very talented writer - the story is compelling and writing clever and engaging! Highly recommend for the spooky season 👌🏽

* Also, the audiobook narration was brilliant!

4.7 stars

Well where do i start with this book. It was a great book to listen and follow with the book. The starling house is about a house that has had many owners since being built. Magic happens here and where monster from nightmares exist. A slow burn romance.

The narrator on the book in my opinion helps gets the sense of feeling across with how they are reading it.

I was gripped to this audible and was listening at every given chance. I want to know what was going to happen. How things turned out and how this house became to be.

I would hightly recommend anybody to read/listen to this magical book.

I do think Alix E. Harrow is a great atmospheric writer. They're very descriptive, but with that, the story loses it's momentum at times. The romance subplot was what had me reading on.

I'm rating Starling House 3.5 stars. The plot was slow and only picked up about 70% in. I got lost at points, and wasn't sure what was happening.

But I did really like the characters and their personal journeys.

<I>‘The only monsters here are the ones we make’ </I>

A haunted house, it’s mysterious anti-social owner, a prickly FMC with realistic baggage, spooky stories and persistent dreams- this was honestly THE perfect October read!

Opal has been dreaming about Starling House since she was a child, and although she knows she shouldn’t, when she gets the offer to work within the house she can’t resist.
Opal and Arthur were both fantastic characters to follow, and I found this a fantastic gothic tale about money, power, small town secrets and finding you way and a home in a world that doesn’t seem to want you.

I am in love with Alix E. Harrow’s writing style! The narrator for this audio book was phenomenal and I honestly didn’t want to stop listening.

***thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this audio in exchange for an honest review***

A review of Starling House by Alix E Harrow
5⭐️

Firstly, thank you to Tor books and NetGalley for this beautiful arc.

Synopsis: Nobody in Eden remembers when Starling House was built. But the town agrees it's best to let this ill-omened mansion - and its last lonely heir - go to hell. Stories of the house's bad luck, like good china, have been passed down the generations.

Opal knows better than to mess with haunted houses, or brooding men. But when an opportunity to work there arises, the money might get her brother out of Eden. Starling House is uncanny and full of secrets - just like Arthur, its heir. It also feels strangely, dangerously, like something she's never had: a home. Yet Opal isn't the only one interested in the horrors and the wonders that lie buried beneath it.
(from Waterstones.com)

My thoughts:
I really enjoyed this book from beginning to end. It is marketed in some places as a gothic horror, but if you are looking for a horror, this is not the one for you. I would suggest that Starling house is more of a Gothic fantasy romance. It has multiple tropes that I enjoyed. For example, found family, a slow burn romance, and a creepy haunted house. If you enjoyed any of the following: Gallant by V E Schwab, Beauty and the Beast, Howl’s Moving Castle or Disney’s Haunted Mansion, then you will enjoy this book because those are the vibes that it gives off. It also Liam is really heavily into the Alice in Wonderland troop of falling into something wild and spooky from your small town that’s full of not particularly nice and quite judgemental inhabitants.
I think every single character in this book was really well rounded it was a really character driven story. From Opal’s little brother with this aspirations of going to college, who creates really artistic videos in his spare time, and to Arthur starling, and his broodiness. Although, he is quite a stereotypical, morally grey moody main character who won’t let anyone in, except the feisty girl, who is his opposite. He made me think a lot about Captain Hook from once upon a time, those were the vibes he gave me.

This book is released in the UK on the 31st of October and I would highly recommend it to. It is the perfect spooky read for spending Halloween night curled up in a blanket with candles and a hot chocolate.

Absolutely stunning! Beautifully atmospheric, I loved the modern gothic vibes from this one, as well as the loose beauty and the beast retelling. I really liked how this book kept me on edge and I could never guess what was going to happen next. The main characters were all really likeable and relatable too, I loved that Arthur was not your typical handsome romantic interest.

I’m really glad I listened to this an audiobook as I felt the narrator really captured the mood well and kept me wanting to listen further.

This has been one of my most anticipated books, and I saved it for October end.
Here's all it made me feel:

🫠 The magical setting with cursed under hell melts my witchy soul
☺️ The sibling vibes are just perfect (the fights, the care, everything about them)
❤️‍🔥 The romance later on pulls together really great, but the start of it with a single steamy glance is a bit iffy
😑The house concept reminds me of "A Treason of Thorns by Laura E. Weymouth" and I don't know how I feel about this similarity
🙃 Spooky check approved for magical house and warden, secret passages, hauntings from the past, scary dreams and generations of curses.
🤔 I wish it had more of a buildup in romance, details about the young brother's role.
🥰 Totally satisfied with the end

Thank you @netgalley @alix.e.harrow @macmillan.audio for the ARC.

Genre: #gothic #fantasy #romance
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️