They soon discover that others are dwelling in the lower level of the house, and they don't take kindly to visitors. With danger present in the house, they try to leave, but the house won't let them. Worse, they soon realize the killer has purposely lured them to this house. As they huddle around an old fireplace, a tin can falls through the chimney. Scrawled on its side is a message from the killer: He claims to have killed God and now demands more dead bodies. The characters come to realize that the house, while real, mirrors their own heart and soul, and unless each can defeat the evil within, the evil in the house will surely claim them. House is a modern tale that will have readers searching their own spiritual pulse long after they reach the last page.
©2006 Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker; (P)2006 Thomas Nelson, Inc.
"Very confusing"
I have met Frank Peretti and he is a wonderful man and an awesome author. I love all of his books...except this one. It is confusing and I got lost fairly quickly. Nothing personal Frank, but I didn't care for YOUR narration of the book...the voice of the female voice was irritating and sounded like "a man trying to talk like a woman" which is not believable. A good person to use for multiple voices would be Jack Sondricker who reads the Left Behind Series.
It probably didn't help that this was an abridged version. MAYBE I'll try the unabridged version at a later time. I think I'll "read" the next book before I "listen" to it. I hope the next plot will be better than this one. Sorry!!
"An Interesting Story Idea, A Lousy Book"
Essentially, House is a good idea and a bad book.
The concept could have birthed a great book: A diabolic serial killer traps four people in his house and threatens to kill them all unless they give him one dead body.
But, the book falls far short.The plot takes several bad turns until it finally veers off into the fully ridiculous and unoriginal.
The main characters are uninteresting and predictable. The only really interesting characters are the family of inbred freaks, but they turn out to be demons.
The story didn't need to be as supernatural. The characters' spiritual sin nature could have been exposed more effectively in a physical, "natural" setting:in a regular house with a human villain. Flannery O'Connor has taught us that lesson well.
This is a quick and incomplete analysis, but it points out a few key disappointments I had with the book.
"Good Story, ANNOYING VOICES!!!"
I love Ted Dekker books, and I was hoping I would love this one too. But unfortunately, that wasn't the case with this book. The biggest issue was the voice narration! Especially for the women in the story! It got so bad at times that I would have to stop listening to it because I would get a headache! I like Rob Lamont's voice. I think this book needs to be redone with him as the narrator reading the unabridged version. Sorry Frank, but have you even listened to what your voices are like for this book?
Another thing that was bothersome was that the story could get kinda/really confusing at times...and it doesn't help when the voices are annoying! Sometimes I would have to rewind parts of the story just to try to figure out what was going on!
I think this story would be great if it was unabridged and narrated with great voices.
"Hard To Understand"
Though the story is interesting at times, but the reader can be hard to understand. He reads quite quickly through the action sections of the book, and I had to rewind several sections to get the gist. Listen to a sample. You be the judge.
"I liked both the story and the reading."
The rendition of this audio book is unique but I enjoyed it very much. The author reads the book as a storyteller would instead of just flatly reading the words. Once you get used to the different voices he uses for the characters it is easy to tell who is saying what and allows you to get lost in the story without all the "he said, she said" explainations to the dialog.
"A terrible abridgement..."
This is my first abridged audiobook, and it will also be my last. The abridgement seemed okay at first, seeming to play out like an underdeveloped horror movie. After an hour, nothing made sense anymore, and I gave up. I would be willing to give an unabridged version a shot, but the narrator (one of the authors) is terrible, breaking into falsetto for one of the female characters. This makes any situation that might be even slightly tense, well, laughable and distracting. The book itself may be fine, but I cannot recommend this recording.
"What is real? The suspense will keep you guessing"
A must read for all those who love interpersonal relationships,major suspense and questioning of ones beliefs. The book leaves you wanting more just like SHADE of Gray; of course completely different agenda .
I would recommend any of Frank Peretti's books.
How does a state police man fit into a hotel/motel run by less than hospitable owners.
"Scary and Mindboggling!"
In the top 5 of Horror/Thriller
When all the characters in the book met each other's double and they were trying to figure out which were the good ones and which group was the evil ones. The scene was great!
The change of their voices to suit the different characters in the story line
I enjoy everyone of them because each character had a specific roll and the author did an excellent job of giving each one of them a plot to keep the story thrilling and on the edge of my seat.
I read this book many years ago and I continued to hunt for it until I finally found it on audible books. I am looking forward to reading "listening" to it again.
"Just OK"
This book could have been better by actually having more of an interesting story line to it. People trapped in a haunted house with a serial killer. There is constant action as the people trapped try to stay alive. Too much action, nothing seemed too frightening after the book progressed a bit. The story itself became boring.
With the non-stop action, I thought to myself that this story is more attuned to a screen play. Sure enough, when I checked, I found out it has been adapted to to film.
Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World
The narrators were good. They are also the authors of the book.
No
A horror fan may like this story, just not "my cup of tea."
"Just Okay"
Listening to the story served its function--it kept me awake while driving---but I was a bit disappointed. I normally really enjoy audio books and I've devoured books by both Peretti (This Present Darkness & Piercing the Darkness) and Dekker (The Circle Series) and read them more than once but this one just didn't measure up to my expectations of either author. The story held my attention but didn't capture it. Peretti's narration was mediocre and didn't help my overall impression. This audio book is not a waste of time but neither is it time well-spent.
Yes because I know them to both be great authors. I don't think this is their best work but they've earned another opportunity from me through their previous individual efforts.
I think Peretti's pace was okay but his own voice and the voices he gave to the characters just didn't match up to what one can expect from an actor...and many other authors.
A movie has been made. I haven't seen it yet but will watch it at least to see how the pictures in my mind compare and contrast to those of the director.
I hope my opinions are helpful to others.