Having loved the Roy Grace books, I thought I would give this book a go...Mistake...Ghost story. I thought it was codswallop

4.5 stars
I enjoyed this book, however i thought it was a little bit slow paced.

Moving from Brighton to the Sussex countryside might sound idyllic..
There is someone else not happy that this new family are moving in to Cold Hill House. Those who already live there…..unseen.

Imagine the biggest, darkest and most mysterious house in the countryside you could ever think of. Old houses always have some kind of creaking floorboards, maybe the noise of birds or bugs in the eaves and a range of creatures in the fields outside. Some might even have a resident ghost or two and sometimes they are very possessive of who and may be welcomed in their home.

What makes it all the more chilling is the fact that the house is so run down that Ollie and his family have to live in what is practically a building site. There is one thing after another which goes wrong and from the first thing happening, most people would probably be making a run for it, for this is no rural idyll.

There is something very cold, very cold indeed about Cold Hill House and the house stands like a ghost of its former self. If the wind howls while you read this book, be sure that they are the ghost of the past trying to tell you the secrets of that big old stone building you now call home. Try phoning for help, try Facetime and you’ll not see the image of the person you’re expecting to see…

I really enjoyed this ghost story as it was more than just the usual clanging and banging in a big old house. When messages and images start appearing on smart phones, I'm not sure if this was my vivid imagination but I felt this could really happen and really would be scary.

I've read an interview on the WHsmith blog where Peter says he based the story on an old house he and his former wife bought and lived in once. Blimey that must have been one heck of an experience if even 1% true!

Best get Roy Grace in to sort them out.

This is my first book by Peter James that has nothing to do with the Roy Grace series. I was surprised to find it was a ghost story rather than a detective story. The idea was great and I liked the way the creepy happenings built as the story progressed. Like others I was a little confused about an old ghost knowing how to use new technology to send emails and texts, unless he was trying to imply it was a new ghost but if that was the case it was not clear. Overall an entertaining read though.

Ghost stories aren’t usually my thing, I normally stick to thrillers and mysteries. That being said, I did enjoy this book. It was suspenseful and had you on edge throughout. It wasn’t too scary, I think it would be a lot scarier on screen rather than pages. Overall, a good read for people that enjoy ghost stories!

I enjoyed it! The constant denial of paranormal phenomena, the spirits penchant for technology, and the rushed ending I could have done without, but overall, I quite liked the novel. If you're a sucker for a decent 'family moves into an old house that's haunted' story and enjoyed this novel, than you should definitely look into 'The Secret of Crickley Hall' by James Herbert as well. I preferred 'House on Cold Hill', but only just. Both are great reads.

For the first time in my adult life I gained an interest in a book, purely based on the cover and blurb. After doing a bit of googling, I was very interested in buying it.
Google told me Peter James was predominantly a Crime writer, with The House on Cold Hill being a rare venture away from his popular Crime novels. It also told me he was encouraged to write a modern ghost story.

SOME SLIGHT SPOILERS:
I'm a sucker for a good haunting book so I couldn't wait to start it.
Loved the story. Think there were plenty of unique twists in a tried and tested genre, giving a fresh, new book.
Loved the characters. Likeable and very real.
I did, however, have a slight annoyance at the fact that the main antagonist ghost in the story is never actually directly faced or confronted by the main characters (or vice versa).
However my main gripe was that Peter James was trying ridiculously hard to keep it current and modern, which resulted in cringeworthy attempts to insert iPhone and other tech references in every other page. There must have been a million iPhone references by page two. The ghosts were actually haunting through technology.

But otherwise a great read. Would definitely recommend!

It took me about 60 pages to get into and wasn't as creepy as I would have liked/was expecting. I have absolutely no idea what happened at the end, which ruined the entire book for me.

Dune plume très visuelle et d’une redoutable efficacité, Peter James nous offre une plongée immersive et totale dans la vie d’une famille dont le rêve se transforme en cauchemar. Digne d’un scénario de films d’horreur dont l’auteur a repris les principaux codes, La maison des oubliés est un roman qui tient en haleine jusqu’à la dernière page et qu’il s’avère difficile, si ce n’est impossible, de lâcher avant de connaître le sort réservé aux personnages. Amateurs de frissons, d’ambiance angoissante et de fantômes, ce livre est fait pour vous !


Chronique complète sur https://lightandsmell.wordpress.com/2019/04/26/la-maison-des-oublies-peter-james/