Haunt Sweet Home is a Horror novella. It’s a HGTV fixer upper show with Ghost Adventures. I promise you have no idea where this book is going. Mara was an interesting character to follow around. Overall, this was a fun podcast-like audiobook that I really enjoyed! If you need a light hearted, horror, HGTV listen, I highly recommend this one!

The narrator, Jess Nahikian, was great! Perfect for the podcast feel.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook of Haunt Sweet Home!

Ghost Adventures meets HGTV in this ghostly novella that centers around Mara as she starts a new job as night-shift production assistant on her cousin’s ghost hunting and home renovation series.

I listened to the audio format and thought it was done well, with a full cast performance by Jennifer Blom, Jess Nahikian, Matt Godfrey, and Robb Moreira.

*many thanks to Tor, Macmillan audio and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

Haunt Sweet Home by Sarah Pinsker was a fun book to listen to. The short segments broke the book up into easy-to-follow sections. I would love to listen to more of these!

I enjoyed this novella, but it was remarkably unremarkable. Haunt Sweet Home follows a new intern or assistant of a fake ghost hunting tv show. The assistant is an extended family member of the shows star, and as she works on the show, she begins to be assisted by another assistant who doesn't quite fit in. What is all for show eventually evolves into reality, as these kinds of stories are prone to do. It was a fun enough narrative that has become more forgettable with time. Even 4 stars may be more than it deserves, but I enjoyed it. 3.5/5 stars

This was a review of an arc provided by NetGalley.

"Haunt Sweet Home" offers an intriguing premise by blending reality TV with supernatural elements, following Mara, a directionless twenty-something who becomes a production assistant on her cousin's ghost-hunting home renovation show. While the novel provides a thoughtful exploration of self-discovery and the blurred lines between staged scares and authentic hauntings, it falls short in delivering the eerie atmosphere one might anticipate from a ghost story. Overall it was a nice enough quick read but not too memorable.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the gifted copy.

HGTV meets horror in Haunt Sweet Home. If you prefer eerie horror to graphic and gory horror, this would be a great short title to pick up! I had fun reading this one and used it as a palate cleanser to some serious literary fiction.

Thank you to Sarah Pinsker (author), Jennifer Blom (narrator); Jess Nahikian (narrator); Matt Godfrey (narrator); Robb Moreira (narrator), Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for this advanced listener copy of "Haunt Sweet Home" for an honest review.

This was a delightfully spooky little read, and it was fun watching the slowly evolving haunting of Mara, while she's working on what's obviously a faked haunted house show. It was so surreal to watch it start coming to life, both through Jo and the ghost in the haunted library. I loved the evolution of Mara's place in her family and the ownership of choosing to grow even if your life has had too many dead ends before now. I felt my heart swell as Mara showed signs of taking up her grandmother's mantle, not simply with the figure that became her chair, but with callbacks to her childhood and the book's evocative, beautiful last lines.

I do feel sad it was only a novella, as I feel it ends where it should be counting itself as a middle or a 75% mark, but I was pleased to get what we did.

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Audio Quality:
This narration was a blast to listen to! You could tell they were having the time of their lives. The characters are all starkly different, and I felt it was so easy to tell them apart, even when the prose hadn't clarified a new person who walked into the current scene.
Looking forward to everything else I might hear them in for the future of Macmillian Audio! <3

In Haunt Sweet Home, Mara lands a job as a night shift production assistant on her cousin’s show, a ghost hunting/home makeover combo show. Sounds weird, right? It’s all smoke and mirrors. In fact, it’s Mara’s job to plant some of the smoke and mirror elements to make the set seem more creepy. That is, until actual mysterious and creepy things start to happen. She makes somewhat of an ally on set, but there’s something not quite right about the coworker, and Mara will have to figure out if who she’s been hiding from is herself.

This book was just fine. I picked it for the premise of ghost hunting/home makeover show. I love a little bit of meta horror ala ghost hunting where the nonbelievers experience perhaps some real things. There’s an aimless main character who gets in a little over her head and discovers a paranormal mystery to solve. It moved pretty quickly and had some interesting reveals. I didn’t love it, but if you’re looking for something that combines your love of horror and ghosts with your love of HGTV, then it might be right up your alley.

Sarah Pinsker's Haunt Sweet Home is a captivating novella that blends the eerie world of ghost hunting with a young woman's journey of self-discovery. The story follows Mara, a directionless twenty-something who becomes a night-shift production assistant on her cousin's ghost hunting/home makeover reality TV show. As she orchestrates fake scares to spook homeowners, Mara encounters unsettling incidents and a mysterious coworker, prompting her to confront her own insecurities and ambitions. Pinsker masterfully intertwines supernatural elements with a poignant coming-of-age narrative, making this a compelling read for fans of character-driven horror.

I enjoyed this one! A quick read for during spooky season and the multicast brought the book to a whole new level. I wish it was longer!

This was a fun and brief read/listen. It offers a spooky glimpse into Mara's new job as a personal assistant on her cousins' reality series, *Haunt Sweet Home*. The story follows Mara as she learns the ins and outs of what the night crew does in a world filled with ghosts and home makeovers. The show revolves around making over homes that are reportedly haunted, and the night crew is responsible for creating the hauntings. However, sometimes the hauntings are not orchestrated by the crew at all.

This is an interesting take on the ghost genre, as Mara struggles with her self-identity and seeks acceptance from those around her, especially her family. It takes the experience of working on a ghostly reality show for her to discover more about herself and find a direction for her life. While the book is somewhat predictable, it remains entertaining throughout. I would have appreciated a few more supernatural elements and creepier scenarios to enhance the haunting atmosphere; nonetheless, it was quite enjoyable for a short story.

Actual Rating 3.5

This short read was enjoyable overall. I really liked Mara’s characterization. The author did a great job making her relatable and realistic, and I enjoyed the parts that involved her and her family. There are segments scattered throughout the book from the TV show that were fun additions to the story, especially in the audio addition as it used multiple voice actors.

The pacing was a little off, though. It started quite strongly, but in the middle it started to lag and by the end it was somewhat repetitive. Part of what added to this was that the twists/mystery were pretty obvious. I didn’t mind this too much, but the lagging of the pace made the book drag more than it should for me.

Despite the paranormal aspects and some slightly tense moments, this read honestly kind of had cozy spooky vibes rather than horror. If you like light spooky reads with relatable protagonists, then you’ll probably enjoy this one. My thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

There is so much in this book that goes beyond a paranormal story.
It was disturbing, eerie, entertaining, haunting and heartwarming. This is my first book from this author and I loved the writing style, I’m sure it won’t be my last!

Thank you Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for this complimentary audiobook.

𝗛𝗮𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝘄𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲 by Sarah Pinsker released September 3, 2024.

Haunt Sweet Home was creative, spooky, and packed a punch! I loved the main character in this novel because she was so vulnerable about her insecurities and finding her way. It was heart wrenching to watch her struggle, and I loved figuring out what the supernatural presence on set had to do with the story. Mysterious with a satisfying resolution, this book packed a punch with great pacing.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you netgalley for the advanced preview audio book. I just love getting advance copies! This one lives up to the hype!

This could have been an interesting idea if it was properly developed and given more time to be a full story. I just could not get into it.

Haunt Sweet Home was such an unexpected and fun read. It’s not very scary, so if you’re just looking for a bit of spookiness this is it. Mara is hired on as a PA for her cousin’s reality tv show. The show is kind of an HGTV Fixer Upper-esque show with a twist - the houses all come with some haunting and eerie experiences. As Mara leans into her new role, she makes a strange new friend on set and learns more about herself along the way.

I really loved listening to the audiobook for this novella and think it added to the experience. Sprinkled throughout we get little sound bites from the show as it’s airing and I thought they were really well done. Since most call back to scenes from the novella it really made you feel like you were part of the filming. All of the narrators were great and I just had a wonderful time reading this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for a review copy. I look forward to reading from this author again!

This was a very unexpected read. I don’t want to give anything away, but when Mara starts worki.ng for her cousin on a reality show where they help new homeowners discover their “ghosts” she meets a friend while on set. I found this book mildly entertaining and different than anything I have read.

I liked this a lot, really fun/short listen. I liked the references to classic haunted house stories, and the "entertainment business" side of the story. I will check out what else Sarah Pinsker has done!

Haunt sweet home is a very quick, listen, or read. I listened and definitely recommend listening to the audiobook. I liked the story overall and I really enjoyed the presentation of it.