This book was sent to me by Netgalley for review electronically. Ghost…haunted house…murder…mayhem?.intrigue…this book is difficult to read, at times, but comes to a satisfying conclusion…quirky characters…

I honestly couldn't finish this book. I got to like 37% and I just can't finish it. I love ghost stories and horror, but reading this book is too laborious. I have several of this author's books on my Kindle that now I'm wondering if I'll even read.

This just did not work for me. I made it to about 40% in and could not carry on. I know Coates has a lot of books out and I am willing to try another by her. I was just kind of bored and found myself not wanting to get back to the book.

Unfortunately I did not finish reading this book. The beginning was extremely gripping but then it lost me. I felt like the timeline was disconnected and felt like things were becoming repetitive. I soon became bored and had to dnf the book.

Honestly I don’t have an interest in reading this book anymore and I want to be more selective with what I request.

Even though we drop right into a haunting episode as the book opens, this one seemed to take a little while to really take off and hook me -- but it did pick up as the story continued so if you do decide to give it a try, hang in there. Once it found its pace, it was a really great moody story with an unreliable but likable narrator. This was my first book by Darcy Coates, and I’ve already added a few more to my TBR.

I’m so grateful to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read and review THe Haunting of Leigh Harker.

I was really intrigued by this book, but found myself losing interest with the story and the main character about a third of the way into the book. There were some fun and surprising twists, but overall not the best fit for me.

Darcy Coates sure does know how to write a good ghost story! This book really hit the ground running with the horror. Right out of the gate there was plenty of tension and dread surrounding Leigh and her intruder. I was hooked right from there.

What started off as straight horror sort of morphed into a mystery with some horror sprinkled in. She ends up meeting a woman named Sarah, and their relationship was heartwarming and so, so sweet. I loved all of their interactions in this book. The house was kind of a character of its own and the mysterious room under the stairs had me really creeped out.

The ending was emotional and so touching. I did not expect to feel so moved at the end of a book like this, but it was perfect.

This is only my second Darcy Coates book but I will definitely be reading more. Her writing flows really smoothly and she has a way of describing Leigh's fears and turmoil that you can feel it yourself.

Thank you to #netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the gifted e-arc in exchange for an honest review. I was approved for this after the archive date so I bought a paperback copy. It worked out in the end because I loved this book and can now display it proudly on my shelves!

An excellent read full of twists and turns, where nothing is what it seems. I loved this book! Darcy Coates does not disappoint. The style in which it is written allows a reader with a good imagination to get into the story and accompany Leigh throughout the book, thus enjoying an immersive and almost cinematic reading experience.

Review featured at www.books-n-kisses.com

Ummm, what? As a fan of paranormal shows (Travel channel fan) I was excited about this book. I thought “Ok. Cool. An old fashioned ghost story.” But I was wrong.

First the “ghost” does nothing of any major excitement in this book. So it would be scary to see doorknobs turning, things moving and even hearing “Hello” from a non-physical being but come on. I found no real scare to this book.

I had it figured out from pretty much the start.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

At this point, I have read almost all of Darcy Coates's books as they are guaranteed to be spooky, mysterious, and entertaining. The Haunting of Leigh Harker was definitely eery and jumped right into the action from the very beginning. This story was full of twists, turns, and confusion that kept me guessing throughout. I found this to be one of Coates's best books so far.

The Haunting of Leigh Harker was a quick read that I really enjoyed!

Leigh Harker is being haunted in her own home. Objects move around, curtains open and close, and shadows move around her house. As Leigh navigates the haunting, determined not to abandon her house, she learns the dark and shocking truth about the house.

Darcy Coates takes a different approach to haunting in this novel that I think readers will enjoy! If you have read and liked Darcy Coates other haunted house novels, then you’ll like The Haunting of Leigh Harker!

So creepy and so we’ll done! I will be thinking about these characters and the story for a long time. This was my first Darcy Coates but will not be my last.

I'm so sorry to say this, if y'all follow my reviews on Goodreads, you know I do not do this often, but I am pulling the plug on this one. I am just incredibly bored almost 50% of the way through. Even if I do finish, I cannot see this being over a 3-star for me. Sadly, it is just not what I was looking for. I am sure some Horror Readers will enjoy this one a lot, I am just not one of them. I am not going to review this on my blog, or really on GR, as I do not want to negatively influence other Readers who may be interested in picking it up.

I truly appreciate the opportunity to give this one a shot. I had never read from Darcy Coates before and was curious about her work. Alas, not sure it is for me, but I never write off (pun intended) an author after only one try, so I would definitely be willing to try more from her in the future!

I first read one of Darcy Coates’ books last year and loved it, so I was thrilled to be offered the chance to pick up her latest title: The Haunting of Leigh Harker. While many of Coates’ books have similar titles (this is her fifth that begins with “The Haunting of”), this ended up being a truly unique book and unlike any ghost story I have read before.

The book begins right in the action with Leigh Harker lying in bed and aware of a mysterious something outside her bedroom door. Terrified, Leigh manages to survive the night and begins working to defend herself from what she names the Intruder. At the same time, she becomes very aware of a door she never paid much attention to before. Something about the door now makes her wary, a creeping sense of dread that soon has her convinced that the door must never open because behind it lives pure evil. But the Intruder doesn’t seem to be going away, and soon Leigh is experiencing strange visions of her home. She is determined to find out what has lured this being to her home after 15 years of living there peacefully and alone, but is she ready to find out the truth?

I will be honest and say that after the first few chapters I was ready to DNF this book because I was struggling to engage with Leigh as a character and found myself getting frustrated with her. A quick scan of other reviews online suggests I’m not the only one to feel this way. However, in one shocking moment that I never saw coming, the whole book changed and it became one of the most interesting takes on a ghost story I have ever encountered. From that point on I was instantly hooked and ended up devouring the rest of the book in just a few hours. It is difficult to write anything more without giving away spoilers, but I ended up connecting with both Leigh and one of the other characters introduced later on and truly loved the ending too.

This is the kind of book that you need to read without knowing anything about it so as not to ruin it, so I can’t say too much here, but if you enjoy books about ghosts, hauntings, and haunted houses, then you simply must read this one before you hear too much about it.

Thank you to Netgalley, Poisoned Pen Press, and the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review of the book.

In my current quest to catch up with all books spooky for the Halloween season, I chose to read this Coates novel as my introduction to her work. As others have noted, the beginning is a little . . . much. I LOVE a good scary scene and find that it is hard to actually find books that "scare" me anymore. Well, this one is truly unsettling. There were so many scenes that had me jumping at every creak and groan I heard at my house that I felt absolutely anxious. So that was awesome. What was not as great is that the first quarter of the book or so was totally FILLED with these back-to-back scare-fests. Sounds like a great thing, but it did get increasingly difficult to move from scene to scene with no other character or narrative development.

After sneaking a peek at a few reviews, I noticed people suggesting that I keep going--that the pace would change after 25% or so of the book. And you know what? They were right!

The novel changes pace significantly after that point. There are still have a number of great scare scenes BUT you will also start to unravel the narrative in more detail and find that you have a mystery (or two) to solve. I admire how Coates approached this: it really was unique. In setting it up as she did, she ran the risk of alienating readers from the start; however, for those who persist, I think you'll find an interesting and engaging--and really frightening!--ghost story here.

So bottom line is that this was a unique and satisfying read for the month of October. I admire the risky approach taken by the author and ultimately think that payoff--and great scary scenes--make the book well worth your time.

Excellent story! Totally engrossing!. Looking forward to reading more by this author! Could not put this down!

From the very first page, I was hooked. Darcy Coates never fails to grab the readers imagination and twist it into something dark and fearful. It took me a week to read because I kept getting so creeped out I had to stop and get my bearings. There's something dark and sinister out there and Leigh is it's target!

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher/author for providing me with an e-copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was exactly what I wanted it to be! Holy Cow! I loved it. I love Darcy Coates. I did however miss downloading it from here for free when it was actually given to me but I went ahead and purchased it and gave it a read. When I requested this I was just intrigued by the concept of it and I loved how dark it was. This story had a great plot and if you have read this and enjoyed it, I highly recommend other titles from this author as well. She always surprises me at how she can write different worlds in each book! This was so much. If you love a good ghost story I would say give this one a try. Darcy has not disappointed me on any her books I've read so far. I will continue to be a fan of hers. If there was such thing as a Advanced readers group for her, I would love to be there! Way to go to this author for never letting me down.

This is my 3rd Darcy Coates read and I can honestly say that each book I've read so far has been a completely different take on the Paranormal genre.

If you are a fan of ghost stories, this book will be one you will want to add to your reading collection. It is so different than anything I've ever read, and I've read a few ghost stories in my years.

It took me a while to get into the writing style for this book. I was immediately chilled by the events taking place in the story and the tension is kept at a very high level throughout the book, offering only small breaks here and there when Sarah's character comes in the storyline. (By the way, I love Sarah!!)

I pretty much guessed the ending from the beginning but sometimes the journey is what you treasure more than the ending. That's the case for me in this book.

Such a creepy read, perfect to pick up for October. Bonus: I even cried a few tears at the end.

Thank you to #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.