The Haunting of Hill House

Rating:
Summary: This is the most frightening book I've ever read.
Review: I must have read this book fifty times. It is the best literary scare I know. Shirley Jackson was a genius. Somehow she was able to take simple things and, by magic, turn them into horror. The Haunting of Hill House is a great ghost story, but it even scarier as a comment on contemporary alienation, the search for love and belonging, the sadness of fitting in

Rating:
Summary: One of the best haunted-house tales; tops for Halloween
Review: This genuinely creepy novel in the classic ghost-story tradition earns its chills the old-fashioned way: subtly. Its horrors are suggested and largely unseen, yet the carefully crafted sentences cause mounting unease until the suprising and yet completely apt finale. Besides being one of the best haunted-house novels, it's also a memorable portrait of an emotionally stifled woman's mental breakdown, akin to Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper." Jackson was one of our best prose stylists; read the opening paragraph of this one, and you'll see what I mean.

Rating:
Summary: A SUPER DELUXE SPINECHILLING GHOST STORY
Review: No doubt about it, Shirley Jackson was a master of her craft! "The Haunting of Hill House" is a work of sheer genius in that it preys on the mind in subtle, subconscious ways. Eleanor is a homeless woman of 32 who spent 11 years caring for her invalid mother; she has had no real life of her own. Dr. Montague is a doctor of philosophy and he has invited Eleanor among two others to an old country estate called Hill House to explore psychic phenomena within it's walls. The opening lines are justly famous among horror story afficianados. Theodora is cheeky and funny, a carefree psychic whose personality contrasts interestingly with Eleanor's. Luke Sanderson is weak and spoiled and Dr. Montague is serious and responsible for the well-being of all concerned during their stay in the creepy New England pile. The novel was written in a magical, dreamy and poetic style which is uniquely Jackson. There is the part where Theo and Eleanor witness a family having a picnic in the daylight when it is in reality night! This novel is enjoying a revival of interest since it's publication in 1959 due to the remake of "The Haunting" and many young people are getting acquainted with this uniquely gifted writer's magical storytelling. Brilliant!

Rating:
Summary: Not sure what all of the fuss is about...
Review: I had heard for so long how intellectually scary this book was so I was really looking forward to reading it. However, I started and finished in in about 3 days and thought I had missed the point, was there another section to the book I skipped? This book was not scary at all, in fact, I kept waiting to be gripped by whatever it is that haunts the house, but nothing happened. First of all the plot was not well-developed, I wasn't sure exactly what was going on during the "scary" parts as Jackson never let on...sometimes this can be a good thing as you are forced to let your mind wander, but in this case, there were no details except for some writing on the wall and some whispers and knocks on the door. It was never explained what else was going on, why was Eleanor's name up there...was it supposed to be like the Jack Torrance situation in "The Shining"? If so, that point was completely missed. Also, if I had to read that thought that kept going through Eleanor's mind "journeys end in lovers meeting" without it being relevant at all to the situation she was in at the time, I was going to pull all of my hair out. I really have no idea what people are talking about when they say this was the "most thrilling" book they've ever read....it was boring and confusing and left me yearning for a truly good intellectual horror story.

Rating:
Summary: thinker
Review: though the book does leave you a little dissapointed from the lack of frightening scenarios it does make you think. From the beginning you have anticipation for something frightening then it leads you with an explanation that you have to think for.

Rating:
Summary: Boring, boring, boring
Review: Our book club at work just completed reading this book and for the life of us no one could figure out what all the fuss was about. Nobody found this book remotely scary and the only mysterious things about it was trying to figure out what personality would be inhabiting the main characters from page to page. The only thing that kept one member reading was the hope that the simmering lesbian relationship between Eleanor and Theodora would blossom.

Rating:
Summary: A classic every horror fan should read
Review: Shirley Jackson wrote this tale with talent. Jackson weaves an intriguing tale that goes slowly but smoothly through the motions. The book isn't filled with creepy scenarios, but when they do happen, they're big. Mainly The Haunting of Hill House
is a character driven story, focusing on the internal issues of each character, mainly Eleanors.

The ending was a surprise, leaving me feel a hollow feeling in my chest. Although it's not filled with action, The Haunting of hill house is disturbing and will keep the reader enthralled. Check it out.

Rating:
Summary: Worth revisiting
Review: Rereading this classic haunted house story does not disappoint. I found it just as chilling and engrossing as the first time around. Who can forget the subtle, and therefore all the more chilling, images: the writing on the walls; the doors bulging inward; clasping hands with some unknown thing in the dark? And the ambiguity only ramps up the horror -- was Hill House truly haunted, or were the unexplained events ony the product of a fragile mind belonging to a girl who believed that, at long last, she had finally found a home? Do yourself a favor. Visit Hill House again -- or for the first time -- sometime soon.

Rating:
Summary: Nothing thrilling about this thriller.
Review: "The Haunting of Hill House" is not a horror, mystery, or psychological thriller. It is a complete bore. I could not understand Eleanor at all. One minute she was confident about herself, the next minute self-conscious. She liked Theo and Luke, and then despised them; I don't understand why she felt so close to the house. There were no super natural experiences, aside from thumping on the door. I felt this story was a total waste of time, and petty. The movie "The Haunted" is very loosely based on this book (same character names, different circumstances, but much more interesting), and I suggest you see it instead. This book is nowhere near a classic. I do not recommend.

Rating:
Summary: A Quaint Gothic!!!
Review: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson actually had chills
running up and down my spine. As others have said it isn't scary,
it's just mysteriously suspenseful.

Dr. Montague is a doctor of philosophy, who one day,
decides to conduct an experiment, and invite several people to spend a few weeks at a house which he knows to be haunted.

Eleanor is a loner, and I'd say a little unbalanced, to
begin with. She is one of those invited to this house. The 32 year old woman would have been better off not spending this time in the house.

I haven't read a book this good in a long time, and this
reviewer gives The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson five
stars:)