The Haunting of Hill House

Slight spoilers below but....I mean, the book was written like 60 years ago. I think I get a free pass on accidentally spoiling parts of it.

Written in 1959, The Haunting of Hill House surely must have captivated audiences. The book still holds up today and continues to capture our attention. The story is a brief tale, my copy comes in at 182 pages. These pages contain a beautiful and heartbreaking narrative that will reside in your imagination long after the book is completed. My experience with Shirley Jackson is fairly limited but I hold her stories in high esteem. They do not let you go, just like Hill House.

Our story begins with the paranormal investigator Dr. Montague. He learns of Hill House, a home with a dark past. He gathers three people with the intention of spending the summer at the home. Theodora comes to us as a beautiful woman with a strong spirit. She has just had a falling out with her roommate and decides to spend the summer away to heal the discord. Luke joins the team as he is related to the current owners and will likely inherit the home. Finally, our main character Eleanor joins the party. We learn that Eleanor is a sad woman. She does not feel affection towards her family and has suffered mentally from the years she spends caring for her mother. The four almost immediately feel unsettled by Hill House. As they spend more time in the home, they discover the home may have evil intentions after all.

Although the book is filed as a ghost story, it is far more of a psychological investigation of our protagonist Eleanor. Eleanor is immediately a bit of an odd character. She frequently shows signs of an overactive imagination and some slight paranoia about situations. She is a woman who is unsure of herself and the only way she knows how to express herself is through these bursts of outlandish behavior. She develops a frenemy type of relationship with Theodora. The two are friendly as often as they are foes. Due to Eleanor's unreliability, it is unclear if the relationship is always so back and forth. Eleanor has a problem connecting to others. She is unable to form those bonds with humans that she desperately craves. Her tale is heartbreaking because it is so easy to relate to her. She is so unsure of who she is. Due to her uncertainty, she is often fearful. This allows her to become easy prey to the forces of the home.

Eleanor is so well written that it's easy to overlook the personalities of our friends. However, I feel like they are all so well composed. I'm not sure if it was Jackson's intention, but I felt that Theodora was a very fascinating character. I could be shading the intentions of the author through my 2018 eyes but it seems like it was implied Theo was either a homosexual or was bisexual. Luke was a sad character. He seemed to be going through life with little to strive for. He did not strike me as a bad person but he is introduced in a poor light. He seemed to be someone just bobbing their way through the stream of life. Dr. Montague has a challenging domestic life. His wife and her friend Arthur later come to Hill House and we can see some inner workings of his relationship with his wife.

All in all, I was unexpectedly surprised by this book. I have a little bit of fear of Shirley Jackson so I wasn't sure what to expect. The only thing I really knew about the book came from that silly Catherine Zeta-Jones movie. I'm happy to say the book blew past any expectations I may have had. This was a great choice for #Spookathon.

5/5 - Would recommend to any fans of horror, terror, and psychological thrillers