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The Haunting of Santo Domingo Street: A Novel
Not yet published
Expected 2 Feb 27In this eerie supernatural horror novel, two cousins must decide the fate of their childhood home—but the building has other plans.
When Rosella Li and her estranged cousin, Gabe, inherit the last crumbling Victorian in a downtown San Jose block, developers hope to finish their gentrification push. Rosella is happy to see it go—her father, Ming, always cared more for the building and its tenants than her—but Gabe wants to cling on, mourning both his childhood home and the man who quietly raised him.
Despite their squabbling, the choice may not be theirs; 43 Santo Domingo Street won't be relinquished so easily. Indeed, when the cousins arrive to sign it away, they unearth boxes buried in its walls, revealing the desperate history Ming hid for decades, including what really happened to Rosella's mother. Then, as bulldozers circle, a malevolence makes itself known.
Soon, the lies that spanned family and cultures finally surface and, with them, spirits hellbent on one No one leaves Santo Domingo Street.
New York Times–bestselling author Mike Chen's The Haunting of Santo Domingo Street is a chilling exploration of the consequences of erasing the past that will have readers grappling with the cost of not only progress . . . but also forgetting.
When Rosella Li and her estranged cousin, Gabe, inherit the last crumbling Victorian in a downtown San Jose block, developers hope to finish their gentrification push. Rosella is happy to see it go—her father, Ming, always cared more for the building and its tenants than her—but Gabe wants to cling on, mourning both his childhood home and the man who quietly raised him.
Despite their squabbling, the choice may not be theirs; 43 Santo Domingo Street won't be relinquished so easily. Indeed, when the cousins arrive to sign it away, they unearth boxes buried in its walls, revealing the desperate history Ming hid for decades, including what really happened to Rosella's mother. Then, as bulldozers circle, a malevolence makes itself known.
Soon, the lies that spanned family and cultures finally surface and, with them, spirits hellbent on one No one leaves Santo Domingo Street.
New York Times–bestselling author Mike Chen's The Haunting of Santo Domingo Street is a chilling exploration of the consequences of erasing the past that will have readers grappling with the cost of not only progress . . . but also forgetting.
304 pages, Paperback
Expected publication February 2, 2027
About the author
Mike Chen
63 books1,098 followersMike Chen is the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Brotherhood, Here and Now and Then, Light Years From Home, and other novels, in addition to Star Trek comics. He has covered geek culture for sites such as Nerdist, Tor.com, and StarTrek.com, and in a different life, covered the NHL. A member of SFWA, Mike lives in the Bay Area with his wife, daughter, and many rescue animals. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram: @mikechenwriter
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 13, 2026
📖 The Haunting Of Santo Domingo Street by Mike Chen
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I requested this book as an ARC on NetGalley because the blurb sounded exactly like something I would love. I’m a sucker for haunted house stories, especially when they’re actually scary. And while The Haunting of Santo Domingo Street definitely delivered on the haunted house aspect, it sadly didn’t scare me at all. Instead, it turned out to be a much more emotional and heartbreaking story than I expected.
The story follows cousins Rosella and Gabe, who inherit the run-down building they grew up in after the death of Ming, the man who played very different roles in both of their lives. While they’re trying to decide what to do with the property as developers are preparing to demolish it, they discover boxes hidden inside the walls and begin uncovering long-buried family secrets. And it quickly becomes clear that the building is haunted by much more than memories.
I really appreciated how Mike Chen combines the supernatural elements with generational trauma and the experiences of immigrant families, including the ways people can be exploited and their histories erased in the name of progress. The ghosts and the house become a way to explore all of that while also slowly uncovering what happened in the past.
I absolutely loved Chen’s writing. He has such a way with words that I felt like I was right there with Rosella and Gabe, exploring the house, uncovering its secrets and trying to figure out what happened to the people who came before them. My only real complaint is that I wanted this to be much scarier. If you go into this expecting a truly terrifying haunted house story, you might be disappointed. I’m really glad I got the chance to read this, and I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys haunted house stories but also wants something emotional, thoughtful and a little heartbreaking.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I requested this book as an ARC on NetGalley because the blurb sounded exactly like something I would love. I’m a sucker for haunted house stories, especially when they’re actually scary. And while The Haunting of Santo Domingo Street definitely delivered on the haunted house aspect, it sadly didn’t scare me at all. Instead, it turned out to be a much more emotional and heartbreaking story than I expected.
The story follows cousins Rosella and Gabe, who inherit the run-down building they grew up in after the death of Ming, the man who played very different roles in both of their lives. While they’re trying to decide what to do with the property as developers are preparing to demolish it, they discover boxes hidden inside the walls and begin uncovering long-buried family secrets. And it quickly becomes clear that the building is haunted by much more than memories.
I really appreciated how Mike Chen combines the supernatural elements with generational trauma and the experiences of immigrant families, including the ways people can be exploited and their histories erased in the name of progress. The ghosts and the house become a way to explore all of that while also slowly uncovering what happened in the past.
I absolutely loved Chen’s writing. He has such a way with words that I felt like I was right there with Rosella and Gabe, exploring the house, uncovering its secrets and trying to figure out what happened to the people who came before them. My only real complaint is that I wanted this to be much scarier. If you go into this expecting a truly terrifying haunted house story, you might be disappointed. I’m really glad I got the chance to read this, and I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys haunted house stories but also wants something emotional, thoughtful and a little heartbreaking.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I feel a bit mixed about this book. It had a strong start, some definite creepy vibes and a good atmosphere. However, it lost me a bit around a third of the way through; I found the pacing a bit uneven and I struggled to stay consistently engaged throughout the story. Some of the characters’ reactions to certain events also felt a little unbelievable to me at times.
I did however admire how Chen was able to use the haunted house as a vehicle to explore generational trauma and the experience of Asian American immigrants. In many ways, the real horrors at the heart of the book are gentrification, generational trauma, and the treatment of immigrants.
Overall, I admired this book's premise and messages, more than I actually enjoyed the story. However I can some readers really connecting to this book and I think it brings something unique to the genre.
Thank you to netgalley, the publisher & the author for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I did however admire how Chen was able to use the haunted house as a vehicle to explore generational trauma and the experience of Asian American immigrants. In many ways, the real horrors at the heart of the book are gentrification, generational trauma, and the treatment of immigrants.
Overall, I admired this book's premise and messages, more than I actually enjoyed the story. However I can some readers really connecting to this book and I think it brings something unique to the genre.
Thank you to netgalley, the publisher & the author for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I love stories like this—easy to sink into and forget everything else. When real life intruded, I felt compelled to pick it up again as quickly as I could. In the author's notes, Mike Chen says he wanted to write a haunted house novel where the scary elements included immigrant trauma and gentrification, and boy did he pull it off.
Cousins Gabe and Rosella feel real and complex, with satisfying character growth and nuanced reactions to the chaos they encounter in the story. 43 Santo Domingo Street is painted so vividly that you can almost feel the scuffed flooring and smell the burned wires.
On the horror meter, there's no gore. It gets spooky but not scary. Although if your parental trauma is around being ignored, maybe tread lightly.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy to review!
Cousins Gabe and Rosella feel real and complex, with satisfying character growth and nuanced reactions to the chaos they encounter in the story. 43 Santo Domingo Street is painted so vividly that you can almost feel the scuffed flooring and smell the burned wires.
On the horror meter, there's no gore. It gets spooky but not scary. Although if your parental trauma is around being ignored, maybe tread lightly.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy to review!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Love an inherited haunted house story. I wish we had just followed one of the cousins’ perspectives, but that’s just my preference for single POV stories
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews