Review--The Haunted by Danielle Vega

 

From Danielle Vega, YA’s answer to Stephen King, comes a new paranormal novel about dark family secrets, deep-seated vengeance, and the horrifying truth that evil often lurks in the unlikeliest of places.

Hendricks Becker-O’Malley is new in town, and she’s bringing baggage with her. With a dark and wild past, Hendricks doesn’t think the small town her parents moved her to has much to offer her in terms of excitement. She plans on laying low, but when she’s suddenly welcomed into the popular crowd at school, things don’t go as expected.

Hendricks learns from her new friends that the fixer-upper her parents are so excited about is notorious in town. Local legend says it’s haunted. Hendricks doesn’t believe it. Until she’s forced to. Blood-curdling screams erupt from the basement, her little brother wakes up covered in scratches, and something, or someone pushes her dad down the stairs. With help from the mysterious boy next door, Hendricks makes it her mission to take down the ghosts . . . if they don’t take her first.

 

I've been meaning to read Danielle Vega's The Haunted for a long time now and thought this was the perfect time of year to give it a go! And boy was it! If you're looking for a classic haunted house story, this is it! While I wish there might have been more of a buildup and explanation of the "haunting" part, I still found this to be an enjoyable story.

Hendricks and her family just moved into a rather stately manor, her parents are in the business of flipping houses and were going to flip this one but decided to keep it for themselves. It has an old school rustic charm to it that won them over. We get bits and pieces that Hendricks was the "reason" behind their moving. What this event was takes time, but as the picture is slowly painted, I felt like it became quite clear before she tells her story in full.

When Hendricks gets to school and everyone finds out she lives in "Steele House" everyone is amazed. Soon Hendricks learns all the rumors behind the hauntings and murders that happened. Not only are ghosts rumored to be running amok, but apparently a boy killed his sister and then himself a few years ago in her house.

As Hendricks gets immersed into a group of friends, she soon gets drawn in by the outcast boy, because of course! Eddie isn't well-liked at school and Hendricks' first meeting with him isn't what you would call pleasant. She soon learns he's her neighbor as his house sits behind her property.

The strange and spooky happenings in her house begin to escalate and Hendricks is pretty much desperate for help. Her parents are rarely home, so they don't seem to notice anything odd happening. But when her baby brother gets hurt, Hendricks decides it's time to take things seriously and find a way to rid her house of the vengeful ghosts who won't go away.

This book was decidedly good! I love a good ghost story and this one starts off with a bang too! I was deeply curious to know what it was these ghosts wanted, when you encounter the ghosts that can actually pick things up and do things, it always gets a little scarier and more real! I mean I believe in ghosts and I guess I believe ghosts can make things move and such, but I do wonder at how much power or energy they have to do things. Well, the ghosts here are pretty powerful, let's just leave it at that!

There was a budding relationship growing between Hendricks and Eddie, you could see it coming from a mile away and I didn't mind that. It was a gradual process since Hendricks was still sore over past events that have her low on trust. I felt that was a very real vibe and I'm always up for the slowly developing romance!

The one thing that I wish could've been better developed or enhanced upon was the mystery behind the ghosts. Spirits staying behind on earth instead of moving on always have a reason. So what was their reason? Why were they here? Well, the answer doesn't come until the very end and it was so quick and dirty of an explanation I felt a little whiplash! I mean, where was the depth? The nit and gritty behind what was done to cause the hauntings? It was just A then B then C.

The ending was pretty jaw dropping too! Knowing that I have one more book makes me excited as this is one of those endings where it could go either way! It's definitely a cliffhanger ending of sorts now and I am eager to dive into the next book to see what the story will be! If you're looking for a "classic" haunted house kind of ghost story, then I would highly recommend The Haunted! Every book I've read by Danielle of the many last names has been fantastic and this one just continues the trend!

 

Overall Rating 4/5 stars