Readers who might think that humor and horror are mutually incompatible probably never read a book by T. Kingfisher: this author can combine the most horrific and uncanny situations with whimsical banter or musings and work them into an engrossing tale that will keep you turning the pages with the need to discover what’s what. This is indeed the case of A House With Good Bones, where Samantha (Sam) Montgomery, an archaeological entomologist on leave from her latest dig, returns home to stay with her mother for the duration.

The house where Sam grew up, and which belonged to her grandmother Mae, is quite changed however, and so is her mother: the once brightly painted walls are now covered by a uniformly bland beige color, favorite paintings have disappeared and have been replaced by quaintly disturbing pictures and to make matters worse Sam’s mother, a strong, capable woman, looks apprehensive and almost fearful, always looking around as if she expected something (or someone?) to appear uninvited at any moment. And that’s only the beginning, because there seems to be an infestation of vultures - one of them constantly perched on Sam’s mother’s letterbox - and the total lack of insects in the backyard garden does not preclude a huge swarm of ladybugs from invading the young woman’s bedroom one night. Not to mention the weird jar of teeth that Sam discovers buried under the rose bushes that were her grandmother’s pride and joy…

A House With Good Bones is the perfect example of how to create and build a sense of impending dread: as readers we might surmise what’s at the roots of the weird events focused on the house, but it’s much more fun to follow Sam’s path through the clues and to see how she keeps dismissing them on the basis of her scientific mindset, only to be met with even creepier manifestations that rise to a terrifying crescendo. Equally intriguing are the details of the dysfunctional family created by the overbearing attitude of Gran Mae, whose ghostly remnants seem to still pervade the place and to haunt everyone’s memory. The final narrative twist plunges the story into all-out horror that starts with a not-so-unexpected supernatural visitation and then segues with a creepy, bone chilling invasion that kept me on edge until the resolution: I’m not going to give any spoilers here, but if you remember that eerie Dr. Who episode titled “The Empty Child”, be prepared for something equally scary, if not more.

As far as characters go, Sam is a delightful one: I greatly enjoyed her down-to-Earth attitude rooted in her analytical mind, and her frequent digressions into entomological details which served very well in establishing her as a very non-squeamish personality - something that serves her well as the weirdness keeps increasing in and around the house. Moreover, I enjoyed the way she deals with her non-standard body shape, accepting it as a fact of life and being quite comfortable into her own skin: apart from this positive attitude, this viewpoint stand at the roots of her inner strength and the way she reacts when things start to go sideways - or maybe I should say “when things start to cave in”, to be more precise….

If you ever decide to pick up A House With Good Bones, be prepared for a story that will reel you in slowly and then will grab you by the throat toward the end and refuse to let you go until you reach the last page. Another proof for me that T. Kingfisher is the kind of storyteller that never disappoints, no matter what kind of tale she chooses to tell. ( )

I hate horror but I will really read anything T Kingfisher writes. Fortunately this was not hardcore horror but the type that slowly builds up to it, and while the end did have some gore I was able to read without nightmares.

I adored Sam so much! So much! I love her voice, her straight shooting, everything! In true Kingfisher fashion we don't have a huge character cast. However, the supporting cast we did have were all memorable with my fav being Hermes :)

Another winner and I am so glad the scary parts were not fungi this time :)

Huge thanks to Tor and NetGalley for the ARC. ( )

A House With Good Bones should have been an eerie as it had all the makings of a scary story, but in reality, it was a slow burn for the first eighty percent of the book and most of the action actually takes place in the last quarter. I did enjoy the archaeological details as Sam is a forensic entomologist and it's not too often you get information regarding that profession (coming from a person who played with bugs as a kid and even scared her mom rather badly by putting them in her pockets regularly). This fascinating career doesn't make up for a rather slow plot as well as a major lack of character development.

Sam was meant to have a lot of sass, but most of it went overboard due to the descriptions of her sitting on her couch, eating, drinking, and binge-watching tv. With all of that, we get numerous descriptions of her inner thoughts as she tries to figure out what is in front of her and while at first I thought her self-mockery was amusing, it actually got old pretty fast simply because it never changed or developed. As far as protagonists go, she wasn't very memorable and I think she was a large reason why the tension didn't really have a chance to build up.

The plot was definitely on the slow side, with most of the action occurring in the last quarter of the book. I did enjoy some of the history that was mentioned in the book, but it didn't compensate for the eye-rolling and the somewhat absurd story line. The author's trademark wit didn't really work in this story and I didn't really mind the slow start to the story; it was the time spent in Sam's head that was annoying as it didn't really add anything to the plot. Slow burns can be fine as they an ratchet tension up to an insane level, leaving you on the edge of your seat throughout, but this did not happen. The eerie moments were few and far between, and the tension was broken up by nonsensical things that drew you out of the story.

Verdict
A House with Good Bones did not really deliver although it certainly had all the elements it needed to be spooky. I think more interactions with mom would have helped the story; the mysteriousness of everything didn't really help as nothing was explored or developed which didn't up the tension level. For those who want something spooky or scary, that didn't happen. It's a shame as this book definitely had an interesting premise, but didn't live up to its promise. I am a huge fan of this author however, and will continue to check out her work. For those of you who have never read anything by her, I recommend starting with The Hollow Places. ( )

I thought this was fine. I read horror to be creeped out and the main character's constant quips just sucked any creep factor out of this book. I don't mind a bit of humor in my horror, but this had too much for my liking. I can see how other people who maybe don't read a lot of horror would like it though. ( )

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