The Agony House

"Denise Farber has just moved back to New Orleans with her mom and step-dad. They left in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and have finally returned, wagering the last of their family's money on fixing up an old, rundown house and converting it to a bed and breakfast.Nothing seems to work around the place, which doesn't seem too weird to Denise. The unexplained noises are a little more out of the ordinary, but again, nothing too unusual. But when floors collapse, deadly objects rain down, and she hears creepy voices, it's clear to Denise that something more sinister lurks hidden here.Answers may lie in an old comic book Denise finds concealed in the attic: the lost, final project of a famous artist who disappeared in the 1950s. Denise isn't budging from her new home, so she must unravel the mystery-on the pages and off-if she and her family are to survive..."

The Agony House by Cherie Priest - release date September 25, 2018

Hey guys! It's Taylor with our first post and honest review of this ARC.  I picked this one up because not only was it a ghost story, but it's also part graphic novel, which I thought was the coolest thing!  I liked it and the ending was cute.

I really liked how the characters weren't in denial about ghosts the whole time because that just takes away from the story so I'm happy that didn't happen.  The cast of characters was interesting and I really liked the friendships the main, Denise, made with the neighborhood kids -especially with Dominique, who looked like they would be enemies in the beginning.  Terry was funny and Norman was cool.  No ships in this book (which is better for the story).

The plot was mysterious.  It doesn't quite snatch up your attention like I've experienced with some other AMAZING books, but it was fun to try and figure out what was happening.  

Likes/Dislikes: I said this before but again: I really liked how the characters weren't fully in denial of ghosts the whole time.  I feel like the book was WAY better that way.  Also liked how there was an actual comic book IN the story!! And how the color of the text would change to blue when the kids were texting or reading articles etc.  I didn't like how it was told through third person narration; I feel like it could've been better off with going first person.

I would rate this a high 3 out of 5 stars.  I'd recommend it to anyone in the mood for a good quick & fast ghost story.  Took me 3 days to read.

-Taylor

Reviewed September 23, 2018