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The Mourning House
Devastated by tragedy, Dr. Sam Hatch is a shadow of his former self. He travels the byroads of America, running away from a past he cannot escape. There is no salvation for him.
And then he sees the house. Like a siren, it calls to him. Yet the house is not what it appears to be. Is it a blessing, a gift...or a curse?
And then he sees the house. Like a siren, it calls to him. Yet the house is not what it appears to be. Is it a blessing, a gift...or a curse?
180 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2012
18 people are currently reading
1826 people want to read
About the author
Ronald Malfi
74 books3,776 followersRonald Malfi is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling, award-winning author of many novels and novellas in the horror, mystery, and thriller genres. In 2011, his novel, Floating Staircase, was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award for best novel by the Horror Writers Association, and also won a gold IPPY award. In 2024, he was presented with the prestigious William G. Wilson Award for Adult Fiction by the Maryland Library Association. Perhaps his most well-received novel, Come with Me (2021), about a man who learns a dark secret about his wife after she's killed, has received stellar reviews, including a starred review from BookPage, and Publishers Weekly has said, "Malfi impresses in this taut, supernaturally tinged mystery... and sticks the landing with a powerful denouement. There’s plenty here to enjoy."
His most recent novels include Senseless (2025) and Small Town Horror (2024), both of which received favorable reviews and saw Malfi stretch his authorial voice.
Come with Me (2021) and Black Mouth (2022), tackle themes of grief and loss, and of the effects of childhood trauma and alcoholism, respectively. Both books have been critically praised, with Publishers Weekly calling Black Mouth a "standout" book of the year. These novels were followed by Ghostwritten (2022), a collection of four subtly-linked novellas about haunted books and the power of the written word. Ghostwritten received a starred review from Publishers Weekly, which called the book a "wonderfully meta collection...vibrantly imagined," and that "Malfi makes reading about the perils of reading a terrifying delight."
Among his most popular works is December Park, a coming-of-age thriller set in the '90s, wherein five teenage boys take up the hunt for a child murderer in their hometown of Harting Farms, Maryland. In interviews, Malfi has expressed that this is his most autobiographical book to date. In 2015, this novel was awarded the Beverly Hills International Book Award for best suspense novel. It has been optioned several times for film.
Bone White (2017), about a man searching for his lost twin brother in a haunted Alaskan mining town, was touted as "an elegant, twisted, gripping slow-burn of a novel that burrows under the skin and nestles deep," by RT Book Reviews, and has also been optioned for television by Fox21/Disney and Amazon Studios.
His novels Little Girls (2015) and The Night Parade (2016) explore broken families forced to endure horrific and extraordinary circumstances, which has become the hallmark for Malfi's brand of intimate, lyrical horror fiction.
His earlier works, such as Via Dolorosa (2007) and Passenger (2008) explored characters with lost or confused identities, wherein Malfi experimented with the ultimate unreliable narrators. He maintained this trend in his award-winning novel, Floating Staircase (2011), which the author has suggested contains "multiple endings for the astute reader."
His more "monstery" novels, such as Snow (2010) and The Narrows (2012) still resonate with his inimitable brand of literary cadence and focus on character and story over plot. Both books were highly regarded by fans and reviewers in the genre.
A bit of a departure, Malfi published the crime drama Shamrock Alley in 2009, based on the true exploits of his own father, a former Secret Service agent. The book was optioned several times for film.
Ronald Malfi was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1977, the eldest of four children, and eventually relocated to Maryland, where he currently resides along the Chesapeake Bay.
When he's not writing, he's performing with the rock band VEER, who can be found at veerband.net and wherever you stream your music.
Visit
His most recent novels include Senseless (2025) and Small Town Horror (2024), both of which received favorable reviews and saw Malfi stretch his authorial voice.
Come with Me (2021) and Black Mouth (2022), tackle themes of grief and loss, and of the effects of childhood trauma and alcoholism, respectively. Both books have been critically praised, with Publishers Weekly calling Black Mouth a "standout" book of the year. These novels were followed by Ghostwritten (2022), a collection of four subtly-linked novellas about haunted books and the power of the written word. Ghostwritten received a starred review from Publishers Weekly, which called the book a "wonderfully meta collection...vibrantly imagined," and that "Malfi makes reading about the perils of reading a terrifying delight."
Among his most popular works is December Park, a coming-of-age thriller set in the '90s, wherein five teenage boys take up the hunt for a child murderer in their hometown of Harting Farms, Maryland. In interviews, Malfi has expressed that this is his most autobiographical book to date. In 2015, this novel was awarded the Beverly Hills International Book Award for best suspense novel. It has been optioned several times for film.
Bone White (2017), about a man searching for his lost twin brother in a haunted Alaskan mining town, was touted as "an elegant, twisted, gripping slow-burn of a novel that burrows under the skin and nestles deep," by RT Book Reviews, and has also been optioned for television by Fox21/Disney and Amazon Studios.
His novels Little Girls (2015) and The Night Parade (2016) explore broken families forced to endure horrific and extraordinary circumstances, which has become the hallmark for Malfi's brand of intimate, lyrical horror fiction.
His earlier works, such as Via Dolorosa (2007) and Passenger (2008) explored characters with lost or confused identities, wherein Malfi experimented with the ultimate unreliable narrators. He maintained this trend in his award-winning novel, Floating Staircase (2011), which the author has suggested contains "multiple endings for the astute reader."
His more "monstery" novels, such as Snow (2010) and The Narrows (2012) still resonate with his inimitable brand of literary cadence and focus on character and story over plot. Both books were highly regarded by fans and reviewers in the genre.
A bit of a departure, Malfi published the crime drama Shamrock Alley in 2009, based on the true exploits of his own father, a former Secret Service agent. The book was optioned several times for film.
Ronald Malfi was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1977, the eldest of four children, and eventually relocated to Maryland, where he currently resides along the Chesapeake Bay.
When he's not writing, he's performing with the rock band VEER, who can be found at veerband.net and wherever you stream your music.
Visit
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews
August 25, 2020
This was a spooky and haunting read!
A little backstory for you readers:
Sam Hatch loses his family in a horrific accident and decides to completely walk away from his life as he has nothing left. He takes to the highway traveling here and there hoping to keep the life he had at bay.
On his travels, Sam comes across an abandoned house in the woods and on a whim he decides to buy it. He thinks that he can repair it back to its former glory. What he doesn't know is that the house is abandoned for a reason and what lies within will take its toll on his mind.
Sam not only has to explore his inner self but he has to come to grips with what the house holds as well.
The book just weaved itself around me as I read the storyline and I became so engrossed with the book that nothing else seemed to matter!
Five stars for keeping me entertained and spooked.
A little backstory for you readers:
Sam Hatch loses his family in a horrific accident and decides to completely walk away from his life as he has nothing left. He takes to the highway traveling here and there hoping to keep the life he had at bay.
On his travels, Sam comes across an abandoned house in the woods and on a whim he decides to buy it. He thinks that he can repair it back to its former glory. What he doesn't know is that the house is abandoned for a reason and what lies within will take its toll on his mind.
Sam not only has to explore his inner self but he has to come to grips with what the house holds as well.
The book just weaved itself around me as I read the storyline and I became so engrossed with the book that nothing else seemed to matter!
Five stars for keeping me entertained and spooked.
June 17, 2022
A man grieving deeply for his wife and child, buys an abandoned house with half hearted ideas of restoring it. As the days go by, the house seems to feed off his grief and trauma and reflect it back at him. A really good story/novella, my first by Ronald Malfi, I'd definitely like to read more by him.
December 7, 2023
It is important to note that the majority of the themes explored in this book deal with sensitive subject matters. My review, therefore, touches on these topics as well. Many people might find the subject matters of the book & those detailed in my review overwhelming. I would suggest you steer clear of both if this is the case. Please note that from this point forward I will be writing about matters that contain reflections on the death of an animal, gore, the death of a child, substance use, suicidal ideation, grief, & others.
Sam Hatch was once a member of a prestigious field, he was a doctor. Aspects of reality doused in facts settled him in his quotidian & left him feeling pleased with all he was given. A lovely wife, whom he adored, & their consummated love born into the child they cherished. Sam was pleased, he was content & the aspects of life that nagged those around him inhabited the bodies of those who had space to house feelings of anxiety & dread.
Yet, when the New Year chimes, Sam falls asleep at the wheel as he drives his family home. His wife, Annie, & their daughter, Marley, suffered graphically in their final moments; succumbing to deaths often left unspoken for the terrible imagery they produce in our minds.
Novellas showcase an author's raw talent; one needs few words to get to the point of something & when one comes upon such a story as this, one is left simmering over the events for days afterward. The aspects of this story that are particularly horrible, terrifying, & sombre are those that reside in relatability. Though we might not have lived through the crash that produced death upon the members of Sam’s family, we have come close to feeling as humbled in shadow as he has felt.
Perhaps we have even felt exactly as Sam does. Perhaps our house has morphed into an edifice that crumbles under our touch; the touch of someone at once the driver & the passenger doomed by actions we cannot think to control. How many layers of insulation, drywall, & wallpaper must one concave to come to an end? Where within the structures that house us do we find the person we lost in grief, chaotic in the familiar cavities of cement securing wooden beans where we lay?
There is a distinctly enthralling aspect of Sam that led me to feel intrigued by his character while maintaining my reader’s distance. He is presented as a person at once at odds with himself & someone who was never truly sure of who they were, to begin with. The presentation of grief within Sam’s life moulds itself into a sticky goop that suffocates his cells; rendering him lost within his body, morphed by the hallucinations of longing & fear that trepidate the corners of his ailing consciousness.
I was eager to watch him make his choices, keeping my fingers crossed that he might find his way out of the sickly house that nibbles at the physical body of its visitors & transports them through a zigzagging timeline out of this reality. There was never a moment throughout this story where I felt confident that Sam might escape himself; might escape the sadness that festered in his bones; walk away from this invisible haunted house that caressed him with everything he longed to see again. To escape his grief would have been contrary to who we believe this character to be & yet, it is still sad to read about his demise.
Does any person deserve to be consumed by their regrets? Should anyone see a decrepit loved one meandering the halls of a dreary old home, bleeding blood onto the floor of a sacrilege space lined with decorations from moments of happiness? Does anyone deserve to perish in their sadness? Who amongst us has not felt that the sorrow might last forever; might never leave; a lifetime in Peter Pan’s shadow, sown onto the soles of his feet?
The imagery that Malfi produces in his works is riveting, it is vivid, & it produces a colossal mountain to climb in so few words. The prose is direct, distinct, & worrying. There is no doubt where the character resides; no place to hide in his writings; everything is presented tangibly; this person could live among us & certainly does.
This is the aspect I appreciate the most about the author’s work. The scene which is set leaves one with a niggling sensation at the back of the neck; this place could be the country road lain by gravel many of us have known. The diner, though dingy & grey, is just the same as the one we ventured into that one time. Everything is real, even the monsters that creep along the creaking floorboards at night.
The evocation of grief within Sam is monstrous. One cannot help but feel sad. It is easy to turn away when faced with a mistake; this could never have been us, & we wouldn’t have allowed it to happen. Yet, our world is filled with errors & missteps, transgressions & mistakes, regrets & apologies; things we have all confronted & emotions flooding the heart with shame & pain. This novella approaches the commonality of communal sentimentality; this is the life we all lead.
In all, I appreciate the totality of this story. I adored reading about Sam, I was sad for him & hoped against reason that he might not lay down his guard to be consumed by the unnamed. I wanted him to escape. I wanted for him the peace in life that was so close to his grasp. But, when he was gone, to be found no more; returned to the state where we all turn to in the end; a pile of grimy sand; time had moved forward too quickly, & I realized it seemed he never stood a chance.
Sam Hatch was once a member of a prestigious field, he was a doctor. Aspects of reality doused in facts settled him in his quotidian & left him feeling pleased with all he was given. A lovely wife, whom he adored, & their consummated love born into the child they cherished. Sam was pleased, he was content & the aspects of life that nagged those around him inhabited the bodies of those who had space to house feelings of anxiety & dread.
Yet, when the New Year chimes, Sam falls asleep at the wheel as he drives his family home. His wife, Annie, & their daughter, Marley, suffered graphically in their final moments; succumbing to deaths often left unspoken for the terrible imagery they produce in our minds.
Novellas showcase an author's raw talent; one needs few words to get to the point of something & when one comes upon such a story as this, one is left simmering over the events for days afterward. The aspects of this story that are particularly horrible, terrifying, & sombre are those that reside in relatability. Though we might not have lived through the crash that produced death upon the members of Sam’s family, we have come close to feeling as humbled in shadow as he has felt.
Perhaps we have even felt exactly as Sam does. Perhaps our house has morphed into an edifice that crumbles under our touch; the touch of someone at once the driver & the passenger doomed by actions we cannot think to control. How many layers of insulation, drywall, & wallpaper must one concave to come to an end? Where within the structures that house us do we find the person we lost in grief, chaotic in the familiar cavities of cement securing wooden beans where we lay?
There is a distinctly enthralling aspect of Sam that led me to feel intrigued by his character while maintaining my reader’s distance. He is presented as a person at once at odds with himself & someone who was never truly sure of who they were, to begin with. The presentation of grief within Sam’s life moulds itself into a sticky goop that suffocates his cells; rendering him lost within his body, morphed by the hallucinations of longing & fear that trepidate the corners of his ailing consciousness.
I was eager to watch him make his choices, keeping my fingers crossed that he might find his way out of the sickly house that nibbles at the physical body of its visitors & transports them through a zigzagging timeline out of this reality. There was never a moment throughout this story where I felt confident that Sam might escape himself; might escape the sadness that festered in his bones; walk away from this invisible haunted house that caressed him with everything he longed to see again. To escape his grief would have been contrary to who we believe this character to be & yet, it is still sad to read about his demise.
Does any person deserve to be consumed by their regrets? Should anyone see a decrepit loved one meandering the halls of a dreary old home, bleeding blood onto the floor of a sacrilege space lined with decorations from moments of happiness? Does anyone deserve to perish in their sadness? Who amongst us has not felt that the sorrow might last forever; might never leave; a lifetime in Peter Pan’s shadow, sown onto the soles of his feet?
The imagery that Malfi produces in his works is riveting, it is vivid, & it produces a colossal mountain to climb in so few words. The prose is direct, distinct, & worrying. There is no doubt where the character resides; no place to hide in his writings; everything is presented tangibly; this person could live among us & certainly does.
This is the aspect I appreciate the most about the author’s work. The scene which is set leaves one with a niggling sensation at the back of the neck; this place could be the country road lain by gravel many of us have known. The diner, though dingy & grey, is just the same as the one we ventured into that one time. Everything is real, even the monsters that creep along the creaking floorboards at night.
The evocation of grief within Sam is monstrous. One cannot help but feel sad. It is easy to turn away when faced with a mistake; this could never have been us, & we wouldn’t have allowed it to happen. Yet, our world is filled with errors & missteps, transgressions & mistakes, regrets & apologies; things we have all confronted & emotions flooding the heart with shame & pain. This novella approaches the commonality of communal sentimentality; this is the life we all lead.
In all, I appreciate the totality of this story. I adored reading about Sam, I was sad for him & hoped against reason that he might not lay down his guard to be consumed by the unnamed. I wanted him to escape. I wanted for him the peace in life that was so close to his grasp. But, when he was gone, to be found no more; returned to the state where we all turn to in the end; a pile of grimy sand; time had moved forward too quickly, & I realized it seemed he never stood a chance.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 28, 2018
I often find something to bitch about when reading short stories and novellas because usually something is missing or lacking or characterization gets shafted in exchange for less words. Or, perhaps the worst sin of short stories, the ending is rushed. Don’t you hate that? The Mourning House is an example of how to do the novella the right way. It has a very small cast of characters, doesn’t attempt more than it should, builds with a slow, creeping sense of dread that slowly leads up to the non-rushed ending and the author doesn’t waste any words on unimportant filler. And best of all? Its main character is a sympathetic guy you get to know pretty intimately.
Sam Hatch was once a happily married successful doctor with a beautiful baby daughter. Now he’s an unwashed drifter who is filled with regret and guilt and has walked away from everything that reminds him of his previous life. Something compels him to stop at a creepy run-down house and beckons him to enter.
Oh Sam you should’ve kept driving!
He doesn’t. He stops. He moves in. Strange things begin to happen. He has to face down his demons and we get to watch it all unfold and it’s gloriously unsettling. The reader sees Sam’s sanity start to slip the longer he resides in the house but he can’t leave for long because he needs to go back. It’s that compulsion again. Is it real or is it in his head? I loved not knowing and held my breathe throughout most of it. This story reminded me a wee bit of The Red Tree by Caitlin Kiernan which is one of my favorite books that examines madness, grief, pain and the haunted. If you haven’t read it you really should.
As I said, I felt for the main character. In a few short paragraphs I was easily able to understand his plight, even though many details were not yet revealed. The author also has a knack for evoking a scene and an emotion with only a few well-chosen words. “When he awoke, darkness had its face pressed against the windows.” How dreadful is that?
This is one of those stories that will likely haunt me for a good long while and is definitely worth seeking out and reading. I don’t give out fives easily (I’m stingy like that) but this one is deserving of my highest rating. It’s the kind of story that makes me glad I’m a reader and gives me hope that there are still gems out there after I’ve read one too many “meh” books in a row.
* I received a copy of this novella from the Publisher via NetGalley. The FTC made me say that.
Sam Hatch was once a happily married successful doctor with a beautiful baby daughter. Now he’s an unwashed drifter who is filled with regret and guilt and has walked away from everything that reminds him of his previous life. Something compels him to stop at a creepy run-down house and beckons him to enter.
Oh Sam you should’ve kept driving!
He doesn’t. He stops. He moves in. Strange things begin to happen. He has to face down his demons and we get to watch it all unfold and it’s gloriously unsettling. The reader sees Sam’s sanity start to slip the longer he resides in the house but he can’t leave for long because he needs to go back. It’s that compulsion again. Is it real or is it in his head? I loved not knowing and held my breathe throughout most of it. This story reminded me a wee bit of The Red Tree by Caitlin Kiernan which is one of my favorite books that examines madness, grief, pain and the haunted. If you haven’t read it you really should.
As I said, I felt for the main character. In a few short paragraphs I was easily able to understand his plight, even though many details were not yet revealed. The author also has a knack for evoking a scene and an emotion with only a few well-chosen words. “When he awoke, darkness had its face pressed against the windows.” How dreadful is that?
This is one of those stories that will likely haunt me for a good long while and is definitely worth seeking out and reading. I don’t give out fives easily (I’m stingy like that) but this one is deserving of my highest rating. It’s the kind of story that makes me glad I’m a reader and gives me hope that there are still gems out there after I’ve read one too many “meh” books in a row.
* I received a copy of this novella from the Publisher via NetGalley. The FTC made me say that.
December 31, 2012
This was an excellent haunted house story.
Dr. Hatch has lost his family. Broken by the weight of his guilt, he decides to leave the family home and wander aimlessly. Until he comes upon an abandoned house. The Mourning House.
I have read a few great haunted house stories in the last few weeks. This one stands right up there with the best of them.
Dr. Hatch has lost his family. Broken by the weight of his guilt, he decides to leave the family home and wander aimlessly. Until he comes upon an abandoned house. The Mourning House.
I have read a few great haunted house stories in the last few weeks. This one stands right up there with the best of them.
February 6, 2016
I am a great fan of Ronald Malfi and think his writing is full of eloquence and heartbreaking moments. He has a descriptive style that is very easy to read and always draws the reader in. In The Mourning House we meet Sam Hatch a deeply disturbed and unhappy individual who has moved to an isolated dwelling following the tragic death of his wife and daughter. We soon learn that Sam is emotionally upset and his state of mind is spiralling out of control as he attempts to come to terms with his loss. The starkness and isolation of the house is the perfect setting for the author to explore the sadness and loneliness of Sam’s mind tragically leading to the inevitable outcome. As an example of Malfi’s style just look at his descriptive powers when he describes the cancerous pain of “the woman in the headscarf” in the opening pages....
”When he turned, the woman in the headscarf was standing directly before him. This close, he could see how the cancer had sunken her eyes and jaundiced her flesh, robbing her of life even though her heart still beat. The pores in her flesh looked overlarge, like strawberry seeds, and her thin lipless mouth appeared as nothing more than a scalpel’s hasty incision in the taut putty of her face.”
If I had one small criticism I would simply say that I prefer the authors longer novels and in particular Floating Staircase and Cradle Lake. They both explore similar themes in greater depth thus allowing the author more time to develop his characters which makes for a greater reader experience and a deeper understanding of his anguished but beautiful prose.
”When he turned, the woman in the headscarf was standing directly before him. This close, he could see how the cancer had sunken her eyes and jaundiced her flesh, robbing her of life even though her heart still beat. The pores in her flesh looked overlarge, like strawberry seeds, and her thin lipless mouth appeared as nothing more than a scalpel’s hasty incision in the taut putty of her face.”
If I had one small criticism I would simply say that I prefer the authors longer novels and in particular Floating Staircase and Cradle Lake. They both explore similar themes in greater depth thus allowing the author more time to develop his characters which makes for a greater reader experience and a deeper understanding of his anguished but beautiful prose.
January 6, 2013
This is the first book I've read in 2013, and talk about starting the year with a bang! Sam Hatch has just suffered a serious tragedy and has found himself wandering the country. He finally stumbles upon a house in a small town and immediately buys it. He's not sure why the house speaks to him so much, but the residents of the small town all think that the it's haunted.
And maybe it is.
Because Sam begins to hear noises in it late at night, and when he goes searching for the sources, digging through the floorboards and plaster, he finds relics and items from his old, dead life.
What I enjoyed most about this story is that it reminded me a lot of classic weird/horror fiction by the likes of M. R. James and maybe Arthur Machen. It's a short and fun read filled with real characters, great dialogue, and a creepy atmosphere. Recommended!
And maybe it is.
Because Sam begins to hear noises in it late at night, and when he goes searching for the sources, digging through the floorboards and plaster, he finds relics and items from his old, dead life.
What I enjoyed most about this story is that it reminded me a lot of classic weird/horror fiction by the likes of M. R. James and maybe Arthur Machen. It's a short and fun read filled with real characters, great dialogue, and a creepy atmosphere. Recommended!
March 11, 2014
Sam Hatch has the perfect life, successful, lots of friends, lovely family, all until a car crash robs him of everything, with his family gone he’s now a shadow of the man he was and tormented to the point of drifting through life with no destination and no dreams.
During his travels a strange compulsion draws him to an old ruined house overlooking the Chesapeake Bay and astonishingly enough he buys the property.
He starts to renovate the house and pretty soon weird things start to happen, objects move and funny noises etc. Now I’m not a massive fan of haunted house novels or films but this is skilfully told.
He wakes each morning to something seriously different and it’s a little disturbing.
The house morphs into something from his past, something he’ll never forget and the author manages to create just the right atmosphere and creepiness. The ending was, I have to say perfect leaving you in two minds, crazy or that damn house.
Ronald Malfi is a decent story teller, a few quotes that I remembered, “ Fear tightened a cold hand around his heart” and “how sometimes the harder you stared at something the less you actually saw it.”
I’ve enjoyed the two novella’s I’ve read so far, the Mourning House & Skullbelly, I’ve also got Snow, Floating Staircase and The Narrows waiting. Need to move these up the old tbr pile.
During his travels a strange compulsion draws him to an old ruined house overlooking the Chesapeake Bay and astonishingly enough he buys the property.
He starts to renovate the house and pretty soon weird things start to happen, objects move and funny noises etc. Now I’m not a massive fan of haunted house novels or films but this is skilfully told.
He wakes each morning to something seriously different and it’s a little disturbing.
The house morphs into something from his past, something he’ll never forget and the author manages to create just the right atmosphere and creepiness. The ending was, I have to say perfect leaving you in two minds, crazy or that damn house.
Ronald Malfi is a decent story teller, a few quotes that I remembered, “ Fear tightened a cold hand around his heart” and “how sometimes the harder you stared at something the less you actually saw it.”
I’ve enjoyed the two novella’s I’ve read so far, the Mourning House & Skullbelly, I’ve also got Snow, Floating Staircase and The Narrows waiting. Need to move these up the old tbr pile.
August 27, 2022
Nice introduction to Ronald Malifi's work. Really quick read and definitely gave me the chills.
November 12, 2021
Devastated by tragedy, Dr. Sam Hatch is a shadow of his former self. He travels the byroads of America, running away from a past he cannot escape. There is no salvation for him. And then he sees the house. Like a siren, it calls to him. Yet the house is not what it appears to be. Is it a blessing, a gift...or a curse?
The Mourning House is the perfect name for a haunting shack that reflects the deepest sorrows and fears of those that take residence within its walls. The way the story is framed reminded me a lot of The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Not the actual themes of the story itself, but the way they are unraveled by peeling down the walls and floors of the house little by little, revealing the memories and trauma of a broken man and trapping him in a prison of his own despair. Running away is rarely the answer when it comes to healing your deepest sorrows, they'll follow you everywhere until you make the choice to confront them.
***
If you're looking for some dark ambient music for reading horror, dark fantasy and other books like this one, then be sure to check out my YouTube Channel called Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...
The Mourning House is the perfect name for a haunting shack that reflects the deepest sorrows and fears of those that take residence within its walls. The way the story is framed reminded me a lot of The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Not the actual themes of the story itself, but the way they are unraveled by peeling down the walls and floors of the house little by little, revealing the memories and trauma of a broken man and trapping him in a prison of his own despair. Running away is rarely the answer when it comes to healing your deepest sorrows, they'll follow you everywhere until you make the choice to confront them.
***
If you're looking for some dark ambient music for reading horror, dark fantasy and other books like this one, then be sure to check out my YouTube Channel called Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...
February 13, 2013
Another fine novella from Darkfuse.
To those who read lots of dark fiction, and ghost stories in particular, this is familiar territory. We even feel like we have been in this house before. Yes, there is the creaking floorboard and the shadow moving in the next room. Wasn't the staircase over there? Let's find the closets, because as we all know, a lot of things happen in closets and basements. Oh never mind. That doesn't matter.
While this story will definitely feel familiar, what isn't so common is the quality of the writing and the depth of the characters. Ghost stories should be creepy and unnerving, and this one sure is; but the very good ones are often sad---filled with the heartbreak of loss of loved ones and the anguish of those left behind.
Malfi delivers. We feel deeply for these characters. We appreciate the texture and depth of his narration and description. And even though we have been here before, we still feel the chill to the spine and the tug to the heart.
I guess that is why we will always read ghost stories. Particularly really good ones like this.
To those who read lots of dark fiction, and ghost stories in particular, this is familiar territory. We even feel like we have been in this house before. Yes, there is the creaking floorboard and the shadow moving in the next room. Wasn't the staircase over there? Let's find the closets, because as we all know, a lot of things happen in closets and basements. Oh never mind. That doesn't matter.
While this story will definitely feel familiar, what isn't so common is the quality of the writing and the depth of the characters. Ghost stories should be creepy and unnerving, and this one sure is; but the very good ones are often sad---filled with the heartbreak of loss of loved ones and the anguish of those left behind.
Malfi delivers. We feel deeply for these characters. We appreciate the texture and depth of his narration and description. And even though we have been here before, we still feel the chill to the spine and the tug to the heart.
I guess that is why we will always read ghost stories. Particularly really good ones like this.
January 30, 2013
Review of The Mourning House by Ronald Malfi
5 Stars
This novella is perfect, compact, and complete. A strong plot line, a couple of back stories, good characterizations, and an old abandoned house which is a character all in itself. Yes, the title does play out in the course of the story, although the working out is subtle. In general, this story is all about subtlety: no bludgeoning nor splatterpunk here. This is the work of an accomplished author (and I knew to expect that after reading Mr. Malfi’s novels “The Floating Staircase” and “Snowblind” in 2012).
A former surgeon who considers himself responsible for the death of his wife and infant daughter goes “on the road” for an extended period, not to find himself but to continue to mourn. Somehow he is “drawn” to find an isolated, abandoned, spooky, falling-in house on a dusty back road in Maryland, not too far from Chesapeake Bay. The house is problematical: it has caused troubles and terrors to exploratory kids. It will come to trouble Sam as well.
5 Stars
This novella is perfect, compact, and complete. A strong plot line, a couple of back stories, good characterizations, and an old abandoned house which is a character all in itself. Yes, the title does play out in the course of the story, although the working out is subtle. In general, this story is all about subtlety: no bludgeoning nor splatterpunk here. This is the work of an accomplished author (and I knew to expect that after reading Mr. Malfi’s novels “The Floating Staircase” and “Snowblind” in 2012).
A former surgeon who considers himself responsible for the death of his wife and infant daughter goes “on the road” for an extended period, not to find himself but to continue to mourn. Somehow he is “drawn” to find an isolated, abandoned, spooky, falling-in house on a dusty back road in Maryland, not too far from Chesapeake Bay. The house is problematical: it has caused troubles and terrors to exploratory kids. It will come to trouble Sam as well.
October 13, 2014
"The Mourning House" is a very creepy haunted house tale.
Dr. Sam Hatch suffers the loss of his young family in a brutal automobile accident. Dropping out of life, Sam begins a decline that may be the side effects of anxiety meds, insanity or a haunting.
Malfi keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what is coming next and keeps the reader in dread of what the next piece of the puzzle to fall in place will be.
4 STARS
Dr. Sam Hatch suffers the loss of his young family in a brutal automobile accident. Dropping out of life, Sam begins a decline that may be the side effects of anxiety meds, insanity or a haunting.
Malfi keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what is coming next and keeps the reader in dread of what the next piece of the puzzle to fall in place will be.
4 STARS
April 9, 2025
As the name would suggest, The Mourning House is a bit of a dreary and depressing novel. The novel starts off with Dr. Sam Hatch getting into a car accident that kills his wife and young daughter. That starts a downward spiral for Sam as he abandons his life and becomes a drifter. He winds up buying a house in the middle of nowhere that has some mysterious and mystical properties. The house “calls” to Sam, and he begins renovations on it. Without going into spoiler territory, things get weird after that.
The writing had a seriously dark quality to it. It was moody and atmospheric, I think in the way the author intended it to be. Sam Hatch is a realistic character with some depth to him. He has a hard time coping with loss as many others do in similar situations. His dropping out of society might be a bit extreme, but it works in the context of this story. I thought at times it was a bit too depressing for my liking, and I would have liked it to be more uplifting. For instance, a relationship between Sam and a waitress at a restaurant nearby the Mourning House was teased but it never evolved. Perhaps that could have brightened things a bit. Overall, I liked this book. I read it one sitting on a plane ride, and it’s the sort of book that you could devour pretty quickly.
Carl Alves - Battle of the Soul
The writing had a seriously dark quality to it. It was moody and atmospheric, I think in the way the author intended it to be. Sam Hatch is a realistic character with some depth to him. He has a hard time coping with loss as many others do in similar situations. His dropping out of society might be a bit extreme, but it works in the context of this story. I thought at times it was a bit too depressing for my liking, and I would have liked it to be more uplifting. For instance, a relationship between Sam and a waitress at a restaurant nearby the Mourning House was teased but it never evolved. Perhaps that could have brightened things a bit. Overall, I liked this book. I read it one sitting on a plane ride, and it’s the sort of book that you could devour pretty quickly.
Carl Alves - Battle of the Soul
October 16, 2013
The more I read Malfi, the more I like him. The man surpases any genre limitations/expectations and never take an easy way out. His horror is literary, intelligent, moving and exceptionally well written. So much more than another book about haunted real estate, this is a story of loss, sadness and despair, of a man drowning in it all and a house that serves as his sinking hole. Short read, only took an hour, but extremely satisfying. Thank you Charlene for my first ever Kindle loan. Deeply depressing, darkly atmospehric and profoundly haunting, this claustrophobic tale is Malfi at his best. Highly recommended.
August 8, 2014
I could give all of Ronald Malfi's books five stars. His characters move into your soul and make you endure their story through his poetic, haunting, and suspenseful tales. He's my favorite horror author and this one was just what I was hoping for. It's a shorter length story, but that doesn't take away from its power. A doctor has a terrible accident, becomes a drifter and winds up at an old house with eerie powers. He intends to fix it up, but the house develops a hold on him that is beyond belief. The Mourning House explores pockets of believable terror in a way that makes you long to hold your loved ones.
January 3, 2014
This story is about a man named Sam Hatch who loses his wife and daughter in a car accident. Then decides to drive and leave everything behind. He comes upon this old beat up abandoned house (The Mourning House). He decides to buy it and fix it up to live in. This is when he starts seeing and hearing and finding strange things in the house. I did enjoy this quick read. It was not one of RM best, but still a good read. I gave it 3 1/2 stars.
August 20, 2017
Very good Malfi story that's atmospheric AF. As with his other stuff there is this building sense of dread right with a fitting and emotional conclusion. This is the shortest piece I've read by him, the other three were novels, but everything I've come to love about his writing is here just found in shorter doses. Recommended for a short read when wanting to be creeped out.
December 31, 2012
The Mourning House is one of the first short stories to make its way into my tablet via Kindle, and as such, it would have had to have been fantastically bad to fail me. The whole new approach to books is really addicting so, fair warning. May contain undue bias.
With that out of the way, let me say that there could have been few better welcomes to my new reading reality than this. I am a long time fan of the genre; particularly ghost stories and the afterlife. but I am accustomed to far more runup to the meat of these stories and was very pleasantly surprised at how immediately this story began to create discomfort. There was just enough back story to understand the frame of mind we find the main protagonist Sam, in as we join his story, and then it's quite instantly on with "what's wrong".
Good stories with houses as leading characters fail all the time by not bringing the house sort of "around" the reader, like it has replaced current surrounds. No such issues here. The house was instantly foreboding, but not in a terror producing way. Again, just a feeling of profound unease. That eerie thing that Kubrick understood with The Shining that others miss again and again, and this understanding of how much more frightening "eerie and just not right" is can be felt all over this book.
As many other reviewers have said, things get worse and worse gradually. Harder and harder to feel comfortable about, and as Sam finds out more and more from a few of the locals in the area, what is happening slowly reveals itself. There is a tip over point; something that really sheds tons of light on what is going on and lets you know sort of how far off you are in comprehension, and once that occurs, you can almost predict what sort of direction things will take. But that doesn't detract one bit from the actual reveals. The subtle way things are connected and resolved for Sam save the hair raising until dead last each time and remind you of what it's like when being right is the worst thing that could happen.
The point of view and pace in this book are pretty much perfect. The length of these novellas can be a detriment to a story not planned for them, leading them to feel palpably abrupt and confusing at the end. This does not happen here because not only does the story and its ending lend itself to what was done, but the point of view is expertly switched to one which is not privy in real time to much immediately before that point and so the story's progression from there is perfectly natural. Another way of putting it is that due to the author's control over his plot and pacing, he graced himself with an ending that neatly writes itself with little hope of underwhelming or failing readers.
Overall, I was very impressed with this book. It is a novella done right by an author very much aware of his To Do list and the boundaries in which he must work, and I will be looking for more of his books on Kindle. Additionally, it is very apparent that he is writing at this length because he chooses to and not because he can't carry a longer novel, so I would be very interested in finding out what he could do with say, Stephen King's page limits. Recommended!
With that out of the way, let me say that there could have been few better welcomes to my new reading reality than this. I am a long time fan of the genre; particularly ghost stories and the afterlife. but I am accustomed to far more runup to the meat of these stories and was very pleasantly surprised at how immediately this story began to create discomfort. There was just enough back story to understand the frame of mind we find the main protagonist Sam, in as we join his story, and then it's quite instantly on with "what's wrong".
Good stories with houses as leading characters fail all the time by not bringing the house sort of "around" the reader, like it has replaced current surrounds. No such issues here. The house was instantly foreboding, but not in a terror producing way. Again, just a feeling of profound unease. That eerie thing that Kubrick understood with The Shining that others miss again and again, and this understanding of how much more frightening "eerie and just not right" is can be felt all over this book.
As many other reviewers have said, things get worse and worse gradually. Harder and harder to feel comfortable about, and as Sam finds out more and more from a few of the locals in the area, what is happening slowly reveals itself. There is a tip over point; something that really sheds tons of light on what is going on and lets you know sort of how far off you are in comprehension, and once that occurs, you can almost predict what sort of direction things will take. But that doesn't detract one bit from the actual reveals. The subtle way things are connected and resolved for Sam save the hair raising until dead last each time and remind you of what it's like when being right is the worst thing that could happen.
The point of view and pace in this book are pretty much perfect. The length of these novellas can be a detriment to a story not planned for them, leading them to feel palpably abrupt and confusing at the end. This does not happen here because not only does the story and its ending lend itself to what was done, but the point of view is expertly switched to one which is not privy in real time to much immediately before that point and so the story's progression from there is perfectly natural. Another way of putting it is that due to the author's control over his plot and pacing, he graced himself with an ending that neatly writes itself with little hope of underwhelming or failing readers.
Overall, I was very impressed with this book. It is a novella done right by an author very much aware of his To Do list and the boundaries in which he must work, and I will be looking for more of his books on Kindle. Additionally, it is very apparent that he is writing at this length because he chooses to and not because he can't carry a longer novel, so I would be very interested in finding out what he could do with say, Stephen King's page limits. Recommended!
October 23, 2012
The Mourning House is a sad, haunting, emotional story about a man who’s lost it all. Sam lost his wife and baby daughter in a terrible accident that’s haunted him ever since. He can’t stand to live in his house anymore, an empty shell, a memory of his life long gone. He walks through empty rooms and hears his wife’s voice or his daughter’s cries. He runs away from the tragedy, and spends a year traveling from place to place, a refugee without any place to call home. Until he comes upon a creepy old house he instantly feels an attraction to. If it’s because the house seems just as lost as he is, or an entirely different reason, he has no clue, and quite frankly, he doesn’t care. Sam decides to buy the house and starts to renovate. But the more time he spends inside the house, the more he grows convinced he’s not the only one there. He finds his tools in other places that he left them. He hears cries coming from inside the walls. When he tears down the floor, he comes upon the same floor he used to have in his old house. The house is like a puzzle, and Sam is forced to put the pieces together and solve the mystery.
The prose in The Mourning House is sublime. The shrill contrast between the way the first chapter, when life is still happy and good, and the prose in the later chapters, when Sam is on the verge of depression, is amazing. The author did an excellent job portraying Sam’s slow descent into madness from the moment he steps into the creepy, old house. As I read through the novella, I felt the house come to life page by page. The constant question troubling me was: is the house haunted, or is just a puzzle? Is it perhaps all in Sam’s mind? Or maybe even both? I love stories that keep me guessing, and this certainly did. Sam’s thoughts are, at moments, all over the place, juggling between the past and present, and this intrigued me endlessly. I still don’t know absolutely sure what was for real, and what was a trick of Sam’s imagination, but that doesn’t bother me in the slightest.
The atmosphere of the house was well-executed as well. At first, it didn’t seem that terrifying: just a creepy old house that somehow called out to Sam. But the longer he spend in the house, the more claustrophobic it became, as if it was closing in on him, and as a reader, I could feel this as well: in the dialogue, in the narrative, in the general vibe I got from reading. By the time I finished reading, I had the feeling the walls of my bedroom were closing in on me. That’s the difference between a great author and an excellent author, and in my opinion, Ronald Malfi, definitely ranks in the latter category.
I recommend this book to all haunted house fans. It’s a must read, if not for the lyrical prose or the intriguing main character, then at least for the creepy subtleness of the horror in The Mourning House.
The prose in The Mourning House is sublime. The shrill contrast between the way the first chapter, when life is still happy and good, and the prose in the later chapters, when Sam is on the verge of depression, is amazing. The author did an excellent job portraying Sam’s slow descent into madness from the moment he steps into the creepy, old house. As I read through the novella, I felt the house come to life page by page. The constant question troubling me was: is the house haunted, or is just a puzzle? Is it perhaps all in Sam’s mind? Or maybe even both? I love stories that keep me guessing, and this certainly did. Sam’s thoughts are, at moments, all over the place, juggling between the past and present, and this intrigued me endlessly. I still don’t know absolutely sure what was for real, and what was a trick of Sam’s imagination, but that doesn’t bother me in the slightest.
The atmosphere of the house was well-executed as well. At first, it didn’t seem that terrifying: just a creepy old house that somehow called out to Sam. But the longer he spend in the house, the more claustrophobic it became, as if it was closing in on him, and as a reader, I could feel this as well: in the dialogue, in the narrative, in the general vibe I got from reading. By the time I finished reading, I had the feeling the walls of my bedroom were closing in on me. That’s the difference between a great author and an excellent author, and in my opinion, Ronald Malfi, definitely ranks in the latter category.
I recommend this book to all haunted house fans. It’s a must read, if not for the lyrical prose or the intriguing main character, then at least for the creepy subtleness of the horror in The Mourning House.
February 9, 2013
Dr. Sam Hatch had everything, a beautiful wife, a brand new baby daughter and a good paying job. He lost all of that the night of the car crash. Sam had fallen asleep at the wheel and his wife and daughter were killed. Sam could not take the pain of living in the home that he once shared with his family. Sam runs away from the heartbreak and spends a year traveling from one city to another. Sam spotted this small white abandon house on this deserted service rd. Something drew Sam to this house but he did not know why! The house was run down and dilapidated but Sam had to buy this house. Sam was going to fix it up so that he could live there. Things were being rearranged in the house and not by Sam. Sam heard strange things going on in the house. Was Sam mad or was the house really haunted?
December 18, 2012
In life, there are times when one comes upon a work of art that is so stunning, so brilliant, and so fantastic that the mind struggles to accept that it is real. So is Ronald Malfi’s “Mourning House.” For years, I have searched for a piece of storytelling, a novel, a short-story, a movie, a television show, that could chill me. That could reach down in my soul and twist it. That could make me shudder and break out in goosebumps. Something I could savor every moment of and enjoy at some deep, transcendent level. It’s a rare thing, a piece of fiction like that. But “Mourning House” accomplished it. I loved this story. I loved every word, every syllable. I found myself reading it line-by-line, both afraid and excited to scroll down and see what was next. I cannot recommend it highly enough
February 1, 2013
A haunted house tale with some real bite about a man who stumbles upon a creepy, rundown house (a "dump" as it's called in the story) and is compelled supernaturally to restore it. This novella is a tightly compact tale with some great chills . I thoroughly enjoyed this story. The fifth DarkFuse title I've read since joining their book club. Must read horror novella, especially for those who love haunted house tales!
December 16, 2024
Absolutely wonderful. The idea of a house that can be infected by grief was both weird and fascinating. Malfi can do no wrong.
October 23, 2014
In today’s horror literary world, you find more works trying to shock you with scenes of gore rather than chill you to the bone. When you pick up Malfi’s work though, you won’t find scenes of shock, you will find tortured characters, locations that seem to have a life of their own, and descriptive writing that’s on par with the masters of horror past.
While Hatch is the main character the real star of the story is this house that he finds. It manipulates you, drives you to see things and interpret things that may or may not be there. It takes your tragedy and uses that to prey on you.
As Dr Sam Hatch begins his downward spiral in this house that he finds you get snippets of the past, and flashes of the present. With each scene your heart begins to ache for Hatch as you slowly uncover his past and his loss.
Malfi creates some truly haunting moments combining perfectly executed atmospheric depictions coupled with events that keep you off your guard. It’s been a long time since I’ve genuinely had chills reading a story, and this one actually did accomplish that.
Like most stories of this persuasion the ending can be a bit ambiguous, but you know that this house isn’t done with people.
The Bottom Line: This was one hell of a read. I felt that at points it was a little disjointed and took me out of the story, but when Malfi is on, he’s ON to a level I’ve not read in a while. I’ve had another book of his sitting on my shelf for a while, and this is going to have me diving into it very soon. The short is only $3.49, but even better, with your Kindle Unlimited subscription, you can read it FREE.
While Hatch is the main character the real star of the story is this house that he finds. It manipulates you, drives you to see things and interpret things that may or may not be there. It takes your tragedy and uses that to prey on you.
As Dr Sam Hatch begins his downward spiral in this house that he finds you get snippets of the past, and flashes of the present. With each scene your heart begins to ache for Hatch as you slowly uncover his past and his loss.
Malfi creates some truly haunting moments combining perfectly executed atmospheric depictions coupled with events that keep you off your guard. It’s been a long time since I’ve genuinely had chills reading a story, and this one actually did accomplish that.
Like most stories of this persuasion the ending can be a bit ambiguous, but you know that this house isn’t done with people.
The Bottom Line: This was one hell of a read. I felt that at points it was a little disjointed and took me out of the story, but when Malfi is on, he’s ON to a level I’ve not read in a while. I’ve had another book of his sitting on my shelf for a while, and this is going to have me diving into it very soon. The short is only $3.49, but even better, with your Kindle Unlimited subscription, you can read it FREE.
April 26, 2015
This review contains spoilers
A beautifully written, very creepy story. A man falls asleep behind the wheel and his wife and baby die in the accident. After the funeral he takes off without a word to anyone, and almost 2 years later a dilapidated house that should be condemned catches his eye. He buys the house, begins repairs, and almost immediately strange things begin to happen. Is someone else in the house? Things are moved around, but even stranger, things placed in a certain closet seem to deteriorate quickly. Under the floorboards he finds the same checkerboard pattern as his old house. Behind the walls in one room he finds the same wallpaper as was in his babies bedroom. He hears a dog barking, but no dog is there, he hears a baby crying, but no baby is there. The house begins to look more and more like his old house. And the thought comes that the house is a puzzle, and maybe if he completes it he can get everything back. This book was very creepy, but at the same time it was also very sad. You feel for Sam, even as you're wondering if he's losing his mind.
A beautifully written, very creepy story. A man falls asleep behind the wheel and his wife and baby die in the accident. After the funeral he takes off without a word to anyone, and almost 2 years later a dilapidated house that should be condemned catches his eye. He buys the house, begins repairs, and almost immediately strange things begin to happen. Is someone else in the house? Things are moved around, but even stranger, things placed in a certain closet seem to deteriorate quickly. Under the floorboards he finds the same checkerboard pattern as his old house. Behind the walls in one room he finds the same wallpaper as was in his babies bedroom. He hears a dog barking, but no dog is there, he hears a baby crying, but no baby is there. The house begins to look more and more like his old house. And the thought comes that the house is a puzzle, and maybe if he completes it he can get everything back. This book was very creepy, but at the same time it was also very sad. You feel for Sam, even as you're wondering if he's losing his mind.
Read
July 19, 2018I picked this up again the other night, thinking that maybe I had read it.
I had a few years back. At the end I was greeted with another surprise. I had reviewed it on Amazon, but not on here. So here’s my original review. I just want to note that I enjoyed reading it the second time as well:
The mystery here unfolds at a perfect pace. The main character at times seems to descend into madness, but Malfi keeps you guessing. Maybe the occurrences in the story are real and not some product of the protagonist's imagination. You have to keep reading to find out.
The writing never gets confusing as the protagonist begins to break down. The character's disorientation never became my disorientation, which was refreshing.
I wanted to learn more about the house in the story. This tale deserved more! It ended a bit abruptly, but one could also say it leaves you wanting more in a good way.
Definitely a great, quick read before bed. The story has an atmosphere of isolation and the paranormal that will make you feel just vulnerable enough to get creeped out by the mystery as more light is shed on it.
I had a few years back. At the end I was greeted with another surprise. I had reviewed it on Amazon, but not on here. So here’s my original review. I just want to note that I enjoyed reading it the second time as well:
The mystery here unfolds at a perfect pace. The main character at times seems to descend into madness, but Malfi keeps you guessing. Maybe the occurrences in the story are real and not some product of the protagonist's imagination. You have to keep reading to find out.
The writing never gets confusing as the protagonist begins to break down. The character's disorientation never became my disorientation, which was refreshing.
I wanted to learn more about the house in the story. This tale deserved more! It ended a bit abruptly, but one could also say it leaves you wanting more in a good way.
Definitely a great, quick read before bed. The story has an atmosphere of isolation and the paranormal that will make you feel just vulnerable enough to get creeped out by the mystery as more light is shed on it.
August 13, 2013
A big shout-out to DarkFuse for giving me the opportunity to accept this novella as one of their gift offers for membership. This was my first reading of Ronald Malfi; though I have other novels by the author; "The Mourning House" won out. And am I glad it did. This was an exceptional novella and I would prefer to rate it as (4.5) if that was possible with this system. I must profess to procrastinating when it comes to finally writing this review on the aforementioned title; in that I finished it (I believe) about three hours after starting it. This was possible due to a well written story with superior content brought to us (the reader) by a very, very talented author. Thank-you Mr. Malfi and continued success. No need for me to ramble on any further; there are numerous, well written, and articulate reviews covering the meat/content of this story for those interested in this genre. For what it's worth; I highly recommend this novella. You will not be disappointed.
October 10, 2012
God, I love me some Ronald Malfi. I have read a couple of his books and have another one waiting for me on my Nook, so when I saw Netgalley offering this novelette, I jumped on it.
It is written with his same incredibly descriptive scenery and twists which leave a reader scratching his/her head! Malfi is one of those authors who can write a mean short story or full length novel with the same level of quality which is a rare feat as they require different writing capabilities.
In The Mourning House, the reader is left scratching his/her heads as to what is reality and what is imaginary when a man grieving from the loss of his wife and daughter moves to a house where strange occurances start to play with his mind. Are they imaginary though?
It is written with his same incredibly descriptive scenery and twists which leave a reader scratching his/her head! Malfi is one of those authors who can write a mean short story or full length novel with the same level of quality which is a rare feat as they require different writing capabilities.
In The Mourning House, the reader is left scratching his/her heads as to what is reality and what is imaginary when a man grieving from the loss of his wife and daughter moves to a house where strange occurances start to play with his mind. Are they imaginary though?
July 27, 2015
Having recently lost his wife and child in a car accident while he was at the wheel, Dr. Sam Hatch is drowning in grief and self-recrimination. Driven to abandon his old life, Sam has set out on a cross-country journey to nowhere in particular . . . until he finds himself compelled by a ruin of a house on the periphery of Chesapeake Bay. And, despite his uneasy feeling and the local rumors, he also feels compelled to buy it and fix it up. And the rest . . . well, you should read it.
The Mourning House is a real chiller of a haunted house story, boasting excellent detail and atmospherics, as well as a twist you might not see coming. A surprising and original take on what really haunts us. 4.5 stars.
The Mourning House is a real chiller of a haunted house story, boasting excellent detail and atmospherics, as well as a twist you might not see coming. A surprising and original take on what really haunts us. 4.5 stars.
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