Book Review: ‘The Haunting of Hill House’
Where’s the haunt in this haunted house? The vibes were promised, but they ghosted me.
What It’s About (In My Own Words)
The Haunting of Hill House by Sherley Jackson
Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House is often praised as a gothic horror classic — a masterclass in slow-burn suspense and psychological unease. At its core, it’s the story of Eleanor, a fragile, lonely woman who joins a paranormal study at the ominous Hill House with a small cast of strangers. What follows is a descent into ambiguity: is the house haunted, or is Eleanor?
That’s the idea, anyway.
I finally read The Haunting of Hill House, and… sigh.
I know, I know — it’s a cornerstone of horror, the blueprint for psychological thrillers, a revered classic. But as I turned the last page, I mostly felt like I’d been invited to a very famous party where everyone forgot to show up.
The premise is enticing: four strangers arrive at Hill House to investigate its eerie reputation. The haunted house trope? Deliciously promising. So I went in expecting to be thoroughly unsettled, ready for a creeping, atmospheric experience that would get under my skin.
What I got instead was… dialogue-heavy meandering, theatrical characters who felt plucked from a slightly offbeat stage play, and a vibe that never quite made it past “mildly eerie.”
💡 Halfway through and still waiting for a ghost? Girl, same.
The halfway point came and went with barely a chill. The house was more drafty than dreadful. The famous sense of dread? Tepid at best. (Where’s the chill? Even the house seemed bored.)
There are glimpses of Jackson’s brilliance — a chilling turn of phrase here, a haunting image there, the slow, tragic unravelling of a lonely woman — but they’re muffled beneath layers of quirky banter and vague unease that never quite lands.
And then there’s Eleanor.
She is fragile, lonely, and deeply unreliable. Jackson does something really clever with her: Eleanor doesn’t witness the haunting; in many ways, she is the haunting. Her perception distorts reality, and her inner world, filled with longing and repression, warps the narrative in subtle, insidious ways.
💡 Eleanor is one of literature’s great unreliable narrators. But instead of making me feel unease, she made me feel… vaguely irritated.
There’s something tragic about her yearning to belong, her fantasy that Hill House might finally be “home.” But it’s also hard to stay invested in a character who’s this passive — so much happens around her, but she rarely does anything. I wanted to root for her, but I mostly just wanted her to get a hotel room and a therapist.
💡 Eleanor: “Journeys end in lovers meeting.” Me: Unfortunately, my journey ended in eye-rolls and unmet expectations.
Besides, Jackson’s dialogue is quirky in a way that almost feels like theatre — not creepy theatre, but community theatre. Every character sounds like they’re in a separate play, occasionally reading each other’s lines by mistake.
Yes, there’s tension under the surface, and if you squint, you might feel the slow drip of dread. But for me? The promise of gothic horror and psychological depth gave way to tedium. The elements were all there — the mansion, the mystery, the madness — but the execution left me cold.
MOM BRAIN FILTER
As a mother, this book reminded me of the way loneliness can warp perception — how unacknowledged grief or invisibility can manifest in strange, desperate ways. Eleanor is a woman so isolated, so hungry for connection, she’ll let herself dissolve into a house that doesn’t love her back. I want Teresa to know: your worth isn’t defined by who accepts you, or where you feel “invited.” You don’t have to haunt yourself to be seen.
READ IF YOU:
Love gothic horror more for its vibes than its plot
Enjoy ambiguous, psychological narratives where the line between mind and haunting blurs
Appreciate literary prose and character studies over scares
Want to say you’ve read a classic, even if it’s more whisper than scream
SKIP IF YOU:
Crave fast-paced horror or actual ghostly encounters
Need a strong plot to stay invested
Get impatient with quirky, overly mannered dialogue
Want your haunted houses to do more than creak and groan
Crave payoff after a long build-up (because, spoiler: there isn’t much)
⭐ RULING
A gothic classic that didn’t quite haunt me. I admire Jackson’s ambition and prose, but this one felt more like a whispered suggestion than a full-bodied ghost story. If you’re hoping for chills, you might be better off watching the Netflix adaptation — at least that one brings the shivers.
If you’d like to share this book review, just use the button below.
YOUR TURN
Have you read The Haunting of Hill House? Did it work for you, or did you, like me, spend most of it waiting for the lights to flicker and the walls to bleed?
👇 Tell me your thoughts (especially if you loved it — I’m open to being convinced!).
If you enjoyed this issue, don’t forget to spread the word — the more, the merrier! I’d also love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to reach out. It helps keep this community growing and thriving.
If you’d like to support my writing, here are a few lovely ways to do it (thank you so, so much):