Review: Play Nice by Rachel Harrison

Play Nice

by Rachel Harrison

Release Date: September 9, 2025

2025 Berkley

Hardcover ARC; 336 Pages

ISBN: 978-0593642573

ASIN:  ‎ B0DPYGZJ6Y

Audiobook: B0DVBM3858

Genre: Fiction / Horror / Gothic

Source: Review copy from publisher

 

3 / 5 Stars

 

Summary

Clio Louise Barnes leads a picture-perfect life as a stylist and influencer, but beneath the glossy veneer she harbors a not-so glamorous secret: she grew up in a haunted house. Well, not haunted. Possessed. After Clio’s parent’s messy divorce, her mother, Alex, moved Clio and her sisters into a house occupied by a demon. Or so Alex claimed. That’s not what Clio’s sisters remember or what the courts determined when they stripped Alex of custody after she went off the deep end. But Alex was insistent; she even wrote a book about her experience in the house.

After Alex’s sudden death, the supposedly possessed house passes to Clio and her sisters. Where her sisters see childhood trauma, Clio sees an opportunity for house flipping content. Only, as the home makeover process begins, Clio discovers there might be some truth to her mother’s claims. As memories resurface and Clio finally reads her mother’s book, the presence in the house becomes more real, and more sinister, revealing ugly truths that threaten to shake Clio’s beautiful life to its very foundation.

 

My Thoughts

Play Nice is one of those books I was excited to read because of the gothic setting, the haunted house, the possession, and well, it's Rachel Harrison. I have always enjoyed her books and was looking forward to reading this one. Unfortunately, I did not resonate with the main character, Clio, and although I did like the haunted house aspects of the book, I just couldn't warm up to the MC. 

 

So let's about what I did like first. I really enjoyed the haunted house aspect of this book as well as the family dynamics that existed due to the trauma of what happened during the sisters' childhood. The two older sisters have spent their lives trying to forget what happened to them and had no interest in reconnecting with their mother, Alex. Alex had written a book about what happened, and you pretty much spent the entirely of the book wondering if what she had written actually happened or was Alex an unreliable narrator.  But I loved those book entries included in the book as I found them to be the most interesting part of the book, and the annotations were pure gold. Unfortunately, while there was some stuff that happened to Clio when she was in the house, the level of tension just wasn't kept up and I got lost in Clio's personal relationships and her attitude about everything which threw me out of the story constantly, to the point where it got frustrating. I wish the author had focused more on the haunting and less on Clio's behaviour.  I just felt like the balance wasn't there in this one.

 

And now let's get to Clio. Not a fan. While I don't have to like a character, I do have to relate to her behaviour, and in this instance, I just couldn't. She was selfish, was egotistical, and was so self-centered it turned me off.  And the comments she made about her sexual partners...? It's okay to be certain about what you like and don't like, but you don't have to be a bitch about it, you know? Then she would whine about how her family treated her, then go out and treat other people exactly the same way.  What bothered me the most was her refusal to even acknowledge her sisters' trauma when they were young, making excuses for them, even going so far as to accuse them of being melodramatic, not listening to anything they had to say. Honestly, when you behave like a child, you get treated like a child. And when you read the book, you will see how her behaviour is so childish. I just wanted to tell her love interest to run while he could. So, after all of this, I preferred the sisters to Clio and wished the POV had been one of theirs. 

 

Verdict

Play Nice was definitely not my favourite book from this author. It had an interesting concept, and there were some creepy moments for sure. The author kept you guessing if it was real or not by having an unreliable narrator in the form of Clio's mother and having Clio behave the way she did was supposed to support that unreliable narrator bit, but Clio's part did not work for me at all because she was so annoying. There were definitely some interesting moments, and I absolutely loved the interactions between the family members as that was one of the things that felt real, but together, it didn't quite work for me. That being said, I am not discouraging anyone from reading this book as this author is still and automatic read for me. The way the book ended, I am wondering if there will be a sequel; hopefully, it will not be from Clio's POV though as I don't think I could handle that again.

Review: House of Monstrous Women by Daphne Fama

House of Monstrous Women

by Daphne Fama

Release Date: August 12, 2025

2025 Berkley

Ebook ARC; 336 Pages

ISBN: 978-0593817582

ASIN: B0DMV7RCXZ

Audiobook: B0DNLVGJ3G

Genre: Fiction / Horror / Gothic

Source: Review copy from publisher

 

3.5 / 5 Stars

 

Summary

Orphaned after her father’s political campaign ended in tragedy, Josephine is alone taking care of the family home while her older brother is off in Manila, where revolution brews. But an unexpected invitation from her childhood friend Hiraya to her house offers an escape....

Why don’t you come visit, and we can play games like we used to?

If Josephine wins, she’ll get whatever her heart desires. Except Ranoco house is strange—labyrinthine and dangerously close to a treacherous sea. A sickly-sweet smell clings to the dimly lit walls, and veiled eyes follow Josephine through endless connecting rooms. The air is tense with secrets and as the game continues it’s clear Josephine doesn’t have the whole truth. To save herself, she will have to play to win. But in this house, victory is earned with blood.

 

My Thoughts

House of Monstrous Women is one of those books to which I was drawn partly because of its Gothic undertones, but also because it's set in the Philippines just before the return of democracy and government reforms aided by the People Power Revolution. Having lost her family to political machinations, Josephine was just trying to protect her family home the best way she could so when the invitation came from one of her friends, one that could potentially help secure her future, she just couldn't resist.

 

One of the best things about this book was the descriptions about the Philippines, something I really appreciated. I enjoyed the family dynamics, the power plays, and learning more about the political system at the time through the characters and their motivations. While not necessarily a central motivation for these characters, it definitely shaped their lives and their actions and had a powerful influence on the choices they made.  What I often find interesting in situations like these is how some people throw themselves into the midst of everything that is happening while others shut themselves off completely and pretend that nothing is occurring, so we have this dichonomy happening in this book which reflect human nature. 

 

The gothic aspect to this novel was definitely atmospheric and haunting and visiting that house would give me the creeps for sure, I did find the actual story to be somewhat slow. I don't typically tend to mind when horror books are slow at the beginning as long as the tension is there and this was not necessarily the case as I felt pulled out from the book for various reasons. Then the tension would build again, then nothing. However, by about the sixty percent mark, it finally picked up and took off, and I thought the later part of the book was the most interesting. I did like how the horror elements were combined with local folklore. Plus, the many themes running through this book include things like inherited trauma, women's rights and liberties, family, loyalty, trust, betrayal, and friendship. 

 

Verdict

House of Monstrous Women had a very atmospheric setting and I really enjoyed this author's writing style. I did feel like the tension was a bit erratic and if you are going to have the tension build up slowly, it needs to be more consistent so the reader doesn't get thrown out of the story. I like how the political situation was woven around local folklore and enjoyed learning about both of these. Unfortunately, I didn't quite connect with the characters and I really did wish the author had spent more time exploring the game element as that was the most interesting. If you like slow burn horror, this book may be just the thing you are looking for.  

 

Review: Bochica by Carolina Flórez-Cerchiaro

Bochica

by Carolina Flórez-Cerchiaro

Release Date: May 13, 2025

2025 Atria/Primero Sueno Press

Ebook ARC; 256 Pages

ISBN: 978-1668062579

ASIN: B0DHV14VQJ

Audiobook: B0DLCRMMH2

Genre: Fiction / Horror / Gothic

Source: Review copy from publisher

 

2 / 5 Stars

 

Summary

In 1923 Soacha, Colombia, La Casona—an opulent mansion perched above the legendary Salto del Tequendama waterfall—was once home to Antonia and her family, who settle in despite their constant nightmares and the house’s malevolent spirit. But tragedy strikes when Antonia’s mother takes a fatal fall into El Salto and her father, consumed by grief, attempts to burn the house down with Antonia still inside.

Three years later, haunted by disturbing dreams and cryptic journal entries from her late mother, Antonia is drawn back to her childhood home when it is converted into a luxurious hotel. As Antonia confronts her fragmented memories and the dark history of the estate, she wrestles with unsettling questions she can no longer Was her mother’s death by her own hands, or was it by someone else’s?

My Thoughts

Bochica definitely had a lot going for it, but the execution fell flat for me. Despite a haunted atmosphere, creepy things that go bump in the night, secrets galore, a haunted mansion, ghosts, cryptic journals, and a mystery, nothing really happened. Nothing. I really wanted to like this one, but the whole thing fell flat, from beginning to end.

 

What I did like and appreciate were the legends and discussions about the Muisca people as I didn't really know a lot about them. Learning about the different figures that play an important role in the spiritual life of the Muisca people was fascinating, and I really wish the author had used that a bit more in the story. There was also some discussion about the impact of the Spanish colonization and how it affected the people and some of the steps they took to protect the land. However, that being said, there were also a lot of tropes being used as well to depict Indigenous peoples, some of them discombobulated and contrary to what was originally mentioned, and I did have a problem with that. If you are going to use something to be a red herring, don't use these misconceptions as that is not very impressive.  There was also a lot of discussion about women and their role in Colombian society during the 1930s and how frustrating it could be for a woman who wanted to do something different than be a wife and mother. Women's roles were very limited during this time period and I empathized with a FC who wanted to do something more with her life and felt constrained by the men around her. The idea that a woman has to become evil in order to get what she wants in society should have been discussed more in the novel as I think that was an important theme in this book.

 

Antonia herself is a strong-willed character, but she is pretty one-dimensional in nature and we don't really get to know her very well. We don't learn very much about her time in the mansion, something I thought would have been important to the story. Despite the theme of women's rights running through the book, the author chose to have Antonia in a relationship for her to get out of her situation rather than on her own merits, something I did not appreciate.  The story itself was pretty formulaic and predictable, and despite all the elements available to give one the creeps, there was actually nothing to the story.  There were many plot holes and so many things were just glossed over in such a way that the reader was supposed to just accept them. Not this reader.

 

Verdict

Bochica had a lot of potential, but more emphasis on creating a plot that the reader has to figure out rather than a reader just accepting how things are would be beneficial. I had high hopes for this book, but this definitely could have used some editing to make it more powerful.  Overall, I think this suffered from a plot full of holes, a story that had potential but essentially was more in the nature of telling you what was happening rather than letting you figure it out, and little suspense.  

 

Review: The Hollow Kind by Andy Davidson

The Hollow Kind

by Andy Davidson

Release Date: October 11, 2022

2022 MCD

Kindle Edition; 448 Pages

ISBN: 978-0374538569

ASIN: B09NTJVRPH

Audiobook: B09Q77WZSC

Genre: Fiction / Horror / Gothic

Source: Review copy from publisher

2.75 / 5 Stars

Summary

Nellie Gardner is looking for a way out of an abusive marriage when she learns that her long-lost grandfather, August Redfern, has willed her his turpentine estate. She throws everything she can think of in a bag and flees to Georgia with her eleven-year-old son, Max, in tow.

It turns out that the estate is a decrepit farmhouse on a thousand acres of old pine forest, but Nellie is thrilled about the chance for a fresh start for her and Max, and a chance for the happy home she never had. So it takes her a while to notice the strange scratching in the walls, the faint whispering at night, how the forest is eerily quiet. But Max sees what his mother can't: They're no safer here than they had been in South Carolina. In fact, things might even be worse. There's something wrong with Redfern Hill. Something lurks beneath the soil, ancient and hungry, with the power to corrupt hearts and destroy souls. It is the true legacy of Redfern Hill: a kingdom of grief and death, to which Nellie's own blood has granted her the key.

 

My Thoughts

The Hollow Kind definitely had an intriguing description, and I always gravitate to those stories about houses where something creepy is going on or has an evil legacy.  I also tend to like ambiguity, where you are not exactly sure what is happening, but go along just for the simple pleasure of reading a good story. But sometimes, that ambiguity can be a negative thing as this book just took for granted that you would get what happened without often giving enough descriptions of the event, then other events would go on for pages and pages.  And personally, I feel like some really important events fell within the ambiguous and glossed over sections.

 

The characters were okay, although none of them really had any distinct personalities, not even Nellie, I did like her character though, but preferred Max, her son, and wished the story had revolved more around him.  I didn't find the characters that difficult to keep track of, but did feel most of the secondary characters were one-dimensional and wished the author had spent a bit more time developing them so they had more distinct personalities. And character introductions were a bit of a misfire.  Suddenly, there was discussion about Agatha, and although I get it was supposed to be mysterious, the way it was thrown in didn't fit the narrative and threw me out of the story.  It was a struggle trying to piece together who she was, the role she played in the book, and how everything fit together as everything was so ambiguous.  In the end, I found her to be the most intriguing character without being give a chance to shine, if that makes sense.

 

While the writing style was a bit slow, I actually didn't mind the descriptive writing as gothic horror needs to be soaked up and absorbed, to really seep into your skin.  And the slower pace didn't really bother me, but the pacing was a bit much for me, as things that really needed development were glossed over and other events just dragged on and on, where I started losing interest and began skipping paragraphs and even pages.  It was laborious reading at times as events and people were just dropped as if you were aware of them; I had to re-read a couple of sections just to make sure I hadn't missed something important. There were some creepy moments in this book, and I do think Mrs. Redfern had the best story arc; I just wish the author had developed both of these more which would have added more tension, creepiness, and terror.  

Verdict

The Hollow Kind had some creepy moments as well as some great potential, but the story itself suffered from pacing issues, lack of character development, and ambiguous writing tactics that made it difficult for me to be fully invested in the story.  It did redeem itself somewhat with the ending, but by then, I was struggling to finish the book, and honestly, the ending was predictable and didn't offer anything new to the genre.  Overall, I feel like this was a miss for me, but I did like the writing style, even if the pacing was off, and would like to see what the author writes next. 

 

 

 

Review: Home Before Dark by Riley Sager

Home Before Dark

by Riley Sager

Release Date: June 30th 2020

2020 Dutton Books

Kindle Edition; 384 Pages

ISBN: 978-1524745172

ASIN: B07Z2TY6HV

Genre: Fiction / Paranormal

Source: Review copy from publisher

3 / 5 Stars

Summary

Twenty-five years ago, she and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. They spent three weeks there before fleeing in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a nonfiction book called House of Horrors. His tale of ghostly happenings and encounters with malevolent spirits became a worldwide phenomenon, rivaling The Amityville Horror in popularity—and skepticism.

Today, Maggie is a restorer of old homes and too young to remember any of the events mentioned in her father’s book. But she also doesn’t believe a word of it. Ghosts, after all, don’t exist. When Maggie inherits Baneberry Hall after her father’s death, she returns to renovate the place to prepare it for sale. But her homecoming is anything but warm. People from the past, chronicled in House of Horrors, lurk in the shadows. And locals aren’t thrilled that their small town has been made infamous thanks to Maggie’s father. Even more unnerving is Baneberry Hall itself—a place filled with relics from another era that hint at a history of dark deeds. As Maggie experiences strange occurrences straight out of her father’s book, she starts to believe that what he wrote was more fact than fiction.

 

My Thoughts

Home Before Dark is one of those books where my review is going to differ from more popular opinion, but I have to say, for the last half of this book, I was honestly disappointed about where I could see this story was headed.  I was hoping fervently that I was wrong, but when it ended, there it was. Having read this author before, I was expecting a bit more than what I got. 

 

What I liked: Well, you always get me with creepy haunted houses, and this one definitely had that.  I love old houses with secrets, lots of secrets, hidden passageways, things that go 'boom' in the night, stories of hauntings and previous misdeeds, lights that mysteriously turn on and off, creepy rooms, and so on.  The town itself was set in the Vermont hills and I am always down with small towns with mysterious circumstances, ever since I was small.  There is something deliciously creep about that type of setting, with old haunted houses, surrounded by creepy woods, and things that go bump in the night.

 

I even liked the way the book was written, with alternating POVs, The author is a strong writer and has this ability to sweep you in, even if you are suspicious as to the direction the book may be going.  This is probably the only reason why I kept reading as I was hoping there was going to be this big twist at the end and scare the pants off me.  Didn't happen. But even with the strong writing skills, the subject matter itself got a bit boring by the middle and I found myself drifting off and had to re-read some paragraphs which is why I had to put the book away, read something else, and come back to it later.  I think part of the problem is that I wasn't invested in the characters; there wasn't a lot of character development and I just didn't empathize with any of them. Which is too bad because I thought the book had one of the strongest starts compared to his other books. 

And now I come to the actual plot.  Unlike a majority of the reviews I read, I wasn't scared witless.  I have read a huge amount of horror and scary books as well as watched a huge array of horror films,  and this one just didn't do it for me.  For me, the whole Gothic feeling of the big, creepy, haunted house just wasn't there and I didn't get that 'hair on the nape of your neck' feeling when I am scared as I am reading and rushing through the pages to find out what is happening. I really wish it had and was disappointed that it didn't happen as I was looking for a good scare.  So many of the 'scares' used in this book were pretty standard haunted house tropes and I was really looking forward to something new and different, but it didn't happen. I think I could sense where this book was heading, hoping fervently it wouldn't go there, but that ending was ridiculous.  

Verdict

Home Before Dark was a fail for me in the suspense/horror department although I still do think this author is a strong writer and the potential is there for a really good scary Gothic book.  The book started off quite strong and I had high hopes which were dashed by the middle of the book.  And that ending was ridiculous, to say the least. This book didn't wow me at all, and I would recommend reading something else by this author first before tackling this one.

Review: Wildfell by London Clarke

Wildfell
by London Clarke
Release Date: April 27th 2018
2018 Carfax Abbey Publishing
Kindle Edition; 301 Pages
ISBN: 978-1386621218
ASIN: B07BNSBJ4W
Genre: Fiction / Horror / Gothic
Source: Review copy from publisher

3 / 5 Stars

Summary
After a traumatic experience with her graduate school professor, Anne Fleming disposes of all her possessions, boards a plane, and plans to check out of life. But a chance meeting on an international flight leads her to Wildfell, a gothic mansion north of London. At first glance, Wildfell seems like the perfect place to hide out, and Anne is intrigued by its strange atmosphere and history of disappearances and deaths. But echoing voices, ghostly mists, a mute girl with a sketchbook full of murders, and a possessive landlady force her to confront her deepest fears.


Anne's budding romance with gorgeous Irish actor Bain Tierney holds her to the house. But when Wildfell tenants begin disappearing and dying, Anne must decide if she trusts Bain. Is anyone in the house who they claim to be? Or are there are other forces at work inside Wildfell? And will they ever let her leave?

My Thoughts
Wildfell is one of those books I chose to read simply because of its cover. I'm not typically a cover girl but I have to admit I have an addiction to covers (and stories) about big scary houses and stories about them - probably stems from my childhood and then my growing fascinating with Gothic fiction in my teens.  Whatever the case, loved the house on the cover; however, the story, while somewhat interesting, didn't quite live up to that cover.

The main character, Anne Fleming, impulsively leaves her life behind after a traumatic experience with her college professor and heads to England, without a plan or a place to stay.  I never really questioned her reasons for leaving as everyone has a reason to want to hide once in a while, but I did question the amount of money she had on her in which to survive.  I've been to London and know how expensive that city is, and after all the purchases she made, what in the world did she live on?  Anne was a bit naive when it came to living in London even though she'd been on her own in college which kind of surprised me.  She was also very trusting, almost too much (part of the naivety I guess). She gets lucky when she is able to rent a room in a spooky old house at a very low fee.  Then strange things start to happen around her and residents begin to disappear.

The actual plot line was very enjoyable and I liked the spookiness of the story.  Even the background was interesting and left a lot to the imagination which is something I like.  I hate it when the author goes on for pages explaining every little thing as if the readers can't figure things out for themselves. This one hinted quite a bit and when you got the story, you had to piece it together. Love that. And dang, I still love spooky old houses.  It would have been nice to see Anne do some more of her own research as being a grad student you would have thought she'd be all over that so the author had to rely more on other characters to relate the information.  While it was an interesting way for Anne to have conversations with other characters so we could get to know them, I also felt it did a disservice to Anne and made her seem lazy and unwilling to figure out the truth herself even when she is given information with which to work by others.  

So while I did enjoy the fast plot and the interesting characters that were in this book, my main issue was with Anne herself.  Like I'd already mentioned above, she did seem a bit selfish and naive throughout the book.  And I just couldn't get past her leaving the U.S. without a plan, without lodgings, and without a lot of money.  It is London after all.  I also had a problem with the fact that we saw little character development in her character as a lot of her reflections were on her past and what sent her to London, including the way she left things there which didn't really help me like her a whole lot.  Without giving away too many spoilers, I really had a hard time imagining that she would dump all of her belongings in a dumpster and head to London, during winter, without proper clothing and a proper coat forcing her to buy the stuff here, spending her meager amount of money.  Makes no sense whatsoever.  I also had a problem with her stay - immigration would definitely have given her a harder time than they did coming over from the U.S. without a return ticket.  It would have been possible, but very difficult.  And she would have had to prove she had the money to purchase a return ticket as well as afford to stay during the time period.  And she definitely would not be able to work.  Get where I'm going with this?  I know I'm being fussy, but I've traveled extensively and I just couldn't get past it.

Verdict
Wildfell could have been so much more than it was.  I loved the setting, the house was really interesting and definitely spooky enough for me, with enough interesting moments to catch my attention.  I really wish that some of the other characters and their stories had been explored a bit more as it would have added to the tension and drama; I could glimpse it but never really caught it.  It would have been so fascinating to really involve the others, and how these characters with these issues, were all drawn together in this place.  Anne's inner monologues really got on my nerves after a while, and I was drawn to the others for some relief so it would have been nice to really learn more about them.  A good read, and basically a good story, I think those with an interest in Gothic fiction would be interested in this one, but for me, it left me somewhat dissatisfied.