David McMullen-Sullivan

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. (Spoilers Ahead)
I've been a fan of horror since I was a kid, so I was looking forward to reading this story, and I really liked it.

CONS:
- Sometimes the writing was telling too much rather than showing.
- There were a few errors in the book.
- At parts it might have spent a too much time describing the scenery, but this is something that I can easily see other people having no problem with. It wasn't so bad that it took me out of the story.
- There were also a few places where taking out a word would have helped the flow. For example:
"Actually, the more he thought about it, the angrier he got."
I think "The more he thought about it the angrier he got." would have sounded better. This is something challenging for a lot of writers, including myself, as we try to make things clearer with more words and end up dulling the effect of the overall sentence.
- I didn't mind this myself, but there is a bloody scene that involves the death of an infant. It's short, but some people might want to avoid the book if this would bother them.

PROS:
- The story itself was pretty good. I found it clever in spots, like when Emily used the baby doll to summon Alice's ghost.
- I also liked that not everything in the house was sinister. Alice was neutral; a wandering spirit in need of closure.
- Even though I mentioned the writing before, I'll mention it again here. There were parts where I really enjoyed the writing, such as:
"The dust came alive as soon as they walked across the flooring."

I could practically see the dust swirling up around their feet.

- I thought the characters were likeable. The horror genre is often riddled with characters who lack depth, but that wasn't true here. While it's a short story so there's a limit to what can be done, I liked four of the characters, including Alice. Characters, including the antagonist, acted in a way that made sense for them.
- The romance fit with the age of the characters and I felt very satisfied with the end. I was happy it ended with holding hands. There was a sweetness and innocence to that I found more appealing than a kiss would have.

All in all, I enjoyed this read. It all came together well. The book is up for free, so I'd say anyone who is interested should go ahead and give it a look.… (more)