House of Ash and Bone by Joel A. Sutherland
Publisher: Tundra Books
Special thanks to Penguin Books for sending a copy for review.
Summary:
Seventeen-year-old Josephine Jagger is a talented writer with special abilities she doesn’t fully understand. Over the years she has developed methods to cope with the voices she hears in her head, but the old house her family has inherited in Vermont makes Josephine question what’s real and what’s not more than anything she’s ever encountered before. It’s filled with shadows, and whispers, and the unshakable feeling of being watched. Josephine then catches her first glimpse of a shadowy woman with long hair, pale skin, an impossibly wide smile and hollow pits for eyes. Her name is Dorcas, the ghost of a witch who died three hundred years ago. She has summoned the family to Vermont to ensnare them — then consume them — in order to rise from the grave and live again (Goodreads).
Thoughts:
As a history enthusiast, I loved the idea of a house being haunted by witches, but if the book had a less cliche plot, the story would be much more engaging.
The plot is very horrible. It felt like I was watching a poorly-made horror movie that relies on the occasional jump scares to make the movie interesting. The storyline includes a very typical plot that everyone should be familiar with: a family insists on living in a haunted house despite everyone telling them it’s haunted, and everyone almost dies. It is very cliche and lacks twists and turns. It feels like I have seen the same plot elsewhere. The only part that surprises me is when Josephine finally discovers Dorcas’ true identity. Other parts of the story are just countless failed attempts of jump scares, and it just gradually bored me.
A crucial part of a fascinating horror novel is probably how it successfully sends chills up your spine; however, I did not feel a single bit of fear while reading this. Scene descriptions are simply not enough. Although the book is about Dorcas the witch, I still cannot picture Dorcas’ appearance even after finishing the book. Furthermore, horror scenes are not descriptive enough that I could barely picture them in my head. For example, when Josephine is trapped in the closet by Helen, she should be afraid and paranoid; however, I did not feel a single trace of horror, nor can I imagine the fear Josephine should have felt in a completely dark environment while being devoid of any senses.
I do like Dorcas’ lore, which talks about why Dorcas is viewed as a witch and how she is connected to the disappearances of a few people in town. I enjoyed the parts where Josephine tries to uncover the mystery of Dorcas’ background; for example, as she was accused of witchcraft, this led to her hatred towards everyone in the village and ultimately her death. I also find the figurative idea that the haunted house is a part of her body very intriguing: Dorcas dies if the house disappears, and the house disappears if Dorcas dies. Her lore is very interesting and creative. It is the only reason that kept me reading the book.
Overall, I do not recommend this book to anyone who seeks a thrilling horror novel. The book has been rather disappointing with its poor plot and dull scenes; however, Dorcas’ lore was the only captivating thing.
Reviewed by Kiki F.