The Grip of It

by Jac Jemc

 “We can lose ourselves behind a trapdoor, whether in our mind or in the house.”

This Story starts when a couple, Julie and James move into a house in a small town outside the city. James has a gambling problem and Julie wants a brand-new start and both desperately want a change in life. They were more than happy to find this new house which sits between the ocean and forest. But little they know that the new house and the mysterious residents who lived in the house has other plans for the couple.
The synopsis and the cover of this story are so promising, but I ended up been disappointed. Going into this novel I was expecting a dark haunted house tale, but could not find anything to scared me Rather I felt the whole story is about a couple trying to find out what is wrong with the house and their neighbor and the surroundings. The story had so much potential but ended up been another flat story.

The story is written in couple’s POV’s and most of the time it's “she said”, “he said”. I like the author’s writing style and the cover but unfortunately, there is not much horror element in this story. There have been few creepy vibes such as unexplained drawings, moving shadows, hidden rooms, mysterious children playing in woods, and a cave near the beach, but none gave me a nail-biting experience of what I anticipated from a horror story.
The story is just like the horror movies, first, they ignore the red flags, don’t believe what the other person experience, and in the end, they were messed.
Overall, this is fine reading and I would give another chance to read a book from this author.

My Ratings: