Thank you NetGalley for the early E-Arc in exchange for an honest review!

A haunted monster mansion, 7 horror authors, and multiple mysteries to solve. I thoroughly enjoyed this! I thought it was a fun, mystery filled, light horror with some good twists! Definitely more for those who prefer fantasy/horror rather than realistic horror.

I really enjoyed trying to work out who and what to believe, and I found Arnold’s use of descriptive imagery allowed me to build a clear picture of each character and the house from the get go!

Mallory Arnold delivers a wickedly fun and spine-chilling thriller with How to Survive a Horror Story. When a group of writers gathers at the eerie Queen Manor expecting an inheritance, they instead find themselves trapped in a deadly game where every wrong move could mean their doom.

Blending locked-room mystery with supernatural horror, Arnold crafts a clever, fast-paced story filled with dark humor, sharp twists, and an atmosphere dripping with gothic dread. Perfect for fans of eerie mansions, literary intrigue, and survival-driven suspense, this book is a thrilling, unforgettable ride!

I really enjoyed reading this book! It was a fast paced, entertaining read! The plot revolves around a famed horror author, Mortimer Queen who has recently passed away. A group of authors are invited to his manor to hear and witness his will reading. All of these people have had either direct or indirect interactions with Mr. Queen. All of the authors sort of know each other or who everyone is with the exception of Melanie who doesn't know anyone in the group and is pretty quiet about how she knew Mortimer Queen. At the will reading, the group is horrified to find out that they will not be inheriting anything from the deceased and that if they don't obey the stipulations listed in Mortimer's will, they will not survive the night themselves.

What happens next is a break-neck paced horror novel filled with blood and gore. It turns out that every character has a secret about their relationship with Mortimer and he wants them to reveal those secrets to everyone in the group. Throughout the night, the group will travel to different rooms in the manor and each room has a riddle to solve. If the group can solve the riddle, they all move onto the next room alive. If they fail to solve the riddle in a hour, someone will die. Each chapter alternates from the point of view of one character to another. It was fun to read their thoughts and know what they were thinking as they were going through this harrowing experience.

The book feels and reads like a horror movie. I could literally picture all of these scenes happening in my mind and playing out a like a movie. Being that this feels like a horror movie, most of the characters are unlikeable and feel more like cannon fodder to kill off in gruesome ways than people you want to root for. There is one or two exceptions to this and it isn't a complaint about the book, in fact it's a testament to the good writing of the novel to actively root for the death of certain characters.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys horror novels and movies. It was a quick and easy read and was a lot of fun to read! I wanted to keep reading to find out how each character knew Mortimer and what their secrets were that they were hiding!

While definitely not a masterpiece, this book was an enjoyable mix of well loved tropes from the horror and mystery genres.
The story follows a group of writers who are invited to the Manor of one extremely famous horror writer, who recently passed away and cited them in his will. However, things are not as they seem and they soon find themselves involved in a deadly game, where they need to solve riddles in order to survive.
Each of the characters represent a different horror sub-genre or type (for example the erotica horror writer or the "one-book-wonder"), and each chapter is told through a different point of view. Even though the characters weren't the most original or memorable, I still found them all quite interesting to follow and I liked learning more about them through their different perspectives.
The plot was fast paced, and it was a mix of the mystery genre, because every character has a secret which is the reason they were invited to the Manor, and the horror genre, because the house is haunted and... well, quite alive. 
Personally I think the story lost a little steam in the second half and got a bit repetitive, and the final reveal was also quite lackluster.
All in all, it wasn't the most successful book, but it was also an entertaining read for the most part, and I would try this author again in the future.

Another great book. I was on the edge of my seat and I never knew what might be happening next. If you love locked room mysteries then this is going to be a great book for you.

WOW! This book was great! It was a bit monster house, a bit escape room with a touch of revenge. When horror authors are brought in to hear the last will and testament of famous horror author Mortimer Queen they have no idea what they are really getting themselves into. Hold on for a Wild ride!!

This was not a bad read at all solid 3 starts, held my attention, and was a good time.

I loved how real the characters seemed, people were messy, they acted like someone would in something like this. It was a little cheesy at times but in no way boring.

This was a slow burn, so beware if you don't like that kind of thing, but I don't mind, as long as the story itself is good, which this one is.

This was kind of a just whodoneit more then horror, some creepy tones, I would have marked this as mystery.

I enjoyed this, but I am not usually one for horror or supernatural, which this had both. If you like those genres you will LOVE this. This was incredibly well written and fun, just a little out of my comfort zone!

Fabulous Fun..
Infamous horror author Mortimer Queen has passed away and has left some rather strange requests. As a group of seven authors, each with links to the author himself, gather at his remote and bizarre mansion house prepared for the reading of Mortimer’s will - each hoping for a chunk of a massive fortune - they instead discover that they are players in a very dangerous game indeed. Cleverly woven with a host of eccentric and eclectic characters, a fast moving narrative and shocks and surprises galore. Edgy, immersive and fabulous fun.

🕰️Multiple POVs
🕰️ Creepy Manor
🕰️Likable and Unlikable Narrators

This story is fantastic! It follows 7 horror writers who have been bequeathed something from famous horror writer Mortimer Queen. The characters are a tiny bit unreliable which I felt added some depth to the story because you don’t know what to believe until it’s possibly too late. Great read! 10/10 cuckoo clocks IYKYK

I loved this book! The premise really caught my attention and I thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience.

I really enjoyed the author's writing style and the way in which she presented the story. I found the characters interesting and I enjoyed the short backstories that were included about them and their connection to Mortimer Queen.

I'm a huge horror movie fan and think that this book really does lend to being adapted for screen. The descriptions of the scenes and events were so detailed I was able to create such a vivid image in my head of what I was reading.

I think my only negative was that I found the ending a little underwhelming. It seemed obvious from the start that Melanie was a more significant character than the others, so the ending wasn't too surprising. It was a totally fine ending, but compared to the rest of the book, I found it a little lacklustre. Apart from that, this was a fantastic debut novel and I will 100% read any future books from the author

This was truly a fascinating read. Between the premise of the book (them being trapped in a house and forced to solve riddles for an unknown reason) and each character's individual story.

I found myself constantly flipping between having empathy for the characters and hoping they make it out and being pretty disgusted by their actions & how they refused to admit wrong doing. At one point, I wasn't sure who was telling the truth and who was lying which I think added to the plot quite tremendously.

I think the ending really brought everything full circle. People are complex. We're all good and bad.

I did anticipate the "twist" decently early but it didn't take from the book at all.

Overall a really great read! Thank you for the arc!

Thank you to NetGalley, Mallory Arnold and Poisoned Pen Press for the free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

This is a great haunted house story - gives me 13th ghost vibes with the house moving and changing. This was fast paced, tons of gore and a great ending twist! I just love the idea behind this whole thing, a haunted house eating people to stay happy.

This book was incredible. From start to finish I was glued to the pages. I was worried going in it wouldn’t be “horror” enough (yes, I know horror is subjective) and that it would end up being another thriller marketed to the horror hands. I was wrong!

I love(d to hate) all the characters. Shockingly, some of the worst humans in this book were my favorite characters. This was like Clue meets 13 Ghosts. Can’t wait to read what the author comes out with next.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a quick read, not easy to put down. I’ll be looking forward to read more from this author.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
Reason for rating:
I loved the premise of this book and surprising enjoyed the different POVs. The ending was not what I expected and surprised me. At times I felt the storytelling was lacklustre. I would recommend this book to someone wanting to get into the ‘horror’ genre as it isn’t necessarily your typical horror book but contains elements.

Overview of the book:
When horror author Mortimer Queen passes, seven (morally grey) writers find themselves invited to his home for a will and testament reading.
Each are connected to the literary icon in their own way.
They arrive at his grand manor and are invited to play a game based off revenge and betrayal. The rules are simple; solve the riddle and progress to the next room. If they don't, the manor will take one of them for itself.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Author for providing me with a copy of this book.

How to Survive a Horror Story is a deliciously vindictive tale that keeps you engaged from the start. Mallory Arnold crafts a story where every character is flawed in a way that makes you sympathize with them, until you learn more. Just when you think you know who to root for, the layers peel back to reveal something darker.

The writing is strong, flowing well and keeping you hooked, yet there’s a subtle lull to it that allows you to step away for a day or two before diving back in. It’s not a relentless page-turner, but it always leaves you wanting to see what happens next. The balance between intrigue and pacing makes it an interesting, unsettling read.

For a debut, Arnold delivers a well-written, engaging novel that will keep you questioning motives until the very end. If you enjoy flawed characters, slow-burning suspense, and a touch of the sinister, this is a book worth picking up.

I’m not normally a horror reader but if I had to guess I would put this on the lower end of horror not super scary or gruesome in anyway. It was the cover that stood out to me and while I am glad I read it, I would give it 3.5 stars.
The story itself puts seven writers of the horror genre in the manor of a recently deceased, world renowned horror writer Mortimer Queen. They are all there for the reading of Queens’ will. They quickly realize things are not as they seem. They are locked in this manor and need to get through several rooms in order to escape. Each room has riddles they need to find and answer before the doors will unlock only to lock them into the next room.
Why are each of these writers here and what do they mean to the story? Well, for that answer you’ll have to read yourself.
I did think that Buck had one or ten to many southern-isms…..I could have done without half of them, they definitely got on my nerves especially for a guy who hasn’t lived in Texas for what seemed a long time.
Overall I did enjoy the story and would recommend. I want to thank NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I liked this book, but found the twists to be predictable. It was an interesting spin to the locked room theme, but it still felt like it was missing something.

***ARC
Pub date: 07.08.2025

How to Write a Horror Story by Mallory Arnold is a unique take on the genre, and while I enjoyed it, it didn't fully resonate with me. The plot is certainly interesting and engaging, but it took some unexpected turns that felt a bit out there. If you're someone who enjoys a more unconventional or surreal horror experience, you may appreciate the creativity behind it. However, for me, the plot was a bit too wild in some places, which made it hard to connect with on a deeper level. Overall, it’s an intriguing read, but not quite what I was expecting.