House of Dark Shadows

I started the book thinking I may not finish it. This is a young adult novel, so I had different expectations. I would describe this book as the setup book for the story of the series; a how it all began, if you will. The beginning seemed a little slow, but I could identify with the main character and his angst with moving to a new place and wanting to return to the old place.

While I thought initially this book was a little dark for a young adult book, it does present a picture of making the best of a situation, whether it is liked or not, without being Leave It to Beaver cheesy and easy answers and solutions. In the end, I am left looking forward to the next book.

I thought this was a great young adult horror story. Two brothers and their family move to a weird house in the middle of nowhere, and weird things start to happen. The kids are likeable, and credible in a horror movie sort of way. Frequent horror movie references, on the other hand, are one of the book's weaknesses. I'd have like the story to stand on its own without being propped up by frequent references. A few were fine for flavor, but Liparulo ladled on too many.

On the other hand, the story was engaging and fun. I wanted to see what was happening, and what the source of the mystery was. The ending was both too quick and too sudden. It's one thing to leave readers wanting more. It's another to basically put up a cliffhanger billboard saying “Buy the next book!”. (You have to be half over the cliff to see the billboard. By then it may be too late.)

All in all, a fun read, and I may pursue the next in the series, if it's reasonably priced.