The Haunting of Hill House

By: Shirley Jackson

Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne

Length: 7 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Now a hit Netflix miniseries directed by Mike Flanagan and starring Michiel Huisman, Carla Gugino, and Timothy Hutton

Past the rusted gates and untrimmed hedges, Hill House broods and waits.

Four seekers have come to the ugly, abandoned old mansion: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of the psychic phenomenon called haunting; Theodora, his lovely and lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a lonely, homeless girl well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the adventurous future heir of Hill House. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable noises and self-closing doors, but Hill House is gathering its powers and will soon choose one of them to make its own.

This classic horror novel has been hailed as a perfect work of unnerving terror.

©1959 Shirley Jackson; renewed 1987 by Laurence Hyman, Barry Hyman, Sarah Webster, and Joanne Schnurer (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Wasn't as scary as I thought it was going to be

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Maybe, I really like spooky horror movies and I thought there was going to be a whole lot more paranormal activity in this book than there was.

Any additional comments?

Shirley Jackson did a fantastic job as the person who did the vocals for this book, the story itself though,... I was just hoping it would be more scary. The group talked A LOT...... and the main character would act odd at some places making you think she was being absorbed mentally into the house. It never really explained what made the house sooo horrible......

excellent book

This was a great listen, especially once the pace picks up. glad they didn't do any sound effects.

very scary

this is such a good book.
i enjoyed it very much. Great to listing at bedtime

crazy

made me feel nuts and like i was there in the house. loopy and over thinking

Psychological Horror

No monsters. No killers. Madness hinted at. Movements caught with the corner of an eye. Tension rising to the tearing point. Things going bump in the night. Minds slowly unhinging. Beautifully and terrifyingly written.

Didn't have to read the reviews!

I didn't read the reviews before I bought this book; I've been a fan of The Haunting when I saw the '63 version. The '99 adaptation was good, freaked me out when I was a kid, but the '63 one is the closest to the book (in fact, I was picturing most of the actors when I started this book).
Miss Dunne is absolutely exquisite, or rather deeply divine when it came to the Eleanor dialogue. Her female portrayals are tastefully done, giving them enough character. Yet, I will say that her male portrayals are a little campy, almost like a mother reading her child a bedtime story. I hate writing that because nothing of her performance took me out of the story, it did drive me deeper. Her voice weaves you into the book and she did it without becoming overly dramatic.
Jackson is now one of my favorite authors. I like how simple her writing is when describing a house; she is more directive when writing character. I get bored when a writer takes forty pages to describe a red car, so Jackson gets a medal from me for being simple. Also, in some weird way, I felt that Jackson would have sounded like Dunne if she were reading her own work to an audience.
If you like classics and creepy tales, this book is for you.

The mount everest of haunted house stories.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, but with reservations. The story is absolutely classic and creepy, but there is a better recording by David Warner I think, overall is better. Bernadette Dunne does a fine job with the female voices but can't manage the male ones, and it is somewhat distracting.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Haunting of Hill House?

The scene where something is pounding on the door while Eleanor is holding Theo's hand made the hair stand up on the back of my neck!

Have you listened to any of Bernadette Dunne’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

no.

If you could rename The Haunting of Hill House, what would you call it?

I wouldn't- perfect title.

Any additional comments?

If Audible ever picks up the David Warner version, pick up that one instead.

fair

fair not great but good read
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Haunted Eleanor

I've seen the movie several times and liked it. But the book is much better. Ms. Dunne has the perfect voice for this audio recording.

The movie is better

I say that because it’s my favorite horror movie and the visuals, sound effects and music all add to the suspense the book cannot touch. Creepy as heck