REVIEW: The Haunting of Hill House (Shirley Jackson)

Book: The Haunting of Hill House

Author: Shirley Jackson

My rating: 5/5.

Premise: Alone in the world, Eleanor is delighted to take up Dr Montague's invitation to spend a summer in the mysterious Hill House. Joining them are Theodora, an artistic 'sensitive', and Luke, heir to the house. But what begins as a light-hearted experiment is swiftly proven to be a trip into their darkest nightmares.

This book surprised me. I'm a real chicken when it comes to horror, so I was expecting nightmares and being reluctant to read on. But instead, I loved it! Despite the premise, I didn't find it that scary - no spoiler intended, you never get to see the ghosts and there aren't any jump scares. The story follows Eleanor as she leaves home to go to Hill House. She's been feeling trapped for years and this is her first adventure. But through the story, we start to see her unravel as the house gets to her. However, you never quite know how much is the house and how much is her and the other characters. The story can be a bit disorienting at times, just like the house. I was reading up about the book afterwards and someone pointed out that the characters don't get described, only the house does. There's so many layers and subtle details that I'll definitely have to read it again to pick up on. An amazing book!