I Should Read That

Book review¹

William Thorn had his life all planned out… until his long-term boyfriend Archie cheats, breaking his heart. Distraught, William kicks him out of their home, where tragedy strikes when Archie is killed instantly in a car accident.

Riddled with guilt, William is shocked to learn that he’s inherited a manor in the quaint village of Stonewall, left to him in Archie’s will. He leaves the city with plans to make a new start for himself, but is surprised by the rundown state of the manor, and the unwelcoming villagers who want him gone. His only ally is Edward, a seemingly friendly local with secrets of his own.

However, it’s not only the villagers who are adverse to his presence. A malevolent spirit roams the manor, one that seeks to drive William out for good. But when he uncovers the heartbreaking tale of two men in love in the 1930’s, William strives to find peace for the spirit, ending the haunting once and for all.

But what dark secrets lie hidden in the manor walls? And will William be able to put aside his own grief to save his new home…and his life?

I love nothing more than a haunted house book, and The Haunting of William Thorn caught my eye immediately. While this book definitely has some weaknesses, it’s a really good read and I and tore through it in late-night reading sessions (a bad idea, given the number of genuinely scary moments).

This book is (sort of) told in a dual timeline format – we have our main story in the present and a series of journal entries set in the past. I really enjoyed this format, which allowed for the secrets of the past to be revealed slowly and effectively. And the horror bits? Oh my goodness. I imagine the author drew a lot of inspiration from The Haunting of Hill House (the TV show rather than the book). There are a lot of scenes that seem to be homages to the show, and he does a great job of delivering tension and scares through the haunting. I read quite a lot of this book late at night and I found myself jumping at shadows.

I do think that there are a few places this book didn’t quite work as well as it could have. I think the author tried to do too much – there were so many storylines and they got a bit tangled at times. Ina few instances, the impact of individual storylines were dampened as they were set aside for a long period of time in favour of another plot line. I wonder if cutting one storyline was cut, it would have made the overall book flow a little better.

I really enjoyed William’s character, even through he made me want to hit my head against a wall from time to time. He’s complicated and traumatised and trying to hold it all together. He’s frustrating, but understandably so – who among us would handle living in a haunted house, especially with all of his trauma? I did find his dialogue with Edward to be a little clunky and their chemistry just didn’t quite get there for me, but I really loved William on his own, especially the way his story arc plays out by the end of the book.

The Haunting of William Thorn is a genuinely scary new horror book with a dash of romance. If you are looking for book steeped in family history and secrets, I’d recommend you check it out when it releases in September.

1. Many thanks to Angry Robot for sending me a copy of this book via NetGalley ↩︎