⭐⭐⭐ Stars

The House of Dust is a multi-timeline adult horror/thriller steeped in Southern Gothic vibes.

When I read the concept for this I was ALL over it. I love me a good small-town secrets situation with creepy cult-like townspeople and the is-it-supernatural-or-is-it-human-monstrousness give and take. I enjoyed Broyle's writing as it stood alone; full of metaphor and the sense of wrongness that crept along the pages like vines. It was suffocating. It freaked me out. I was definitely IN from the beginning but...

Unfortunately, the pacing in this was bizarre. I understand the intentional misdirection and vague nature of the text was supposed to make the conclusion even more of a surprise, but in doing this for so long, my interest in the book waned and my patience thinned intensely. The characters themselves were not meant to be attached to necessarily, so without solid pacing to move me forward, I found myself putting this book down far more often than I wanted to. The tropes in this novel are usually right up my alley but it began to feel like we were being jerked around and thrown into dark corners. For a book that is relatively short, it felt like centuries before we reached the conclusion.

There is a deep, unsettling bleakness to this book. And if you can withstand the absolute epic slow-burn that was this novel and you enjoy the constant feeling of something dark and oily sliding across your skin, you might wanna check this out when it drops on 28 Sep 2021.

*My thank to Netgalley and the publisher for gifting me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review.*

It took me a while to get into the story, since I was new to this 'Southern Gothic" genre, but I loved the gloomy, gothic atmosphere and it didn't take long until I was deep into it. A great read for anyone who enjoys a good, old shiver down their spine.

The House of Dust by Noah Broyles is a horror thriller book. The plot is good enough about a town worshiping a dark angel and the characters with a disturbed past themselves. But, the story has multiple POV’s and the incidents jump too frequently between present and past.

At a point, I got literally confused with the incidents as I was not able to understand the time line. Also, the story is not creepy enough. I was waiting throughout the whole story for something exciting, but nothing came up.

The best part of the book is that the author at the end has narrated the whole incidents in order of their time line, which finally helped me in understanding the story.

It’s starting to get hot out, so I wanted to focus southern gothic reviews for the month of May. The story introduces us to Bradley Ellison, a freelance writer specializing in true crime, and an unexplainable death in the the town of Three Summers, Tennessee entices his creativity. He quickly learns of the community’s gruesome past, particularly with its local rituals. I won’t reveal too many details regarding the central characters, but there’s sheriff who can only be described as intimidating and foul. There’s a part of the novel early on where Ellison must confront the local lawman in a classroom full of insensible students where things become freakishly strange.

‘The House of Dust’ follows the basic southern gothic formula, but as the title suggests, it’s dirtier than some of the recent offerings in the genre.

Thanks to NetGalley and Inkshares for providing me with a free ARC.
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I first want to thank both Netgalley and Inkshares for gifting me a free e-copy of this book. I honestly ended up DNF this book because I just got so confused keeping up with the timelines. The opening scene definitely grabbed my attention, and I really love the concept, but I couldn't keep up with the story. I fully plan on picking this book up later to give it another try, as, beyond the confusion, the writing is well done. Unfortunately, it just did not click with me at the moment at all.

I found this difficult to follow. I got confused, and I gave up (sometimes the female lead was Missy sometimes Jennifer for example) I may get back to it, but honestly I did not finish

Those of you who know me will know that, particularly because of my research interests, I love hauntings that aren't quite ghosts, remote rundown houses, dangerous relationships and found manuscripts. Every once in a while you come across a book that you think might be made for you, and for me, this is how I felt with almost every page of The House of Dust.

The House of Dust introduces Bradley as he is about to kill himself. To do so, he has randomly chosen a small town where he intends to take an overdose. Instead, he is caught up in the death and burial of an old woman living in a remote former plantation house, the matriarch of the strange town of Three Summers. A true crime author, Bradley senses a story behind the strange ritual he witnesses, and we re-join the story as he and former escort Missy are about to move into the house.

What follows is sometimes surreal, often strange, and at times confusing -- but in a good way. Broyles makes interesting use of the typical tropes of the American Gothic, the use and erasure of slaves, the insular and stunted Southern States community both shunning and shunned by outsiders. It is often difficult to establish how much of what happens in the book is real as it feels so much like a fever dream, and Broyles has a few tricks up his sleeve to misstep the reader from the beginning.

The thing I really enjoyed about The House of Dust were the doomed main characters, both of whom seem to press against the strange goings on around them, but in doing so, only tangle themselves deeper. I was put in mind of another of my favourite books, Ghoster by Jason Arnopp. There is a sense of inevitability to The House of Dust that is encapsulated in the dust of the title, which coats characters and seems impossible to remove. And a sense of inevitability is, of course, incredibly gothic!

The House of Dust has all the makings of a gothic classic, almost a definition for its genre. But more than this, it provides an engaging story beyond the tropes and allegory, one that is wide open to interpretation.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an e-advanced review copy of this book

I tried so very hard to read this book. I started then gave up and then felt bad, so I started again. I took it on a plane because I knew I had 3 hours to focus just on the story. But still, I could not do it. I was so confused about the changing POV and I guess timeframe which I didn’t really figure out until I read other people’s reviews. At any rate, it is well written and certainly does a great job of creating a creepy mood, so for those who are really into this genre this may be just the book for you.

DNF. I'm 52% done and it's feeling like a chore. I don't like any of the characters but was hanging in there because I was curious about the cultist town. Since this is a Southern Gothic, the tone is done well and I expected a slow burn. However, nothing is adding up so far and the writing style feels jumbled. I don't usually read other's reviews until after I finish the book, except for cases like this where I'm not sure if I should push on. Based on some other reviews, I think I'm going to call it quits too. It's just not for me.

**Note** I do not star review books on Goodreads or Amazon that I don't finish because they're just not for me. I will give it a star rating of 2 here because it asks for one, and because I was kept interested enough to read half the book. I may post on social media this review at a later date, but I don't tag authors or publishers in those reviews.

Thank you NetGalley and Inkshare Publishing for providing me with an Arc of this book in exchange for an honest review, all opinions are my own.

Set against a hazy of heat, I could almost hear the cicadas singing as I read this. The House of Dust is a gothic horror/folk horror that’s tinged with a sense of melancholy, from our main character Bradley’s troubled past to the abandoned town he finds himself in.

While this book built up a fantastic creeping feeling of unease and dread, the narrative style kept pulling me out of the story. Which was such a shame because when I was ‘in it’ I could’ve painted the world.

For this reason I’m giving The House of Dust 3.75 stars.

I really enjoyed this book. I was hesitant at first, because I was getting Hill House vibes and The Haunting of Hill House just doesn’t do it for me (I know, I KNOW, but it just didn’t have enough creepy moments for me). But this checked a lot of boxes for me to be invested in the story. Revealing what would happen to Brad at the beginning was intriguing, and as he began to uncover the history of Three Summers and Angel’s Landing, I found myself drawn deeper and deeper into this story. I read most of it in one day; I just couldn’t put it down.
I think the plot was well developed and made sense. I liked that the story was told from both Brad and Missy’s perspectives, although it took me longer than I would have liked to figure out that they were not happening at the same time. I was tempted to go back and read it from the beginning again so I could pick up on things that I might have missed.
Overall, a good southern gothic book with several deliciously creepy moments. I’m really enjoying reading books set in the South.

Maybe is because i'm a newbie in this genre, but this one wasn't for me. The idea called me, but i probably didn't get what the author was trying to do. I don't think it is a bad book, just that is not a book for me. I didn't finished, I had no interest in knowing what was going to happen to the characters.

With all respect to the author and the efforts in writing and publishing the book.

Beginning part made no sense and very lately did I realize the two narratives moving parallely.
Language is good and have tried to create a creepy atmosphere but I couldnt connect with what all was hapening from the beginning.
So many things where happening yet I couldn't figure out the plot till a point.
The cover, title and the blurb was very much promising and interesting.
May be this southern gothic is not for me.

Strictly my personal opinion.

Thanks to netgalley for providing a copy im exchange of my honest opinions.

The title, the summary and the story were all that I was looking for, very creepy and gripping. Though as I started to get into the book the characters started to feel a bit two dimensional and I got really confused and lost which kinda killed the book for me since I wasn’t as immersed in the story.

When writer Bradley Ellison finds himself in the mysterious town of Three Summers, Tennessee, he is instantly drawn to its peculiarity. Something about the people and their behaviors catches his attention. One house in particular compels Brad to want to dig deeper into the towns history. What he uncovers goes far deeper than he ever imagined.

The first part of this book drew me right in. It begins in a bit of a dark way and the oddness of the townspeople had me so curious. I loved the atmospheric southern gothic horror feel to this story. The descriptions of the old house created a vivid picture in my mind. Broyles definitely had me interested in the backstory of the town and why they were so strange!

There were parts of the plot that I found really confusing and I did have to flip back and forth to make sure I was piecing everything together properly. Once it clicked though, the last part of the book came together for me and most of it made sense.

Overall, I liked this one. Despite the confusing parts, I found the town and the house enjoyable.

Thank you to the publisher for an eARC to review.

The book has a touch of The Fall of the House of Usher by Poe, which the writer clearly states was a great influence in his work, and this attracted me a lot.
As the story is not entirely linear, this kept me hooked, cause I wanted to know more.
The book starts with an Editor's Note about the last story of Mr. Ellison to the Southern Gothic magazine, as he was found dead in a parking lot. So, we know the end. But, how did it happen?
We follow Brad Ellison and Jennifer's story, but also the story of Three Summers, Tennessee.
At first, I was a bit confused when the story first went back in time to tell us about Missy Holiday and Walter Collins, who have a major role in the story.
After a while everything came into place.
The book brings us women with complicated pasts embraced by some mystical power in this very peculiar town.
It also brings us controlling men and a writer who has lost his spark. All of them in search of something.
The story has a bit of mystery, a bit of horror, a bit of drama.
In my opinion, the writer did a great job involving the reader. I could practically smell and feel the grass, the damp earth. And all this ambiance helps the reader to disconnect from the world and connect to the story.
After a while, I couldn't put it down.
I have to say, it worked pretty well to me! Great book!

This was not one of my favorites. I wasn't able to keep track of the characters or timelines. I believe the different fonts mean something but I didn't understand at all.

I liked this.

It was creepy and totally up my alley. I really enjoyed the author's style of writing and the atmosphere he created. It grabbed me from the first page, and didn't let go until the very end.

I think my main gripe is with the characters who came off as flat and just bizarre with some of their reactions and actions. In the horror genre I guess it came off as no surprise but it just didn't work for me this time, coming off as a bit jarring.'

I would however definitely see what else this author writes.

Open "The House of Dust", leave all logic and happiness behind and step into a smothering nightmare full of dark settings, unsettling characters and confusing tales. You will be in for night of terror, trying to hold on to any scrap of normalcy whilst knowing that all efforts are futile.

The story starts with Brad, a writer of true crime who is on the verge of losing his job with the magazine "Southern Gothic". Through a series of very unsettling events, he finds himself renting an old dilapidated but grand house of a former plantation. A week later he moves in with his fiancee, Jennifer. Two scarred and lost souls trying to start a new lease on life in a extremely remote setting. But make no mistake, although the house is unsettling enough, nothing goes bump in the night - well almost nothing. The true horror lies in the nearby village and its abhorrent inhabitants with their repugnant practices. Are all the events - and utterances - the mere consequences of mass hysteria that has had this village in its grip for decades? Or is something truly more sinister at work?

The writing is beautiful and sentences roll over the pages like flurries of dust on old skin; the characters - although mostly very unlikable - are well crafted and I would have given this book a well deserved 4 star review. However, there is a flaw that has annoyed me, and it has to do with the mix-up of characters. This wickedness already starts in the blurb and it continues on in the book. Does it add to the general feel of confusion? Absolutely ! Does it do any good to the story or the general quality of the book? Nope. I don't mind being misled or guided in the wrong direction and later on have an aha moment. But in this case I felt rather cheated instead, hence the loss of a star.

But all in all a powerful debut of an author that needs to be watched !

A sincere thanks to Netgalley and Inkshares for an advanced copy of this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Inkshares for this ARC.
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One of the things I hate doing most is not finishing a book, because it seems disrespectful, but this is exactly what I ended up doing with The House of Dust. I tried for weeks to get into it. I read the first chapter about ten times, and maybe in the future, I'll pick it back and give it another good try.

The description was there, but unfortunately, that's all that seemed to be there. Hopefully when I step back to it another time, I'll enjoy it more, but this time it just wasn't for me.