How to Fake A Haunting by new to me author Christa Carmen, published by Thomas & Mercer, is a stand alone thriller that's literally unputdownable. I started reading and I dare you to do the same and then put the book down.
Are there aome lkengths and plotholes? Yes, but in the overall experience I liked the story, some of the characters and the writing is great. Did I dislike characters from the book? Yes forsure I didn't want for the life of me have something to do with Adelaide, no mam. And that's what the story makes so great, suspenseful, an unputdownable pageturner. 5 stars.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. All honest opinions are my own.

The characters were simultaneously my favorite and least favorite part of this book. They were my least favorite because I greatly disliked one of them (looking at you bestie), but this also made them my favorite because I felt like they were real and actually people who were either getting on my nerves or making me feel emotions.

The atmosphere of this book was exhilarating. It’s creepy, and it’s a haunted house full of paranoia for the characters and you. If you read this late at night, there’s potential that you’ll feel the need to look over your shoulder everytime the floorboards creak or a noise that’s probably your cats happens in the distance.

My rating for this book dropped because of the end. It felt rushed and almost sloppy, making me have to take a step back and read something else to avoid becoming frustrated. Unfortunately, this negatively impacted my viewing experience, and while I don’t regret reading it, I do wish that I went into it knowing the end so I could have different expectations.

I loved the premise of HOW TO FAKE A HAUNTING but it didn’t quite hit expectations. The book shows the lengths someone may go to in order to keep their child (and themselves) safe, Some of the things she does to make her husband believe the house was haunted were fun and would definitely scare a person.

But the plot kind of jumped all over, pulling different characters into the mix, then going nowhere with them. The ending was a complete no for me.

A bigger issue I had with the story is that it should definitely come with specific trigger warnings. Implying she is being haunted for a thing she did in her past (I don’t want to be specific because it would be a spoiler), in my opinion is both bad taste and could be very hurtful to an unsuspecting reader in a similar circumstance. This completely ruined the book for me and I didn’t even want to finish.

And honestly I wish I hadn’t finished it. The ending read more like a dark adult version of an after school special. And glorifying a suicide attempt as a means to “save your child”, implying there is no other way to change her future other than removing herself from the equation is gross and horrific.

For that reason… I’m giving the book 2⭐️

Desperate to escape her violent and psychologically unstable husband, Lainey agrees to a seemingly crazy idea her best friend cooks up. They decide to stage a haunting in Laney‘s home that will drive her husband over the edge once and for all. It sounds like a good idea at the time, the problem is that there may be real spirits awakened by their stunts

Desperate people do desperate things. In a nutshell, this is what this is about. Just by reading the title of the book and the blurb, you understand the fake haunting is going to get real, and sooner rather than later.

The plot was well done, and the story was entertaining. Did I check for strange noises in my house while reading this book? Yes, yes, I did. I was not a fan of Lainey's friend Adelaide, but I guess we all have one unhinged friend somewhere, willing to go to extreme lengths to help us. Her character was a bit too stereotypical for me but it still works in the book.

Pick it up if you like:
- Ghosts & Horror
- Fast-paced plot
- Great characters

I thought this was an interesting premise and actually had some hilarious parts. The build up was great, and parts were unsettling. I think the end is where it all kind of fell apart for me. I felt like it was a weak ending, and like a wrap up when you ran out of ideas but still had to end the story.

Thanks to NetGalley for the copy of this ARC. This will be out in October of 2025