The Haunting of Ashburn House

Finally...a Darcy Coates book where I'm not frustrated or left wanting by a character. Why stick around then? Because she really does write a good story. This isn't technically a haunted house story but I really enjoyed it nonetheless. The first half definitely had a creepy factor...unless you aren't the type to be creeped out by old houses left to you by a great aunt you never met and upon entering said house you see weird things but you can't ask anyone in the very small town because she was apparently eccentric and people steered cleared of her and her creepy house...but then why are you here?
I definitely enjoyed where it went. I even liked the ending. So i'm quite happy with that because this would have been the last Darcy book i'd have read otherwise.

ONE SPOILER!

I gotta say this book caught me by surprise. I'd say that reading the first half of the book was not that intriguing to me. I started the think I'd give it the same rating, or possibly lower, that I gave “The Haunting of Blackwood House” (which I didn't like much) due to similar problems or issues I found. Like I said though, I was pleasantly surprised.

The story and history of the haunt was definitely interesting and I really enjoyed it. My favorite part was how the “ghost” was portrayed as more of a zombie like creature, which caught me off guard. I really liked that, it was different from what I have read and I thought it was nice twist. The very end was also pretty sweet. While I wasn't feeling it towards the beginning, I found myself slowly enjoying the story as it went on and when the ending came, I was satisfied.

Maybe a 3.5 but rounded up.

Overall I really enjoyed it, especially the unraveling of the family lore.

However, the inconsistent tone, uneven pacing, and clunky dialogue stuck out for me.

Would definitely read more Coates' books, especially if I'm feeling like an easy, creepy read.

Something that I did find kind of amusing... the audiobook has an American narrator, and for the most part it sounds like it's supposed to be set in the north America (maybe not, just the impression that I got), but then some expressions, dialogue, or wording was so Australian that it suck out like a sore thumb, especially when spoken with an American accent. Made me chuckle.

Okay, What the heck happened?! This book made me a fan of Darcy Coates and she is now an auto-buy author for me. I loved this story from start to finish and I loved the characters both in town and at Ashburn. You meet Adrienne, who moves to Ashburn House after a family member dies( I believe it was her aunt or grandma). The mansion is crumbling and the town is full of rumors about it and its past owners. As Adrienne investigates, she learns more about the deaths of her ancestors at Ashburn while also struggling to figure out when she needs to keep lighting a candle on Friday night.

Towards the end, you find that the murder of her ancestors came at the hands of one of their daughters, who has since been buried on the property. She comes to life again trying to take back Ashburn but Adrienne isn't willing to give up the house she is making that quickly. It is the story of her survival while being attacked by the monster who is a former family member. Oh and for certain readers info, THE CAT DOES NOT DIE.

This is a fun entry in the hunted house genre. It had moments were it literally raised the hair in my arms. There is an aspect where it escalates a little too quickly. It goes from slow build dread to a sudden life-or-death struggle for the remainder of the book. But outside of this jump, it was a very satisfying and often scary book.