This was an eerie and intense read. Amity takes inspiration from the Amityville Horror but spins it into something fresh and psychological. It’s told from two points of view, which gave the story more depth, and I liked how the house itself felt like a character. The atmosphere was creepy in a subtle, slow-building way, and that made the unsettling moments hit harder.

Ostow does a great job with the writing style! It’s fragmented and poetic at times, which fits the unstable mental states of the characters. There were moments when I had to pause and reread a line, not because it was confusing, but because it was beautifully haunting. The themes around trauma, possession, and fear felt layered rather than forced.

That said, the dual timelines can be a little disorienting at first, especially if you're expecting a straightforward horror plot. This story leans more into psychological terror than jump scares, so it might not be for someone looking for fast-paced action or a traditional haunted house arc. Still, I think that’s what makes it stand out!

Overall, Amity is for readers who enjoy slow burns, unreliable narrators, and horror that sits with you long after you put the book down. It’s unsettling in the best way and perfect for fans of twisted, atmospheric stories.

This story, loosely inspired by the Amityville Horror and the rea-life shootings that occurred with the Lutz family imagines the home as an entity onto itself, and it presents the story through the eyes of two teens with mental health issues, each experiencing the house 10 years apart.
Parts work, parts don't - but overall the story seems disjointed, like a lot is missing - like the author expects the reader to know a little too much about the real story to make sense of this one if the do not.

This is a very creepy YA horror book that tells the story of a haunted house that terrorizes teens and their families ten years apart, though it's told concurrently. There's not a lot of character development and many questions remain unanswered, but it will be a hit for teens who just want a quick scary read.

This book gave me nightmares for days! I'm not the best person for the horror genre, but I thoroughly enjoyed Amity and all it had to offer.

I really wanted to like this book, but it was too choppy and did not flow well.

1.5 stars at most.

I liked the idea of this story, the concept behind it. However, the delivery is where the author failed. The dual POVs, the past vs. present, the repetition... it all was too much. The author was trying to do far too much and as a result gave me an overload of information. I quickly became bored with what was going on because I read the same version of events so many times.

Not only was I disappointed in this story, but I nearly DNFd based on this simple fact: the author wrote in animal abuse. I have few triggers that will make me stop a book on a dime and animal abuse is in my Top 2. I have zero tolerance for it. It is a cheap way for the author to portray just how horrible a person is. I get it, you are trying to give perspective but find another way to do it. Do not write in animal abuse for the sake of trying to write a bad guy. That puts you in a very negative light for me and now I will not ever read any other books you publish. It is that easy for me.

That being said, this felt like a waste of my time. I was never scared, there was no horror only repetition and lots of time passing with nothing substantial going on.

I really enjoyed this title. It's right up my street. Book was reviewed on my blog a very long time ago. I have migrated blog since then and it is somewhere in archives or completely lost in the ether. (Sad times)