3.5 stars.
THE HAUNTING OF SHADOW HILL HOUSE is the first novel I've read by author Caroline Clark. In 1690 tragedy struck this large estate in the form of an abusive husband and father. However, the new family moving in from out of town are ignorant of the house's history. Planning on turning the place into an "artist's retreat", Jenny, Mason, and their young daughter, Abby, settle in--exhausting all of their savings to do so. With Mason no longer having a job, Jenny sees this as her chance to make her dream-job a reality.
Unfortunately, if it fails, they have nowhere else to go.
". . . it should have inspired her but still she felt nothing . . . "
While the exterior looks like a dream come true, the interior is another matter entirely. Suspicious stains appear on carpeting no matter how often they're cleaned. Then there's the issue of Abby immediately latching onto an imaginary friend named Victoria.
"Every time someone has moved in there since . . . well, there has been a tragedy . . . "
I felt that Jenny's character, and that of "Victoria", were the most fleshed out in this novel. Jenny immediately latches onto the "wrongness" in the home and her life becomes entwined with that of the past.
". . . she felt as if she was waiting . . . but waiting for what? . . . "
The atmosphere of the estate was best when stories of the past were brought up. I felt that the most intense emotions and believable characters were set in that time frame. Aside from Jenny, herself--who seemed the most involved with the forces around her and trying to "care for everyone"--the other characters just didn't impress me with the same depth of believability. They felt more like they were thrown in to play a minor role, and that the tale itself revolved primarily around two central figures.
Overall, I felt that the storyline itself was strong with an emotional pull, and some genuinely creepy moments. However, the lesser roles of other characters, numerous repetition of certain phrases, and a character that did play a pivotal role, but seemingly came out of nowhere, detracted from the novel maintaining a continuous connection. While this story fell "middle of the road" for me, I will certainly try another book by this author in the future.