Okay, right off the bat, paranormal/thriller isn't my normal genre. I dont really like being scared while reading a book especially where I live, and usually the only author I read in this category is Amanda McKinney and that's because she's awesome. So when I read the description of this book it sounded interesting, and not too terribly terrifying, lol, yikes! This is also a new author for me, and I like to venture out once in a while to try new reads, I'm so glad I did with this one.

I started off with this story not too sure because I don't particularly care for racism laced stories, and it seemed like the beginning of this book like was going in that direction, but I'm so glad I pushed past the first couple of chapters to find to the characters, Neil and Pen, who are struggling authors trying to get past writer's block, both holding grudges towards each other for their own reasons that cause them to back away from the publishing scene. They are forced into a writer's retreat, unbeknownst to each of them, in a haunted castle in Scotland, and this is where the fun begins. Even though to me this book was pretty scary in places I honestly found this book really good. Loved the setting in Scotland, loved the old castle, loved the sad heartwarming love story between Georgina and Archie, and boy the chemistry between Pen and Neil was pretty off the charts once things got going. Daniela and Laszlo were a bit irritating, but there's always a couple in a book so that's a given. Will definitely look this author up for other reads in the future.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC copy of this book.

I received a free e-arc from the publisher & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

Two rival authors wind up at a writer's retreat in a haunted castle because their mutual friend is a people-pleaser who isn't comfortable with confrontation. Except they're really not just rivals - I mean, they ARE. They're pitted against each other by the publishing industry, and Penelope feels morally superior because she hasn't caved to the pressure like Neil has.
There was a scene that was just absolute nightmare fuel that I really regretted reading at night, home alone. So that definitely left an impression.

My issue is that I don't feel like Penelope really expressed her regret for her actions or showed growth from it. I think this could have worked a lot better if it was a slower burn, or with more background. As someone who has a temper, it's important to see how people apologize and work to do better in the future. I didn't see her do that work, it seemed like she'd hidden and wallowed for months before being invited to this retreat.

Overall, I think it takes the rivals/enemies to lovers dynamics too far which is usually a trope that I love. It was alright, the writing was good, I found the main character deeply flawed and unlikable in a way that just didn't vibe with me.

This was a hard one to like: the main character was kind of dumb, abusive, annoying, self righteous, and self absorbed. The male love interest was bland and milquetoast, just letting others push him around. So we have a screaming, nasty, insulting woman wailing on a guy just because his book sold more than hers. Why ever in the world would I want to root for that relationship?

Story: Native American writers have a hard time - so much so that horror novelist Pen is completely disgusted by fellow writer Neil Storm and his sellout bestseller (a book insulting to Native Americans). Pen loses it at a con in which they are both panelists, throws a book at Neil, and storms off, much to the disgust of the crowd. She blames him for ruining her career and for why her book didn't sell and she now has writers block. But fate has more in store for the star crossed couple when they find themselves shacking up in the same very haunted Scottish castle.

So unfortunately, the writing here was very off. Characters were flat or one sided and the first half of the book has no relation to the second (the first half is the feud and the second starts with the couple magically making up and dealing with a ghost). The sudden, "oh yeah, I guess I was kind of stupid." realization by Pen right in the middle is so abrupt as to cause whiplash and destroys any chance of an organic denouement by the end.

Honestly, I disliked every moment I had to spend reading this. It was banal, full of nearly every romance trope and cliché out there, with none of it coalescing into an original, fun, or engaging story. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

finished this one this morning, wish i could say i loved it :(

the FMC just didn’t do it for me she was very mean & very gaslight-y

like she absolutely loathed this man to the point she thru a book at him & it left a scar, to when they went on the writing trip she started feeling things for him??

the ghost plot line was also so random and just like ended the conclusion to that just felt like the author was like “well i have. 30 pages left let me wrap this up” honestly that’s how a lot of things felt it was like the author just couldn’t pick one thing to focus on so it felt like nothing really concluded in the end i still have questions

**I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**

First I was immediately drawn to this cover when I requested an ARC. It gave me fall/spooky season vibes without being terrified. When I dove into this book I never actually thought I would find this much enjoyment but I was laughing, smiling and giggling throughout this WHOLE book.

4 beautiful stars for this book, and is this a debut from this Author? if so, WELL DONE!

You are following Pen who is Native/Indigenous (which she refers to herself as only half) which does impact how she sees herself as "not enough." She wrote one book but has struggled to find her footing in the publishing industry and also struggles to write anything outside of that book. When at the beginning of the book she is at bookcon and Neil Storm (her rival in the native/indigenous writing world) is making a speech and she blows, telling him how he did their people wrong and how he "white-washed" his book to appeal to the white people. She even threw a book at him! Several months later she is on a writing retreat with 2 of her friends and Neil Storm shows up. All 4 of them are stuck in this castle in Scotland, and it is a haunted castle.

We are thrusted into rivals to lovers, rom-com laugh out loud moments, a mystery with the hauntings and so much more. I absolutely LOVED this book!

An alluring premise, this story drew me in with elements of paranormal, enemies to lovers romance, and a nod to horror, as well as an incorporation of indigenous representation that was nice to see. Unfortunately, the attempt to weave these elements came at the cost of quality in developing any to full fruition. The enemies to lovers trope was fun, but started with a bit too much intensity of hatred (assault?!) and underdeveloped background to feel complete. In addition, the characters were so unlikable on their own that it was hard for me to root for them. Overall, there were some enticing elements that need to be more fleshed for this novel to really land.

If I Stopped Haunting You definitely has an intriguing premise - an enemies to lovers romance between two horror writers, Penelope and Neil, whose last interaction involved Penelope throwing a book at Neil's head during a book conference panel - with enough force to leave a scar. But they both find themselves dragged on a writing retreat in a haunted castle - both in need of a fresh start on a new book. And of course the ghosts seem to take a liking to Penelope and she is all too curious to ignore them and find out more about their history in the castle. There is definitely tension between Neil and Penelope - and of course their hatred suddenly turns into longing and lust. Bringing in the discussion of indigenous authors in book publishing was interesting- but it was quickly abandoned as a major point and lost as the book became more of a light romance with elements of horror. Overall it was an entertaining read. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this novel.

There were some great things and some not-so-great things in this book. The premise was interesting, but the backstory felt incomplete - it’s implied to the reader that the two main characters have been enemies for years, but the main “incident” only happened four months prior. In addition, the characters felt immature for their age (30s), and the paranormal mystery was lackluster. The explicit scenes were well done, however.

This book wasn't for me, but I can see other people enjoying it. It was a great concept, but It just wasn't fleshed out properly in my opinion. I was soo excited for it but it fell flat.

This sounded like a really fun and promising premise for a story. Enemies to lovers, ghosts, castles… what’s not to love?! Well… I just had a really hard time connecting with the characters, the story fell flat for me, and I didn’t pick up any actual romantic chemistry. Unfortunately this was a miss in my book.

This was a tough review to write, because I wanted SO BADLY to love this book. The premise and setting were very interesting to me, as well as the conversations on native heritage. However, I think I was really hoping for something more tonally horror or gothic, when this stays tonally true to being a romance for most of the duration. And as per usual in contemporary settings, I found that “enemies to lovers” just did not have the proper page time to show any real sort of enmity changing to positive feelings, it all happened rather suddenly and it’s questionable whether they were actually ever true enemies or merely rivals. The female main character was ultimately just a bit hard to like, which was compounded by the fact that we spent nearly all of our page time with her, with any side characters being severely underutilized. I will likely give this author another try, but if the next book doesn’t do it for me then that will be it.

A great debut and a layered story that keeps you locked in. I think there’s something for everyone in this book, whether you are here for the romance, the paranormal mystery, creepy setting, or Native rep. If I Stopped Haunting You feels like a completely new and fresh story, and I’m looking forward to seeing what else the author writes.

If I Stopped Haunting You is the epitome of enemies to lovers from the very beginning. Penelope Skinner and Neil Storm are rival Indigenous writers in the horror category with conflicting views on how they represent their shared community to the public. When they go on a writer's retreat in a haunted castle in Scotland, they're forced to confront their long-standing feud and the fears lurking behind their facade - along with a ghost or two.

If I Stopped Haunting You started well enough - intriguing backstory to the MCs, valid foundation for being enemies, etc. However, as I continued reading, there was something off about the pacing, or maybe the storytelling. There were wordy descriptions of things that didn't come into play as much as I expected, but some dialogue or key moments would be rushed through and overall left me feeling a sense of whiplash.

Penelope and Neil were okay characters. I enjoyed some of the banter and their argument about the validity of Native experiences and the concept of selling out to make it big in publishing was fleshed out well. But I couldn't get behind their romance scenes as much as I wanted to. They weren't convincing in the setting that they were given (i.e. they're in a haunted castle literally running from ghosts and all Neil can think about is Penelope? I don't buy it.) Sure, there was some cringe, but I consider that an endearing aspect of the genre. But even regular romance readers need a bit more substance with their spice.

Overall, I feel like the payoff - both with the romance and the mystery - were left unfulfilled and unconvincing. Between the jumps in thought processes and the lack of compelling characters, I couldn't really find anything or anyone to root for.

I wish I had a single cohesive thought about my feelings on this book, but, alas, you get my word vomit instead. I was intrigued at first by the concept of a romantic horror but felt like the book fell flat on both fronts. I honestly kept expecting a twist that the ghosts were somehow affecting the FMC's and MMC's feelings for each other and that, once the (very weak) mystery was solved then they would release their hold on our MCs. I had no investment in their getting together.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Where do I even begin? The assault and gaslighting that aren’t mentioned in the list of trigger warnings? Sure, let’s begin there. Main character Pen is bitter and unhinged and tries to publicly shame some guy she doesn’t even know at an author’s panel. Then she throws a book at his head hard enough to scar him. There’s really no explanation for this behavior other than she’s mad that he’s so popular and hasn’t ever helped her out. They end up on a retreat in Scotland where she proceeds to gaslight him about how he should be apologizing to her because she can’t get anything published and that it wasn’t a big deal that she assaulted him and berated him for no reason. She continues to be furious with him and even pushes him roughly while yelling at him that he’s the reason her books suck. I don’t know who this book is for, like who could possibly like this toxic character, but it is not me. I absolutely recommend AGAINST reading this book.

It was a light horror romance. It's a hate to love between two feuding authors, although it's apparent early on that they don't hate each other as much as they think. The haunted castle element is not scary at all.

There were elements I enjoyed and others that I didn't. I liked the fact that one of the main characters describes herself as not native enough because I can relate to that feeling. There were 4 authors living in this haunted castle, but I felt like the two authors who came with should have not even been part of the story; they didn't add much to the story especially Daniella. At times, I felt the other authors detracted from the plot, and I would get confused because Neil Storm and Penelope Skinner were sometimes referred to by just their first or last name so adding two more characters to the mix who showed up at the worst times made it worse.

I would have liked it more if they were sent by their pr team or publishers to show the readers that they were on good terms after the bookcon incident instead of involving L. and D. in a retreat that didn't do much to move the plot along. Also, the haunting was a little too simple and made no sense at the end.

Overall, I enjoyed the quick story, but it wasn't memorable enough for me to read again.

***Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.***

It was the beautiful cover that got me to request this book. That, and I love stories about haunted places. I was, however, disappointed in the end. The best parts of this book were the indigenous rep, some funny lines here and there, and a detailed spicy scene between the two main characters. There was a whole subplot about the ghost that haunts the castle that I honestly just didn't care about. The heir to the castle had the same last name as Penelope, but we never find out if she's related to them and that's why she was drawn to the west wing like it held some kind of deep, dark family secret. This took me a long time to read because I just couldn't get into it.

Penelope Skinner and Neil Storm are both Native American authors who were invited to be on the Indigenous Fiction panel at Book Con. Penelope is obviously jealous of Neil's success as the "Prince of Horror", accusing him of being a sellout and chucking a book at him.

Four months later, they both end up at a writers retreat together along with their two friends, which happens to be at a haunted castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. When giving them the tour, Fanny the groundskeeper specifically instructs them not to go into the west wing. But, I don't have to to tell you that they don't listen, right?

It was annoying that Laszlo was the only one trying to take the retreat seriously by having everyone do exercises to help with creativity and inspiration for their writing. Daniela was just kind of...there. She didn't really bring anything to the story. Meanwhile, Penelope and Neil spend the entire trip trying not to screw each other, to no avail, of course.

DNF 15%

As with any book I pick up, I wanted to like this one. It sounded like a perfect rom com for October, but I’m just not interested. I like to try get to 30-50% before I DNF, but I already dislike the FMC so much.

I understand where the FMC is coming from on some points and see that she’s struggling, but her inability to recognize her own flaws is infuriating and we’re only a few chapters in. I also find calling the issue at the beginning the “Incident” really cheesy. And I apologize to anyone named Laszlo, but I swear his name was mentioned every other sentence in the first few chapters and I couldn’t take it.

It’s for all of these reasons that I won’t be finishing. It might just be me, and that’s completely fine!, but it’s not fair for me to continue to fight through reading this when I’m clearly already annoyed to no end.

Colby Wilkens had a lot of ideas, and really should have left a few of them on the cutting room floor. The attempted pairing of serious discussion of racism against Native authors in publishing, with a kitschy ghost plot (that was both really gory and wanted to be… sweet?), an enemies-to-lovers romance between rival authors that made for a story that wanted to do way more than was possible (at least in Wilkens’ hands).

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

If I Stopped Haunting You does not live up to its hype on multiple counts. The enemies to lovers trope did not develop at a believable pace. Penelope and Neil both end up at the same author’s retreat, taking place at a haunted castle no less. There they continue their antagonistic relationship which unrealistically turns to romance/sex. Finally, the only truly interesting part of the novel is how the two of them attempt to figure out why the resident ghost is haunting the castle. There’s too much repetition about why Penelope can’t stand Neil and why Neil can’t write. The characters are not likeable; there’s not much in the way of horror; and the “romance” seems to be an excuse for sexual liaisons. The most authentic character is the ghost and that’s a sad commentary on this novel. I almost did not finish this novel but I was curious to learn the ghost’s story so I trudged on through. I would not recommend this novel.