The Whispering House by Elizabeth Brooks

Title: The Whispering House

Author: Elizabeth Brooks

Publisher: Tin House Books 2021

Genre: Gothic Fiction

Pages: 380

Rating: 2/5 stars

Reading Challenges: MMD; Summer TBR

Freya Lyell is struggling to move on from her sister Stella’s death five years ago. Visiting the bewitching Byrne Hall, only a few miles from the scene of the tragedy, she discovers a portrait of Stella—a portrait she had no idea existed, in a house Stella never set foot in. Or so she thought.

Driven to find out more about her sister’s secrets, Freya is drawn into the world of Byrne Hall and its owners: charismatic artist Cory and his sinister, watchful mother. But as Freya lingers in this mysterious, centuries-old house, her relationship with Cory crosses the line into obsession and the darkness behind the locked doors of the estate threatens to spill out.

In prose as lush and atmospheric as Byrne Hall itself, Elizabeth Brooks weaves a simmering, propulsive tale of art, sisterhood, and all-consuming love: the ways it can lead us toward tenderness, nostalgia, and longing, as well as shocking acts of violence.

Such high hopes for this one… and it fell so flat for me. Anne Bogel told me that this one was for fans of Mexican Gothic and Jane Eyre. I was sold after hearing that. But right away, I had less gothic vibes and more unreliable narrator. I was not a fan of Freya from page one and she just got worse at the book went on. And then the story begins to get very muddled and I started to have problems understanding what exactly was happening. Every scene with Cory took on this dreamlike quality that I wasn’t excited about. Instead, I just kept yelling at Freya for every stupid decision. And the plot got very silly and I just couldn’t enjoy myself. Boring.

Next up on the TBR pile:

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Title: We Have Always Lived in the Castle

Author: Shirley Jackson

Publisher: Penguin Classics 2006

Genre: ? fiction?

Pages: 146

Rating:   5 / 5 stars

Reading Challenges: May Read and Review; 2011 - Slim Pickings; A to Z: J

Hands down one of the creepiest books I've ever read.  There's no gore or jump up scary moments.  No demons or ghosts, at least not in the traditional sense.  But there's definitely something completely off about this book... and I loved it!

Jackson creates this world where we're never really sure what's real and what's imagined.  There's a mystery, but one that isn't central to the relationships.  It's more of a plot device.  The part that got me was the daily schedule of the Blackwell sisters.  Their created world apart from the village and the city.  The atmosphere in the house.  The descriptions of the rooms.  The repeating conversations, especially from Uncle Julian.  There were times that I wanted to put the book down, it was just too disturbing, and yet I desperately wanted to finish and find out what happened to the sisters.  The ending shouldn't have really surprised me, it made sense for the story.  Yet I was left hoping for something else.  But in a good way.  I wished the sisters' lives could have been different, but given their personalities and history, it could never have been different.

I absolutely loved "The Lottery" and "The Haunting" by Jackson, but somehow I never picked this one up.  I decided to read it for my 2011: Slim Pickings challenge, but I would've gotten around to it just because anyway.  This was a nice departure from zombies and contemporary romance.  Next up: Steampunk!

And I might I say, the cover.... extra creepy!