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How to Sell a Haunted House
Grady Hendrix

Grady Hendrix takes on the haunted house in a thrilling new novel that explores the way your past—and your family—can haunt you like nothing else.

When Louise finds out her parents have died, she dreads going home. She doesn’t want to leave her daughter with her ex and fly to Charleston. She doesn’t want to deal with her family home, stuffed to the rafters with the remnants of her father’s academic career and her mother’s lifelong obsession with puppets and dolls. She doesn’t want to learn how to live without the two people who knew and loved her best in the world.

Most of all, she doesn’t want to deal with her brother, Mark, who never left their hometown, gets fired from one job after another, and resents her success. Unfortunately, she’ll need his help to get the house ready for sale because it’ll take more than some new paint on the walls and clearing out a lifetime of memories to get this place on the market.

But some houses don’t want to be sold, and their home has other plans for both of them�

Anyone reading this? It's like Goosebumps for adults.

I finished it last week. My review is here: /review/show...

TL;DR version= How to Sell a Haunted House scared me. I was expecting Evil Dead 2 and got Evil Dead instead.

(view spoiler)[I audibly gasped when Pupkin stabbed Louise in the eye. 😱😱 (hide spoiler)]

I'd never heard of this book before it got chosen but the "goosebumps for adults" comment and the reviews have me intrigued.

Denise wrote: "[spoilers removed]"

Same here.

(view spoiler)[ The circular saw to the arm bit also got me. (hide spoiler)]

Also

(view spoiler)[ the part in the middle where Mark's puppet group makes Pupkin masks *really* bothered me. Still bothers me, honestly. That part was really well done. (hide spoiler)]

I'm never quite sure if I should spoiler tag in these book discussions, but I will just to be safe.
(view spoiler)[ The thing about that section with Mark's puppet group, was that I almost felt relief. Mark had become such an unlikable character, that I had this moment of "Ohhhh.... that's why he's being a jerk. I might be a jerk too if I remembered my sister trying to murder me." The author did a fantastic job making him initially unlikeable and then building backstory. (hide spoiler)]

Denise wrote: "I'm never quite sure if I should spoiler tag in these book discussions, but I will just to be safe.
[spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ I work at a substance abuse rehab and I'm in recovery myself. The puppet-troupe section sounded & felt just like a substance-binge. It was really triggering and I wasn't expecting it. Mark had been established as the goofy loser up to then. The novel hadn't been very serious. And then boom! It gets super dark. I was impressed with how the author handled the whole thing. (hide spoiler)]

Also (view spoiler)[ the part where the puppet troupe puts on an anti-war activist piece for grade schoolers was hilarious. Mark's "who could've know they'd act like that?" response was pitch perfect. (hide spoiler)]

Michael wrote: "Also [spoilers removed]"

Yes. That was ridiculous. In a good way.