A review by charlottesometimes
A Haunting on the Hill by Elizabeth Hand

slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

This book is not very original even for a cash-in sequel, nor does it show a great deal of attention to detail. A perfect example of this is the scene where the characters find a copy of Rolling Stone from the 1980s from which every single face has been removed. The most annoying member of the group confuses cover star Billy Idol with “that guy from Buffy”
This is a threefold mistake for me:
  1. Cutting/damaging faces in photographs is surely extremely old hat by now? It’s in every haunted house, abandoned institution and serial killer scrapbook in literature and cinema. 
  2. Spike from Buffy looking like Billy Idol is not something I should be hearing about in 2024. Maybe in 2004, but let’s move on now. We all remember it, the show referenced it, pop culture moved on to other things.
  3. The picture of Idol that is mistaken for Spike has no head. None of the pictures have a head. So no peroxide hairdo, no sharp cheekbones etc. In which case, how does it look like “that guy from Buffy” any more than it looks like any man in black(?) trousers? Seems like an incredibly lucky guess. Or the character is pretending not to know who Billy Idol is, but is also a marvel of stupidity. That’s possible, I suppose.

Anyway, to conclude: pedestrian writing, poor editing, squeezing a few more dollars from Shirley Jackson’s disrespected memory. So, all just as expected.