I really wanted to like The Haunting. The premise was interesting, if a little generic, but I’ve seen authors take basic premises that have been done before and turn them into something great.

Unfortunately, that’s not what I can say about this book. Also unfortunately, a lot of my issues are at the end of the book and are spoilers. I’ll just generally say: I found the ending abrupt and unsatisfying. I don’t think the choice of who the killer turned out to be was good and I think any twists related to it weren’t well foreshadowed.

One thing I can say without spoilers is that I wasn’t fond of the main character, Penny. She’s kind of self-absorbed and hypocritical.

This was a quick read and I was interested in finding out who the killer was so it kept my attention at least.

This is my first book by Natasha Preston but I will be reading all of her backlist. I love a good YA mystery/thriller and this didn’t disappoint! Penny and her friends are reliving a nightmare when their friends start being killed, one year after her boyfriends father was sent to prison after his killing spree. This book had me doubting all of Penny's friends at some point and it was quiet and ending. Loved!

As someone who isn't really a fan of Natasha Preston, this one was actually pretty fun. I enjoyed the Halloween setting and the nods/references to classic slasher and horror movies.

Dialogue and writing were meh, and the premise was definitely not unique, but it was still a good time anyway

If you're looking for a fun Halloween slasher in book form this fall, this will be a good pick for that!

I thought I would give this book a chance after not liking Natasha Preston’s last book The Island and I’m glad I did as I enjoyed The Haunting. but I wish it had a better ending.

Natasha Preston is like the M. Night Shyamalan of the writing world. Her stories have SO. MUCH. POTENTIAL. And then she fumbles the ending every. single. time. After feeling frustrated with The Island, I gave The Haunting a try... and was just as angry.

Penny's town had 5 murders last Halloween season, and while the killer is behind bars, this year brings more murder. The town is on edge, no one knows who to trust, and the race is on to find the killer before more victims are taken.

The premise is great. Much of the story works well... but the ending was enough to ruin the reading experience for me.

Overall: 3 stars

I'll tell my students about: alcohol, language, trauma, murder, gore, violence

**Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's, Delacorte Press for the free ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.**

I absolutely love all of Natasha Preston's young adult novels and "The Haunting" has to be my all time favorite!!

This author does a great job at the thriller/mysteries/horror, genre, and this book is no different. Over the course of this book, I had at least 10 different theories of who was behind the murders, and they were all wrong! It’s Halloween again, one year after , Penny’s boyfriends father killed five people. But he’s in jail, and the killing has started again. As the race to try to figure out who is behind these new killings, the body count just keeps getting higher. You really will not see the killer coming.

Clearly written by someone British about American teens. There are words an phrases that would never be spoken by an American teenager. It honestly drives me crazy. It wouldn't be that hard to look up and find out. The ending is abrupt and doesn't give any closure. If there isn't a sequel to explain it then I'm not really sure what the book was for.

Perfect for fans of the Scream movies! Penny and Nash had a good thing going…until the day his dad was arrested for going on a killing spree that left 5 teens dead! It is one year later and it seems to be happening again! Is Nash to blame this time? Was he to blame last time?

My rather unoriginal issue with this is that all figures of authority are hastily written, poorly drawn, bumbling idiots. All parents, guardians, and law enforcement exist only as a foil to juxtapose against the next ridiculously irresponsible or blatantly stupid thing the teenager is about to do. The people in this town deserve one another, if only in a social darwinism kind of way.

3.5 stars
Exactly what you’d expect from Natasha Preston. A great read with a not so great ending. The storyline, the writing and characters, are all solid. She really just need to work on ending her books a little better.

Really enjoyable, fantastic concept, perfect for fans of teen thrillers and horror. The ending could be much better, though, which is a shame. But still a good time!

What the actual F… Would it KILL Natasha Preston to write an epilogue? Or does she she get some sick thrill out of pissing off her readers?? I’m only giving this book 4 stars because I enjoyed it - up until the last page. No, not even the last page, the last WORD. I thought the ending to The Island was bad but, nope, the ending to this book is so, SO much worse. And this time I can’t even throw the book across the room because I read it on my phone! Sigh.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.