Eric Ross is on the run from a mysterious past with his two daughters in tow. Having left his wife, his house, his whole life behind in Maryland, he’s desperate for money–it’s not easy to find safe work when you can’t provide references, you can’t stay in one place for long, and you’re paranoid that your past is creeping back up on you.
When he comes across the strange ad for the Masson House in Degener, Texas, Eric thinks they may have finally caught a lucky break. The Masson property, notorious for being one of the most haunted places in Texas, needs a caretaker of sorts. The owner is looking for proof of paranormal activity. All they need to do is stay in the house and keep a detailed record of everything that happens there. Provided the house’s horrors don’t drive them all mad, like the caretakers before them.
The job calls to Eric, not just because there’s a huge payout if they can make it through, but because he wants to explore the secrets of the spite house. If it is indeed haunted, maybe it’ll help him understand the uncanny power that clings to his family, driving them from town to town, making them afraid to stop running. A terrifying Gothic thriller about grief and death and the depths of a father’s love, Johnny Compton’s The Spite House is a stunning debut by a horror master in the making.
THE SPITE HOUSE
Johnny Compton
The night after I finished THE SPITE HOUSE I had a nightmare I never want to have again. It involved anger and whispered regrets as big as a house on a hill built out of SPITE.
THE SPITE HOUSE is about a desperate man on the run with his two daughters. We don’t know what he’s running run from or the lengths he’ll run to but we know he’ll run forever.
He can’t get regular employment but finds an amazing opportunity almost too good to be true. All he and his daughters have to do is sleep at THE SPITE HOUSE, observe, and report on what they’ve seen go on, paranormal or not.
It could buy them the freedom they seek but it may cost them their lives.
Oh yes!
I enjoyed this one. Compton’s voice felt unique from the beginning. Although a debut, the writing felt assured. The characters were well-crafted and the story of THE SPITE HOUSE seemed built for gothic fiction.
My one critique is that overall it’s a little slow. But given the character of the material, I feel it is within its nature to unfold the way it did.
I’d recommend THE SPITE HOUSE to readers who love different aspects of horror fiction. I feel like this book will appeal to a wide variety of readers and will curb their craving for a great haunted house story with a phenomenal ending.
I gave THE SPITE HOUSE ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and really enjoyed it.
It comes out on February 7, 2023
Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy!
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