Hell House

Rating:
Summary: An amusing, page turning farce
Review: It was worth the cost of the book. I bought "I am Legend" at the same time and read that one first, so "Hell House" was a disappointment by comparison. The characters were a little too much like common archetypes. Some of the supernatural occurences were actually ludicrous rather than scary. With a title like "Hell House" the author seems to already be fighting an uphill battle to live up to that. In spite of its shortcomings I was still wanting to know what happend next. The lesbian activities gave it an extra star for my review. Richard Matheson is a master storyteller and this book keeps you going. A decent work of fiction, far from a masterpiece.

Rating:
Summary: TERRIFYING AND SCARY but is too graphic and offensive
Review: I have wanted to read this book for years and was thrilled to discover it available here. I had seen the movie before reading the book and enjoyed it immensly. This book has a lot of strange soft porn in it that was definitely absent from the movie. I didn't think it added anything to the story. I found the book genuinely frightening and mean-spirited. Particularly the fate of the poor medium Florence really struck me as horrible. I think the author simply goes to far. He certainly manages to shock, I don't want to give the plot away but I found the death in the chapel of one of the main characters so distasteful and shocking that I almost stopped reading right there. I found the ending of the book particularly frustrating. It was too simplified. I think it would have been better and made more sense if everythign weren't so spelled out (and in such a ridiculous way). I am a fan of horror novels and movies but I wouldn't recommend this book. The movie is MUCH MUCH Better and less offensive.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome
Review: I read the reviews for the book online and it sounded really good so i ordered it... it was so awesome, I loved it! If you like scary books, you'll love this one. It wasn't really anything like the movie, it was so much better! The whole thing was just really well written!

Rating:
Summary: An over-rated read
Review: I read this book hoping to be scared and amused. Unfortunately, I was amused, but for all the wrong reasons. This book is a collection of flat characters, and cliches which actually had me rolling my eyes at certain parts. The ending, which i will not disclose for those who haven't read "Hell House", was too convinient and neatly packaged, as well as ridiculous. I recommend "I am Ledgend" to readers who will better appreciate a scientific explanation of the supernatural that is suspenseful as well as entertaining.

Rating:
Summary: A Good Classic to Keep on Your Bookshelf
Review: I didn't care for the characters too much, except for the psychic who lived to tell about his experience. The rest I thought were cliches of the 50s. The story and its premise, I thought, were great and the way he describes the horrific scenes is brilliant. The ending was surprising in its simplicity.

Rating:
Summary: Great, but I liked the movie a little better...
Review: Although someone mentioned that the movie "The Legend of Hell House" was written word for word from the book, I would say that is only partially true. The book does give a bit more insight, but I would have to say that I was more impressed with the film version. To me, Belasco house was more suited to a bleak English countryside than...Maine? Also I liked the character of Florence Tanner in the film much better; she wasn't very young or virginal in the book, and I thought that aspect of the film gave her more depth. A good read, though, and scary, even after viewing the film.

Rating:
Summary: One of the Best!
Review: A real horror pageturner;which is so rare these days. I am so thankful that it was re-issued in paperback!

Rating:
Summary: An above average horror read.
Review: Matheson does a great job of creating suspense from the first paragraph to the ending climax. I thought I knew what was going on untill the very last chapter and I was totally shocked at how the story ended. The lush descriptions transported all of my senses to the fog shrouded Hell House property. It usually takes me at least a month to read an averge sized novel (approx. 300 pages), it only took me three days to finish Hell House. I loved this story.

Rating:
Summary: Horribly Disturbing
Review: I couldn't wait to read what was going to happen next. If I could make one suggestion, don't watch the 1974 movie version first. It is exactly the way the book is-word for word. So when I read the book, there was no deviation and so it left me kind of bored.

Rating:
Summary: One of the best Ghost Stories I have ever read
Review: Hell House is a very scary novel no doubt. But the real thing that makes it work is the amount of detail the author put into it. Richard Matheson really went out and did a lot of research on the subject of haunted houses. There is really onl one downside to this book and that is the fact that the Ghost is actaully the most interesting character. Maybe it isn't a downside, but you would think that the protagonist would be the most interesting character.

Despite that minor flaw, the book still deserves the five star rating that I and many others have given it.