In the Shadow of Spindrift House

Grant does an exceptional job making us care about these 4 teenage investigators right at the beginning. So when they get to Spindrift we get nervous for them. We get answers about the house and there are still a few details that kept me thinning after I finished the book. But that strength of character follows through the whole book. So by the end I was full of warring emotions. Grant is becoming a favorite author.

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Mira Grant has written some of my favorite stories. Have you read The Newsflesh Series or Parasitology? If not, you should. Both are fantastic. Grant has a way of writing aspects of the horror genre that humanize it. For instance, in Newsflesh, the main antagonist is zombies. But, more than that, it is the yoke of our fears as a society. Instead of a typical zombie yarn, we have a story that is very human and one the reader can empathize. In Parasitology, we have science and technology run amok — again a story with horror aspects that can be empathized within our technology-driven world.

The ability to empathize or care about the main characters is entirely missing in The Shadow of The Spindrift House.

It doesn't make it a bad book — it's typical and humdrum. What could have been exciting and terrifying is boring and predictable. I still liked it; I gave it a three out of five stars. It is still a serviceable book. But, it is no way up to par with Grant's other books. It is a typical haunted house story, with slightly stupid characters that make predictable mistakes and choices and pay for their decisions with deadly consequences. If the book was longer and Grant had more of a chance for significant exposition on her characters and more worldbuilding with the house, it would have been much better. As it stands, though, it feels short and a bit choppy.

If you are looking for a haunted house book to whittle away at for an hour or two, it isn't bad. But only if you are hard up for something to read in that genre. Otherwise, pick up The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson or Room 1408 by Stephen King.