Synopsis:
A new house in a suburban Atlanta neighborhood spells disaster for all its inhabitants.
Review:
It’s awfully hard to be frightened when you’re sitting on a rooftop deck in West Hollywood, letting the setting sun dry your bathing suit after discovering that you can float like a cork in the saltwater pool.
But boy, oh, boy, did Anne Rivers Siddons come close.
The House Next Door is a classic haunting story. Evil house, unsuspecting occupants, chaos ensues. It’s so simple–the best gothic tales always are–but the rich characters and deft plotting create a depth in which the horror grows like kudzu. Smother and destroy.
In addition to giving a good scare, Rivers Siddons has also crafted a perceptive slice of Americana, making it easy to see why Stephen King admires this book so much. The voices she creates for her characters are homegrown and distinctly American, just like his are, and there’s so much pleasure to be found in the nuances of their interactions that the scares are that much more shocking. They sneak up on you while you’re enjoying the way the characters gossip and bicker and persevere and love.
So in that sense, it makes perfect sense that I read the book in the distinctly un-Gothic California sun. Just like the ultramodern brand-new house that destroys the lives of the families that try to call it home, the book shines with a seductive radiance.
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9 responses so far ↓
1 Eva // Jul 27, 2007 at 4:37 am
Oooohhhh-I’ve been looking for a good scary story lately. This one is definitely going on the short list!
I’ve tagged you for the blogging tips meme-feel free to play or not play. If you want to, the post is http://astripedarmchair.blogsp.....-meme.html
2 Heather // Jul 31, 2007 at 7:30 am
Thank you so much for reviewing this—it sounds right up my alley!
3 Superfast Reader // Jul 31, 2007 at 8:25 am
It’s awfully good–
4 Oh, Horror! (Booking Through Thursday) + Question from a Reader // Nov 1, 2007 at 9:21 am
[...] like Clive Barker–definitely not for me. The horror novels I’ve enjoyed this year were The House Next Door by Anne Rivers Siddons and The Harrowing by Alexandra Sokoloff. Anything more intense than that and [...]
5 Sheri // Dec 4, 2007 at 11:51 am
I read this right after I read The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson for Carl V.’s challenge. I really liked it. The house seems so alluring, seductive even…Reminded me a little of Poltergiest, which is one of my fav horror movies of all time.
Love your blog – adding it to my blogroll!
6 stephanie // Aug 16, 2008 at 7:16 am
just saw the movie. normally im not into books that are made into movies because they take away a lot of elements, but i saw the movie before i realized it was based off a book. the movie was awsome. now that i know its a book im gonna have to get it. if you have read the book get the movie. (itunes) . cant wait to read. i love spooky books and the supernatural!!!
7 Superfast Reader // Aug 16, 2008 at 7:43 am
Oh, wow–I didn’t realize it was a movie!
8 Faux Stone // Oct 30, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Man this book was scary, reminds of this house I painted once. This house looked like any other mansion but we had to stay over there and it give me and my wife really bad dreams and she saw ghost like 5 times. The owners didn’t think anything of it but when I told there daughter she said that her friend that had stayed there had told her the same thing as she turned white. Worst of all it was her studio apt above the garage that had all the activity. Long story but my wife saw a murder that happened a long time ago.
9 Nearly drowning in delight. « Bookseller By Night // Apr 5, 2010 at 1:41 pm
[...] Annie’s Book Stop, I recently found two new-to-me titles from authors among my old favorites. THE HOUSE NEXT DOOR by Anne Rivers Siddons spoke to the same domestic gothic part of me that spurs my annual re-read of [...]
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