Review of The Haunting of Ashburn House

Blurb: Everyone knows about Ashburn House. They whisper its old owner went mad, and restless ghosts still walk the halls. They say it's the dwelling place of something cruel and sinister. But when Adrienne―desperate and in need of a place to stay―inherits the crumbling old mansion, she only sees it as a lifeline... until darkness falls. Strange messages are etched into the walls. Furniture moves when she leaves the room. There's something here―something powerful, angry, and hell-bent on shaking things up. Worse, a grave hidden in the depths of the forest hints at a terrible, unforgivable secret. Eventually Adrienne can't ignore that a twisted thing lives in the house, its hungry eyes ever-watchful. Chasing the threads of a decades-old mystery, it isn't long before she realizes she's become prey to something deeply unnatural and intensely resentful. She has no idea how to escape. She has no idea how to survive. Only one thing is Ashburn's dead are not at rest.

Review: Adrienne has lost her mother and has no money or anywhere to live. She inherits an old Victorian, Ashburn House, from a great-aunt she never met. Strange things are written on the walls and she feels like she's being watched. The townspeople think the place is haunted, but the truth is so much worse than just a tricky ghost. Adrienne attempts to uncover the mystery and survive whatever horror is stalking her at night.

This is a standalone horror novel which I would put in the New Adult (NA) category as Adrienne is an adult but really hasn't found herself in life yet. Though she hasn't had the time as she was supporting her mother who had cancer. Adrienne is the only narrator, but I know very little about her except she likes to read, she loves her cat, and she's not very curious. She inherited this amazing old house and didn't want to explore it. She planned to live there, but not explore? The author does try to keep Adrienne rational and have her make smart choices, which I can very much appreciate, but it doesn't work out. I don't feel like I knew the protagonist at all.

It was the mystery that kept me reading and it provided a nice spooky twist. A family gruesomely murdered many decades ago and the one surviving child. Adrienne's deceased great-aunt left her the house and was apparently reclusive and mean. There was a mysterious light in the attic for years and the folks in town think it was a ghost. So the house is haunted, in a way. Without giving much away, it's more of a witchy undead type of story.

You can find Darcy Coates on her site and buy the book here.

This will probably be my last horror book of the year. It's been a great year for spooky reads, and I've discovered different things give me goosebumps than what used to years ago. I'm on track with my Goodreads reading challenge too. What about you?