How to Sell A Haunted House
Grady Hendrix
5 Stars
After the tragic death of her parents Louise goes back to her childhood home that she has avoided since college. She begrudgingly flies back home, leaving her young daughter with her father, after dropping the bombshell that her grandparents had passed away. The funeral passes with much drama, but in a matter that Louise's mother truly would have loved. When Mark is left everything, Louise is devastated. Knowing he will just waste the money on some random venture while living his laissez faire lifestyle.
After some convincing from her cousin Mark agrees to split the money with Louise so she can use it for her daughter Poppy.
Her and her brother Mark must now work together to get the house ready to sell, but one thing stands in the way, it's clearly haunted. Louise doesn't quite believe it, but as her and Mark clean out the house long buried memories start to resurface. Mark's disdain for Louise becomes clear and the two end up working together against the evil that lurks in the house.
Her mother's favorite puppet Pupkin seems to be pulling all the strings. Making the other dolls in the house act up, and lash out at Louise and Mark. After Louise tries to pretend nothing is happening and stays the night in the house, Mark must save her and the two decide to destroy Pupkin once and for all. But this leads to even more terror as they realize not only is he more powerful than they can imagine, but he has been controlling those around him for their entire lives.
My favorite so far of Hendrix's stories. I never thought I would thoroughly enjoy a book with creepy haunted dolls considering how much I avoid them in my media consumption. The book is well written with twists and turns you don't expect keeping the reader engaged for the entire book. I didn't even find the middle section slow although it was a little slow to start. I was putting the pieces together at the same time as Louise and didn't find out the twist until a few pages before she did. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a paranormal read.