Rating: 
Summary: one of the scariest novels ever written
Review: i read this book a while ago and eargerly awaited the movie--there was so much potential in the characters and the ominous and unexplained happenings in the house. The film missed that subtlty (something the blair witch project really tapped in to) This is one of the most tighlty written intriguing pieces of horror i think i have ever read--one gets completely sucked into the world of the charcters and of the evil and diseased hill house. Please please please read this book if you saw the movie and thought that it was cheesy, Shirley Jackson's work is anything but!!
Rating: 
Summary: Not worth the read
Review: After seeing the new released 1999 movie The Haunting I decided to buy the book. The book was nothing like the movie at all. Totally very boring, large vocabulary of words and totally meaningless to people who want to be entertained with what they read instead of trying to figure out what is written. Halfway through the book I decided to just finish it to see how it ended and the book had nothing to do with how the movie was written. So just skip this book and see the movie. The special effects in the movie outweigh the words on paper.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic book...I could not put it down
Review: The Haunting of Hill House is I believe the scariest book I have ever read, not because the ghosts were so terrifying or the house was so alive , but because the characters were so real,and so believable. The movie (The Haunting) is from someone else's mind why they say it is based on Ms.Jackson's book is beyond me... I read The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle and many of her short stories in two days and thouroughly enjoyed them all, it is a shame we lost Ms.Jackson at such a young age as her mind was brilliant and there would have been many wonderful stories for her to tell. p.s. I slept with the lights on
Rating:
Summary: ONE OF BEST BOOKS IVE EVER READ
Review: I READ THIS BOOK MANY YEARS AGO, AND STILL RELATE, HOW,AFTER HAVING TO STAY UP ONE NIGHT AFTER ALL MY FAMILY WAS ALREADY IN BED ASLEEP, TO FINISH IT, BECAUSE I COULDNT PUT IT DOWN, I WAS SO SPOOKED, I RAN FROM THE LIVING ROOM TO MY BED....THIS WAS A GROWN WOMAN WITH HUSBAND AND CHILDREN....I DO PLAN ON READING IT AGAIN....MAYBE IT WONT BE SO SCARY THIS TIME!!!!!
Rating: 
Summary: THE MOVIE MAY HAVE BEEN A FLOP, BUT THE BOOK IS AMAZING
Review: I usually read the book first, before I see a movie. This way I know what the plot is. Don't read the book and then think the movie's near as interesting. The movie was a complete flop, there was no story about the characters, and no suspence leading to the "BIG MOMENTS". Which were more childish then anything. Do read the book, it's very well written, I realy enjoyed it. I couldn't put it down. It took me only 2 days to finish it, and now everyone wants to borrow it because the stores are sold out of copies. A very chilling tale, that let's your imagination take control of your mind. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did.
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Summary: Why is this book a classic?
Review: I ordered this book on the basis of the 5-star reviews I read at this site. So many people were writing that this is the ultimate, most critically-acclaimed haunted house story ever written, etc. I am easily spooked and was a little leery of even reading it! Boy, was I in for a surprise.The problem is that nothing--NOTHING--that happens in this book shocked me. To me, everything in the book is a cliche, from the gathering of the group at the outset of the book, to the self-closing doors, to the phantom blood-smearing, to the weirded-out housekeeper (a la Frau Blucher!), the pounding, the footsteps,the laughter, etc etc, ad nauseum. All these devices seem so worn out. My question is, did Shirley Jackson INVENT all these now-common plot events? I am not a reader of old horror, and I don't know. If she DID invent all these devices, and if everyone else has been copying her for the last 50 years, then this truly is a classic. If she did NOT invent them, then this book is one big cliche and a huge waste of your time and money. That being said, I must admit the character of Elanor was fascinating, and the blurring of what is really happening vs. what she may be imagining is very well done. By the way, the ending is foreshadowed in the fourth section of chapter three. The only surprise at the end of this book is that it apparently is supposed to be a surprise ending! I may donate my copy to the local high school, I am sure I will never need to read it again.
Rating:
Summary: I guess I just don't get it.......
Review: I saw the original movie version of this story when I was about 10 years old and still remember that it scared the daylights out of me. I guess I was expecting the book to be as scary but I saw nothing scary or even interesting about this book. It had little substance and was too short to be a good read. Frankly not worth the money I paid for the paperback.
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Summary: Chilling suspense!
Review: I read this book as a teenager and it scared me to death! Though it is more than 20 years since I've read it (I'm reading it again this summer) I can still remember passages that scared me. Forget the comments about "a slow read!" This is what all horror and suspense novels should aspire to, and so few achieve!
Rating:
Summary: Don't Buy this Book
Review: This book is very over-rated. The characters were underdeveloped and seemed really fake. The scary parts were very dull and the last half of the book was awful. Anyone who believes that this is a true horror classic should read the The Turn of the Screw.
Rating:
Summary: Scarier than the movie
Review: Shirley Jackson tells the tale of Hill House and the four "seekers" in a masterful style. It was truly scary when I read it. Although it did leave many questions unanswered, it leaves room for your imagination to answer the questions. In fact, someone else might write a continuation of the book. (Shirley Jackson can't, though- she's dead) See both versions of the movie. Don't expect to be scared out of your wits- but if you still see movies just for FUN, see The Haunting. P.S. Read the book at night!
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