I picked up The Haunting of Hill House on yet another whim at my local library. I guess I just wasn’t ready to let Halloween die.

The book is well written and the characters are more than just plot devices. The protagonist Eleanor is one of the most peculiar characters I’ve read in a while. She has psychological issues and might not be a good person. She steals her sister’s car in the beginning of the book for example.

She also might be one of the most personally relatable characters for me. Early on she will marvel at herself with how well she’s fitting in with the group. She’ll also simultaneously be jealous at the perceived ease some of the others have at making conversation. As an awkward, yet extraverted type myself, I’ve had this exact self doubting inner conversation way too many times. I’ve been at parties and trying so hard not to say anything stupid or look foolish that I’m almost having an out of body experience. I’ll analyze every word and gesture I make - as I’m actively making them. Then I’m looking over at a friend carrying on without a care and wondering “how the hell do you do it?”

I thought the book was good, even great. But a lot of reviews have called it the best haunted house novel ever written. I wasn’t moved that much. The beginning was definitely creepy with a great sense of dread. Ultimately that ends up fizzling out about half way through the book when I realized none of the horror events in the house were going to have any stakes to them. The characters will have a strange encounter, but nothing actually bad ends up happening. I felt the book lacked tension. Maybe I’m harder to scare when reading.

Great descriptions, intriguing characters, and some solid atmosphere still makes this a great Halloween novel.