Whatever team chooses audiobook narrators for the publisher deserves a raise. I have always enjoyed the voice actors and they add so much to the story. Perfectly cast. This was an unexpected gem of a book and was not what I thought it was going to be. Will definitely be recommending. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the audiobook copy to review.

I tried so hard to get into this book but I constantly found my mind drifting. Ended up having to stop partway though.

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

haunt sweet home by sarah pinsker 👻 on the set of a kitschy reality TV show, staged scares transform into unnerving reality in this spooky ghost story 🖤

this was a lighter horror novella, think a cutesy ghost story! while still being lighthearted, this book gives an insightful look into what it feels like to be an overlooked, unambitious person still looking for your calling, and perhaps stumbling upon it in an unlikely place. I also really enjoyed following the hokey production of a reality tv show based on haunted houses!

while this being a multicast production, the main narration style took a more monotone and boring voice approach but it matched up with our fmc’s persona and dry sense of humor perfectly 🦇 3 stars! thanks macmillan audio for the early copy!

This was pretty fun! I didn’t realize it was a novella and I am ultimately glad it was on a shorter side. I appreciated Mara’s character a lot. I think a lot of readers will resonate with her listnessless and inability to choose a path for herself.

The job she comes across as night crew for a kitschy HGTV haunted house renovation show sounded like a lot of fun and definitely a program I could easily picture becoming quite popular. While things didn’t start getting overtly weird for a while there was an overwhelming sense that something was off and it was enough to push my interest forward.

Unfortunately much of the book felt repetitive, but because the story was so short it didn’t feel too much like being beat over the head.

I liked this interpretation of a haunting - that’s ghosts are wishes and regrets and hopes and dreams. It wrapped up nicely and made for a fun little spooky read!

The audio production was great through and through. I loved there being interludes of an episode with a full cast mixed within the single pov narration.

I liked the premise of a reality tv show about haunted houses but the narrator for this book felt really robotic and I wasn't a fan. While it's a quick read it wasn't super memorable and I would find it definitely skipable. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review! Sadly I won't be recommending this one to others. Maybe it reads better in print though.

I enjoyed the audiobook for this spooky paranormal novella. When aimless twenty-something Mara lands a job as the night-shift production assistant on her cousin’s ghost hunting/home makeover reality TV show Haunt Sweet Home, she quickly determines her new role will require a healthy attitude toward duplicity. But as she hides fog machines in the woods and improvises scares to spook new homeowners, a series of unnerving incidents on set and a creepy new coworker force Mara to confront whether the person she's truly been deceiving and hiding from all along—is herself.

I thought the premise was really fun and interesting, and I liked the reality tv series aspects. Some of the twists are a little predictable, but the story was still fun and worth the listen. It's a mildly scary story, there was nothing that genuinely scared me, and there was a HEA ending. It was a little repetitive at times, but I thought it was the perfect length for the story. The characters were interesting and had a good depth for the length of this book.

The audiobook cast was amazing- Mara's narrator had the perfect voice for her character. I loved the multicast narration for the transcript sections of the book- it really brought the reality tv sections to life.

Thanks to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, Tor Publishing, and the author Sarah Pinsker for the ALC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I picked up this audiobook without knowing it was a novella. I was confused on whether everything was a production or if a haunting was actually taking place in the story. The ghost TV show was an interesting premise for a haunting story.

Haunt Sweet Home offers a lite and refreshing take on horror, blending eerie elements with humor. Just what I was in the mood for. 👻 The novella centers around Mara, who should be called Daria (like the show) as the narrator gave me this vibe which I loved. Mara is a night-shift production assistant on a haunted house reality show who’s feeling lost in life. She helps create scares for unsuspecting homeowners but she starts to wonder if all the frights are just for show…

The story is clever, capturing the aimlessness of a quarter-life crisis and the complex ties that family can accompany that stage of life. Provides a sharp and entertaining look at the world of reality TV (which I love) with the audio narration being spot on. Dry humor Mara I enjoyed. ☺️ Received an audio review copy via NetGalley, and these thoughts are entirely my own.

This was a short fast easy read. A very unique and interesting concept. However it dragged a bit in the middle and was very repetitive.

A very short story that I listened to in a day while doing very bland work. Some of the ghostly aspects were kitschy, but that may have just been the ghost story aspect of any story. Quick, fun, unexpected twists.

Haunt Sweet Home caught my attention because I love a campy TV show about fixing up houses AND campy ghost adventure videos. This audiobook was a mixture of both of those things from the perspective of a mid 20's girl who seems to be wandering through life without knowing what she wants to do and really letting life happen to her.
I would have loved to have this fleshed out to be a full novel but I can also understand why the author may not have wanted to do that if they felt they told the story they wanted to tell.
Maya, our main character, has placed herself on the outside of nearly every social circle she has. She refuses to stand up for herself and she does not let herself be heard as though everyone else is more important or takes president. The problem with that, is that everyone else keeps moving forward and Maya finds herself further and further behind everyone else, not going anywhere.
In some ways, the main character is relatable but in some, she is also infuriating. I wanted to shake her and make her stand up for herself.
I really enjoyed the story and the slightly spooky vibes. I hope more people will give this novella a chance. It's well worth a listen or a read.

Thanks @macmillan.audio for my first advanced reader copy! I listened to this on my commute and really enjoyed the dark humor and cadence of the story. It’s a really quick read, I was able to listen to it over just a couple of days.

One thing I really liked about this book was that the main character at times was kind of a downer. She felt down on her luck and that made her feel more real and gave her more depth than a lot of characters have. I also really enjoyed how the entire story was set on the set of a reality TV show about renovating “haunted” houses. It was a really original concept and I haven’t read a book like it before.

I would have liked to see some more depth in the plot as well as the side characters, but I think the point of the story was to be more light hearted and funny compared to in depth and spooky. I found the plot a bit predictable, but overall the content was fun and good to listen to in the mornings.

This book is releasing early September and I definitely would recommend it for a nice early spooky season read! It has great cozy fall vibes!

Following a listless and disconnected main character she accepts a job as a night shift production assistant on a home makeover/haunted house reality show. Think Ghostbusters meets Fixer Upper.
When I requested this book, I was unaware that it was so short (about a 4hr long audiobook) as well as the fact that it was a satirical humorous horror. Those surprises were both very welcome and I think meshed with the vibe of this book.
Overall, this was a fun and short book that I would recommend as a pallet cleanser and for someone who wants haunted supernatural things but don’t like to be too scared.
3.5 stars

I listened to the audiobook for this one and really enjoyed it. It is a short paranormal horror novella that tells the story of Mara, a young woman lost in the world and trying to find out what to do with her life. Through her cousin, she lands a job working on the night crew of a haunted house reality show where it is her job to help creatively scare the owners in order to make for good television. With the addition of a new member to the team, many spooky and unexplainable things start happening on set. This book is definitely on the cozier, lighter side of the horror genre. It was a unique and interesting take on a story about paranormal happenings. The middle did get a bit repetitive but then the action picked up and I was invested. The outcome was pleasantly surprising and left me feeling fulfilled. If you like this genre, I would definitely recommend this read for you! Thank you to NetGalley for the gifted ARC audiobook recording in exchange for an honest review.

Haunted houses are my all time favorite trope. In fact, all forms of the word haunted are my favorite. Immediately when I saw the title I knew I had to read Haunt Sweet Home.

The synopsis is really fun too. The audiobook is only a few hours so it’s a quick read. It has a lot of potential. I think I would’ve enjoyed a longer length with more of the tv show aspects mixed with actual ghosts.

The narrators all have great voices and I love when audiobooks have ensemble casts.

Overall, Haunt Sweet Home is a fun read perfect to start your spooky season! Thank you to NetGalley, Sarah Pinsker and MacMillan Audio for the opportunity to read it. I have written this review voluntarily.

I wish this had been longer. As short as it was, I don't really see the point in telling the story. I liked the Jo-angle, but wanted more from the story.

This book was a middle of the road book for me. It was fun and quick, but lacked some depth that I really like.

What I did like: there were a couple spooky moments but I wanted more.

What needed work: Mara was near insufferable. I get in ways that was the point, but her lack of energy and blaming her problems on others annoyed me.

The tightness of the book. If we are going to have a novella, every word needs to count and this just didn’t deliver.

The audio narration was fantastic though. I’ll give that five stars.

Overall, a decent book. It’s short so it’s one that you can slot in during an afternoon for a lighter fright. Great for starting spooky season.

Twenty-something Mara is part of a large extended family, but she feels a bit like a black sheep. She's younger than most of her cousins, so they were always leaving her out or behind when she was little. Her grandmother, a skilled woodcarver, crafted personalized chairs for everyone in the family. Well, everyone except Mara. Oma's arthritis was too bad by the time Mara's turn for a chair came up.

On the cusp of getting ready to try community college one more time (her fourth attempt), Mara's cousin Jeremy presents a more enticing offer: Why doesn't Mara come work as production assistant for the reality TV show he hosts? Haunt Sweet Home is a kitschy combination of home renovation and haunted houses. Mara accepts Jeremy's invitation and discovers she will be serving as the PA for the night crew of Haunt Sweet Home. While the day crew is responsible for filming the home renovation story of the show, the night crew helps produce the supernatural plotlines. But over the course of the summer, Mara starts to encounter spooks and scares for which she is not responsible.

This novella-length book is a compelling story about a young woman who is haunting her own life. Mara is leaning into her identity as an outcast and unwittingly committing self-sabotage. Fortunately, her new job offers her an opportunity to open her eyes and appreciate her life more fully.

I really enjoyed that the audiobook took the opportunity to use multicast narration for the episode transcript sections of the book. It helped bring an enticing flavor to the novella's hook.

I love a good ghost story, and this one hit the spot without being scary. Things may have been eerie or spooky at times, but even cowardly readers like me can enjoy this funny, moving story.

This review will be posted to Goodreads on August 28, 2024 and to Instagram (@goodquietkitty) on August 29, 2024.

This was a short little listen that kept me engaged.

I liked how real Mara's character felt in her 30's without her life together yet. She takes a job as an assistant on her cousin's ghost hunting show but soon begins to regret it.

I liked the narration of the book and had no complaints.

The book itself was just the right length because it started to get a little repetitive. I liked it for what it was though.

I'm a big Sarah Pinsker fan, so I was thrilled to have the chance to listen to this audiobook early. This was a pleasant and diverting novella. I thought the audio production was great, and the primary narrator was a good fit for the main character.

This book definitely has Pinsker's trademark tone, which I appreciated. She combines a fun backstage view of an HGTV-style reality television production with a coming-of-age story, with some nice reflections around not fitting in with your family of origin.

I think this story will hit the best for readers/listeners who are looking for a quick, light, semi-spooky read in the paranormal or "cozy horror" genre.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, Sarah Pinsker, and NetGalley for providing an advanced audio copy for review!