This book came in hot with comparisons to Yellowjackets and The Virgin Suicides, the kind of "for fans of" that feels almost TOO targeted to me specifically. Unfortunately this is one of those dangerous "for fans of Gone Girl" tactics that can raise expectations higher than is reasonable.

Here we have another entry in the canon of books I've been reading lately with a main character who is queer, traumatized, still down bad for a high school girlfriend (TWO decades later this time), from the lousiest small town ever, and...drifting through life without much going on. (Man, us millennial queers still have some issues from growing up in the nineties, huh?) This book had an unusual premise that resulted in some enjoyably atmospheric scenes, but suffered from a world that just felt too small. I get that the MC cares about very little, but it was annoying that the nature of the research taking place wasn't really delved into, and it was straight up galling the way she kept referring to "the researchers" as this sort of blurred mass of people none of whom (other than Jack) got even the basic dignity of a name. Like girl, even if you don't find it interesting, I do! What the heck!

There was rich potential in this concept, but it's hard to really delve into it with a main character who feels so whatever about pretty much everything. Everyone should have just left the town alone and gotten therapy.

My thanks to Saga Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

The Haunting of Velkwood by Gwendolyn Kiste is an interesting take on the classic ghost story except this time the ghosts may or may not be dead. twenty years ago, the events of one tragic night changed the lives of three girls forever and left a neighborhood adrift and in limbo, not quite living, yet not quite dead. how would one deal with the consequences of one reckless night and how could you face your demons again? for the last twenty years, Talitha has been living her life in limbo, unable to move forward and weighed down by regret. when a paranormal researcher offers her easy money, she decides to revisit her past.
i really enjoyed this one. the story moved quickly and never lagged or took itself too seriously. the atmosphere was suitably creepy and the characters were well written.
to sum up:
highly recommended
4 1/2 stars out of 5

What happens if you aren't seen for who you really are? Could it make you disappear? Could it make a whole neighborhood disappear?The Haunting of Velkwood is one of the most unique horror books I've ever read. The focus on female friendships is great for fans of My Best Friends' Exorcism and Yellowjackets but the horror is existential in a way that is hard to describe. I finished this novel several weeks ago and it has stayed with me quite vividly. Will be recommending to many people!

The Haunting of Velkwood is a fun, heart wrenching horror that focuses on the way trauma and family haunts us for the rest of our lives.
It's so compelling and almost impossible to put down-- I finished it in an afternoon!-- and it was so, so good. The mystery of the ghost neighborhood-- what happened and why it happened-- was unique and was such a good metaphor for the way our childhood traumas haunt us for the rest of our lives.
I also liked the ending! I was so happy with Talitha's choice, it was bittersweet but showed great personal growth.
I recommend!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.25/5

This was a really emotional and haunting story. I don't remember the last time I almost cried reading a book before this.

The haunting/ghosts in this book manifest in a fairly unique way. Although they are sort of a metaphor for the traumas/past clinging on, they still have sort of a magical quality to them.

If you're familiar with this type of story, some of the plot points can come off as a bit predictable, but the story still managed to pack a fair amount of surprises. Despite the predictability at times, the plot was still handled deftly and was steeped with emotion.

At the core of the story, lay the themes of the traumas of girlhood, how society fails to protect them, and how that lingers on at the edges of women's lives. The heart of the story is also a heartbreaking love story which I think will stay with me for a while. As a big fan of Yellowjackets, who was fairly disappointed with season 2, this story executes the themes in the way I wish Yellowjackets would have.

The book has a fairly small cast, but the characters are memorable and well-written. Brett deserves the world and her relationship with Tabitha was a highlight. I also really liked Enid and Sophie. I did wish Grace was expanded on a fair bit more and I didn't think Jack needed as much focus as he got, but I appreciated them as well.

Overall, The Haunting of Velkwood is heart heart-wrenching piece of horror and paranormal fiction. If you're a fan of Yellowjackets, emotional horror, or haunting queer love stories, I'd highly recommend picking this up.

What a great book! Women coming together to face a traumatic event from their past.

I just reviewed The Haunting of Velkwood by Gwendolyn Kiste. #HauntingOfVelkwood #NetGalley

From the moment the book opens with Talitha Velkwood meeting the man who would eventually take her home to the ghosts of her past, you will get sucked into a ghost story unlike any other.

20ish years ago, the Velkwood Vicinity came to be the mystery that it is today. A whole street of houses gone behind a mysterious veil that would push you away if you tried to get too close. After years of refusing to go back, Talitha Velkwood goes back to the street named after her family to face the ghosts who have been there all along. A picture of her house within this haunted street convinced her to go when she saw her baby sister in the window. But where the people still there? Was this a place stuck in time or were they all truly dead but not gone?

This book is hands down the best Ghost story I have read in years. The character development is top notch and being around the same age of the characters makes it that much more relatable when the discussions of social climates of the past are discussed. Definitely a must read for the year

Classifying this as a ghost story is a misnomer. It’s more about the past haunting three childhood friends. It’s a slow repetitive read that never fully grabbed my attention or forced me to care.

Great idea, but Kiste runs out of gas. The second act is VERY slow, and the third act wasn't enough to make up for it.

First of all, a huge thank you to @SagaPressBooks and @GwendolynKiste for the opportunity to read this ARC!!!

Talitha Velkwood survived when her home and the other homes on her street vanished 20 years ago. Her best friends survived too, for better or worse. But now Talitha has to go back to where it all happened and unravel the secrets that caused the event, and she can’t do it alone.

This was so much fun, think Yellowjackets, and Annihilation. This one really kept me invested, not only are you rooting for the characters (all of them), but the story was so original and interesting as well. This was a page turner from start to finish!

This is in your wheelhouse if you like: character driven, LGBTQIA+ friendly, ghost stories, haunted houses

‼️Trigger warning: assault

There’s some things from our pasts that we can never outrun. This was a chilling tale of what happens when an entire neighborhood turns into ghosts.

The Velkwood Vicinity is a local phenomenon. A whole block of houses disappeared behind a veil that only three survivors can enter, and only one of them has in the past twenty years, until now.

Talitha Velkwood has avoided anything to do with the tragedy that took her mother and eight-year-old sister. She’s never settled on anything and has just felt by her past. When a new researcher reaches out to her to go back in exchange for money, she agrees. After twenty years, will she finally get the answers she so desperately seeks?

This was such a fun paranormal book! I am loving ghost stories right now and this one delivered. I felt that this was the ultimate ghost story, and unlike others that I have read. I also love gothic and suspense stories, so this book delivered for me on many fronts. While this does have some romance elements interwoven throughout the book, romance is not the focus of the book. And while it is horror, it does not have gore at all, just rather unsettling elements. It was a fun genre mash-up that I really enjoyed reading. I found myself genuinely creeped out at a few points. I enjoyed the writing in this book. It was so unsettling, and the characters were well developed and thought out. I felt the characters all worked well together as well and were very cohesive. This one read more of a character focused novel versus plot focused, despite having a compelling plot as well.

If you are looking for a unique take on a ghost story, then check this one out.

I don't know if I would classify this as horror. In fact, I feel like that might even do the story a disservice because people will pick it up expecting that. This is a story about the ghosts of the past. It's a story of first love and intense friendship. I feel that the haunted neighborhood is definitely a pretty big allusion to escaping the trauma of a rough upbringing, about having to hide who you are, about feeling like even when you escape you're never truly free. I liked this story for what it was, but I do hope they adjust how they market this because this story was stunning, but I'm worried people are going to go into this expecting horror.
There was so much in this story it's hard to give a really concise review, but I will say that I did like this a lot, though I didn't care much for the "save the sister" plotline. I almost wished Grace had gotten stuck in there, and the other two begrudgingly teamed up to save the one other person who knew their secret/they had loyalty to. Having Sophie be constantly at the forefront of the MCs thoughts was just a bit boring, and repetitive. I found myself really skimming the moments with the little sister, because I wanted to get back to the meat of the story.
Also, I don't know if Enid had to be magical/have some sort of magic ability. She could have just been tied to the area because she was *literally murdered* in the neighborhood, she didn't really need to have unexplained abilities. Maybe she could have just shown up as a ghost when they were doing the stepdad in and been like "I gotchu". I feel like her being magical was a little cool but ultimately just felt too unnecessary? I don't know.
I also feel like when Brett showed up to the research site, the pacing went a little left. I wish that we had gotten to getting Grace quicker because I was starting to get a bit antsy.
Overall, I did like this a lot, though. I flew through this in 2 reading sessions and while I didn't love the main character/her motivations (I actually did really like Grace and Brett, though), the premise of the story was so compelling that I just couldn't put it down. I will say that if you're going into this expecting horror you're probably not going to love this--luckily, early on in the story I had a suspicion of the direction the story was going in and quickly adjusted my expectations.

This book was full of paranormal psychological suspense! I was expecting a little more horror but it was a fun, spooky book. Talitha's story is revealed slowly (maybe a little too slowly) but it was engaging enough and eventually we get all of the details. Are the ghost dead??? Maybe not!

The events of a single day changed everything for the residents of Velkwood Street. Three girls escaped, while the rest disappeared along with the street itself leaving only a glimpse, an echo.. Talitha’s mother and little sister are among those who disappeared, believed to be ghosts. Twenty years later, Talitha is offered the chance to return to the area with a research team for an investigation into what happened and, more importantly, to see if anyone is still really there.

The genre-defying narrative goes back and forth between the present and what happened on that day the street disappeared. This is a fascinating, beautifully-written book covering grief, regret, and escaping your past. There is also a heart-wrenching love story at the center of it all. This is going to be one of the most talked about new releases of the year.

Thank you for the opportunity to read in advance!

I love all things paranormal and have read my fair share of tales and stories alike. The problem you run into in most books is the lack of 'reality'. Readers want the ghosts and the scares, but we also need to feel connected to the characters and the reality they're living in. Most of the time the reality gets put aside for the characters, but this book really managed to merge the two nicely. Ms Kiste has created a world where reality and the paranormal live side by side, but the mystery surrounding them still separate the two, until it doesn't. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more from her!

I could NOT stop reading The Haunting of Velkwood! I finished it in two days and was sad when it was over. The story was not super scary, but something just kept drawing me back in, I had to know what was happening. Definitely a must read, and would love to read more by this author.

🌟🌟🌟🌟 read... and factors

🔍 Mystery and Intrigue: Imagine stepping into a town shrouded in mystery, where every corner seems to whisper secrets of the past. It isn't just a story; it's a puzzle waiting to be solved. As you join Talitha on her journey, you can't help but feel like a detective, piecing together the clues of what really happened that fateful night.

👻 Ghostly Vibes: Are you ready for some chills? Kiste masterfully blends the supernatural with the suburban, turning an ordinary town into a backdrop for the extraordinary. The eerie atmosphere is so palpable, it's as if you can feel the ghostly whispers tickling the back of your neck!

👥 Character Connection: Talitha Velkwood is not just a character; she's someone you feel you might know. As you delve deeper into her story, her struggles become yours. You'll find yourself rooting for her, sharing in her triumphs and setbacks as if they were your own.

🎨 Vivid Storytelling: Kiste's writing paints a picture so vivid, you're transported right into Velkwood. The descriptive prose isn't just a reading experience; it's a sensory journey. You can almost smell the forgotten memories and see the shadows lurking in the corners.

🤔 Thought-Provoking Themes: This book isn't just about ghosts and mysteries. It's a deep dive into themes like trauma, resilience, and the quest for truth. It's a book that stays with you, prompting late-night thoughts and deep discussions.

📚 Book Club Gold: Looking for your next book club pick? "The Velkwood Vicinity" is a treasure trove of discussion topics. From analyzing character motivations to debating the supernatural elements, there's enough material here to fuel conversations for weeks.

🎭 Emotional Rollercoaster: Buckle up! This book takes you on an emotional journey. You'll experience the highs and lows right alongside the characters, and there might just be a few moments that tug at your heartstrings.

"The Haunting of Velkwood " is not just a book; it's an experience. Whether you're a fan of supernatural mysteries, character-driven dramas, or just a well-told story, this book is a journey you won't want to miss. Four stars for a hauntingly beautiful tale that lingers long after the last page is turned! 🌌📖💫

From Bram Stoker Award­–winning author Gwendolyn Kiste comes a chilling novel about three childhood friends who miraculously survive the night everyone in their suburban neighborhood turned into ghosts—perfect for fans of Yellowjackets.

I absolutely loved this book! It was so atmospheric and chilling. I'm a huge fan of Yellowjackets and it definitely had those vibes. Gwendolyn Kiste continues to be an amazing writer and I can't wait to see what she does next!

The Haunting Of Velkwood stayed with me days after I finished. Gwendolyn Kirst has crafted a macabre piece of real estate that exists in the Upside Down with Death as a realtor.
Twenty years ago, eight homes on Velkwood Street became trapped in time and space. Only three college roommates and a friend know what really happened.
Each girl has refused to go back. But when a group of scientists show Talitha Velkwood some surveillance photos, one anomaly tells her she must return.
Explore a neighborhood that borders on memory and insanity, where time has stopped yet continues to gnaw away at the living. Kirst has created a haunted street replete with memories, murder and unrequited love.
Come stay a while on Velkwood Street. Its inhabitants will stick with you long after you leave.