This is such a unique take on a haunted house book! To enjoy this book, you have to be okay with unlikeable characters. All of them (minus Bea) are horrible or make bad decisions consistently. I enjoyed watching Lainey Gaslight, Gatekeep, and Girlboss her way through the story. I wasn't sure I was going to love the direction it took later in the book, but I thought it was done really well. I wasn't a huge fan of the way this book ended, it felt a little rushed and some things were resolved too simply.
Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the e-arc!

Uno stile scialbo che non riesce a rendere né il dramma familiare della protagonista né la sensazione di minaccia sovrannaturale. Non aiuta il fatto che la voce narrante sia irritante e fondamentalmente priva di personalità, se non quella derivante da una continua lamentela.
Peccato, perché l'idea di partenza è vermanete carina.

This is a unique take on a haunted house story
You have an over-the-top character in Callum.
A very complex character in Lainey - our protective Mother.
And then, our friend Adelaide.
I found myself laughing at some things in the plot, and then feeling incredibly unsettled at other events. It was almost as if my brain wasn't sure what to think at times!
I connected with Lainey and how hard it is to leave certain situations. I like to tell people that you never know what is happening behind closed doors. When people feel trapped, they feel trapped. Especially when the person who is so terrible has an influential family.
Enter Adelaide, Lainey's friend, who has the idea to fake a haunting, so they can terrorize Callum to the point that he won't be around and will leave Lainey and their daughter in peace.
The plot had drama, humor, horrifying moments, grief, blurred boundaries, twists, and moments of realization. The pace was perfect, it goes so quickly. I read this in one sitting.
The characters were well developed for a book that was paced so quickly. You were also able to connect with the characters. Except maybe Callum at times.. he was just everywhere and over the top.
Anyways, this is such a unique take on haunting and trying to get rid of a man. I enjoyed the book.
This is perfect for your Fall/Winter TBR!
Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
Happy Reading!

This book was pretty good, I would definitely recommend

~This was given by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review………..

WOW! This was amazing. I was hooked from the beginning but had to pace myself as I didn't want to speed through it and miss anything. Lainey is such a complex character whose dedication to her daughter is admirable and strong. She will stop at nothing to protect her daughter, specifically from Lainey's husband, Callum, who struggles heavily with alcoholism.

I really had no idea what to expect but I was blown away by the haunting descriptions in this book. To see both Lainey and Callum have to face things they never wanted to and be forced to in a way that is absolutely terrifying. I just - wow. this was a good one.

Wow, just wow, really, really good read. Lainey wants out of her marriage to drunkard Callum, but as his family has lots of money, she doesn't see a way out that involves keeping her daughter. Enter Adelaide, who hatches the plan to make Callum leave by faking a haunting at their house... only is it all fake?

Really enjoyed this, very atmospheric and creepy right from the off, even though we know some of the fake haunting methods, we are not totally in on it, so when things get intense we are not sure what's real or not.

Very creepy, and a little sad as we near the end of the book, very well written and definitely worth a read!

This book had me so tensed up and creeped out, flying through the pages to see what would happen next! Honestly, all of the main characters are awful people, but the plot was to die for. This was such a cool concept that was executed really well. Perfect spooky season read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for access to this arc!

This book is proof positive that it's possible to loathe almost every character and still love the book!

This one is definitely unique and a fun ride.

Everything that happens is head-shakingly extra...until it become legitimately scary. Suddenly, instead of just being appalled by bad behavior, you find yourself with that little shiver down your spine.

And the truth behind everything? Horrifying and sad.

This is an unusual read, but a very good one. Glad I read this one!

* ARC via Publisher

I loved this story most of the way through as it was such a unique take on a typical haunted house story. Ellie and her mental state throughout the book were incredibly compelling. The ending, however, was a big disappointment to me. It felt rushed and disjointed.

i just think men shouldn't be allowed to do things. loved the atmosphere. very very creepy. i love me some haunted houses. what i don't love are rushed endings, which is where i feel this book dropped the ball.

Wow, what a book! This was a non-stop ride from the very first page- it didn't let up until the end, either. What initially was almost like a War of the Rose's type situation quickly morphed into a novel with some genuinely creepy moments, and had me questioning a lot of what I was reading. Do we make our own ghosts and demons? Are our actions, our secrets, dangerous enough at times that we create the very things that haunt us? Not just in our minds, but eventually, physically, as well? It would be far too easy for me to continue here, but I would probably end uo giving away far too much. This is definitely a book that the less you know going in, the more you'll appreciate it. If, at first, you get a little frustrated with Adelaide's decisions, don't give up hope- stick it out. It's absolutely worth reading to the end. 10/10, will recommend.

fake it til you make it!
This is all I kept thinking while i was reading this.
Maybe you should not try to fake a haunting you will piss off the ghosts

Lainey Taylor has had enough of her alcoholic husband putting their daughter at risk with his drinking, but doesn't know how to get away with his threats and rich and enabling family. Her friend helps her hatch a plan to capitalize on his superstitions and haunt him into abandoning them. In the heat of the haunting, Lainey begins to suspect that there is something real happening within their fake haunting.

The set up was very well done. I was invested in Lainey and her daughter as soon as it began, and the story kept me engaged and rooting for them the whole time. I kind of saw where it was going, so nothing really surprised me, but it was done so well I didn't mind. Definitely a great time that I would recommend for the spooky season. 

I rated it 4.25/5 stars rounded down to 4.
Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC!

Yes, yes, YES! This was so freaking good. There was just something in here, a combination of writing, character believability, spook-factor, and plot twists that scratched an itch in my brain. I loved this book so very much.

When Lainey is left with no options in her marriage to her alcoholic husband, Callum: she fears for their daughter and knows that she would never be granted full custody with his influential family calling the shots, she turns to her friend, Adelaide. Adelaide has an idea… something that could fix Lainey’s situation. They will fake a haunting in their home and Callum will be so terrified he will leave them in peace.

With every next move they make, they pull Callum deeper into his fears, and one step closer to his departure. When the fake haunting starts to feel very real, Lainey must start pivoting, lest her daughter get caught in the crossfire.

I absolutely loved the spinning the gaslighting husband trope on its head. It was gratifying while at the same time Lainey and the reader knows its wrong. Then you get to the aspects of the haunting itself! I am a firm believer in hauntings coming in different forms. There doesn’t have to be some tragic past held onto by a home… people can attract energies, too. I found the way this book plays out in its entirety to be one of my favorite depictions of a haunting I have ever read… and I have read a lot because it is my FAVORITE trope.

I highly recommend this book. I will be reading everything this author has ever written now!

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I'm always very happy about an ARC and being able to give it a review! <3


Okay, so this book? Absolute gold. Finally, we get a woman who's not just running from ghosts or solving murders—no, no. She's the one doing the haunting. Iconic behavior. I was living for the whole "let me fake a haunted house to mess with my husband" plot. We love a main character with vision and just the right amount of chaos.

The writing style? Super easy to get into. Like, one chapter in and you're fully in haunted-house-mode, popcorn in hand, ready to ruin a marriage (just kidding… kind of). The characters were nicely done—interesting without being so complex that you need a spreadsheet to keep track of who's who. Shout-out to the author for weaving in the topic of alcoholism too. It didn’t feel forced, and let’s be honest, it’s something that needs to be talked about more seriously.

Now, was it spooky? Surprisingly, yes. I definitely had a few moments where I was like “hmm… maybe don’t read this alone at night.” I do wish they had thrown in a few creepy photos of the "real" hauntings—just to amp up the creepy factor. Imagine flipping the page and BOOM: ghost in the hallway. Missed opportunity, honestly.

The ending? Ehh, not totally my vibe. But everything else was so fun and creepy and deliciously unhinged that I didn’t even care. This story is going to stick with me for a while (and I’ll probably side-eye every creaky floorboard from now on).

The plot was unbelievable, the characters were not likeable and their motivations weren’t clear to me. I liked the general premise but ultimately it failed to me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this book!

Enjoyed the haunting and creepy feel of this read. Unique plot line of the FMC trying to get her husband to leave.

Excited to make How To Fake A Haunting my first ARC. ♡
Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

₊˚⊹⋆ first thoughts: it's really hard to read about the choices callum makes and how it affects lainey and their daughter's life. previously being in a relationship with a charismatic alcoholic, i am very much connected to lainey's character in that degree. looking at that kind of a situation from the outside it's so easy to scream "leave!!!" but when it's you in that situation, you definitely want to listen to your hope for change rather than the evidence they will not. love lainey's bestie adelaide already and her silly desire to help by quite literally scaring the hell out of callum purely for lainey's sake.

₊˚⊹⋆ final thoughts: omg!!!! this books has such a good balance of comedy, drama and horror. this would be my ideal ratio of the three. while the biggest plot twist is part of the part in itself, the way christina carmen is able to tell callum and lainey's story - all past, present and future - through potential real life haunting is great. the message of battling yourself, a reality you aren't happy with life's circumstances can really hit you when you least expect it.

I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed the book. I would buy this as a physical copy in the future for my books shelf display. The storyline was well done, I absolutely loved the wife and the best friend. I’m watching you girl. She made me hate her so much that I LOVED her. I couldn’t stop reading the story. I wanted to know more. Why the best friend even had the idea of a haunting in the first place and her dedication to the actions had me amused beyond years. As soon as I got it, I knew the husband was going to just ruin my mood. And did. You can’t have a good book without a few characters that get under your skin and the author did just that. The humor, the horror the mystery, give me more !

Thank you for this opportunity to read and review this book.
3.6 is what I am rating and pushing it up to 4 starts because towards the end of the book it really started to get creepy. Perfect for an October read ! When I think of mystery and thriller this wasn’t a book I was expecting., which is a good thing. The twist in this book to me, are all unexpected! I have this habit of guessing before the end and I guess wrong every time in this one. Some chapters were hard to get through to be honest because they seem a little outlandish. I mean we are faking a haunting most people couldn’t do this. I think it was a lot of the beginning that was a slow read. It’s hard to love the main character, but I think that is the point. She’s not one to show her emotions and seems unappreciative. Yet, when I got to the last few chapters I needed to know what was happening. I loved the concept the “ghosts” and what it represented when they “teamed up” as the book summary states. At the end of the book I really enjoyed how everything wrapped up.