Title: Gallant

Author: V.E. Schwab

Publisher: Greenwillow Books 2022

Genre: YA Fantasy/Horror

Pages: 334

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

Olivia Prior has grown up in Merilance School for Girls, and all she has of her past is her mother’s journal—which seems to unravel into madness. Then, a letter invites Olivia to come home to Gallant. Yet when Olivia arrives, no one is expecting her. But Olivia is not about to leave the first place that feels like home; it doesn’t matter if her cousin Matthew is hostile, or if she sees half-formed ghouls haunting the hallways.

Olivia knows that Gallant is hiding secrets, and she is determined to uncover them. When she crosses a ruined wall at just the right moment, Olivia finds herself in a place that is Gallant—but not. The manor is crumbling, the ghouls are solid, and a mysterious figure rules over all. Now Olivia sees what has unraveled generations of her family, and where her father may have come from.

Olivia has always wanted to belong somewhere, but will she take her place as a Prior, protecting our world against the Master of the House? Or will she take her place beside him?

Perfect creepy house story for the week. I love a good atmospheric haunted house story imbued with a constant state of dread. This one did not disappoint. We are sucked in within the first chapter to the mystery of Olivia, her mother’s journal, and all those ghosts she sees. And then we arrive at her mother’s birth house and things get really creepy. This story isn’t super gory, but has all the creepy elements that I really enjoy in a haunted house book. We get mysterious statues and portraits, a family secret, silent ghosts appearing everywhere, and a creepy man beyond the wall. I sped through this book shivering the entire time. Schwab has created a masterful book that I wish I had read in October (well, only a little bit, I loved reading it in June also).

Next up on the TBR pile: