Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
When Sophia Galich was twelve, she starred in her older sister Layla’s amateur horror movie Vermillion, which recorded raw footage of her very real reactions to scenes her sister concocted in their old Californian house on the coast―Cashore House.
In the years after the film’s release, Sophia’s relationship with her sister became more strained, while her memories of the now-infamous house fueled her nightmares. Vermillion amassed an army of fanatical fans who speculated about the film’s hidden messages, and it was rumored that Layla made a pact with the devil―her soul in exchange for fame and arcane knowledge. Sophia dismissed this as gossip…until Layla disappeared.
Now, Sophia must study the trail of clues Layla has left behind, returning to the very place where it all began. As she gets closer and closer to Cashore House’s haunted heart, she must once again confront the ghosts of her childhood. But the house won’t reveal its secrets without a fight.
In the lead-up to Halloween, I was in search of a YA horror book and When Ghosts Call Us Home called to me. It is a haunted house meets found-footage horror and it was an entertaining read.
This book hooks you right from the start with its mystery, thrills and moments of uncertainty. I wasn’t sure that the horror elements would scare me at the start but as I got further into the book that genuinely had me terrified and I didn’t want to read it at night.
Sophia is an interesting main character. I didn’t know whether to trust her at all but I did grow to trust her more as the book progressed. She is going through a lot both at Cashore House and generally in life and we definitely see that in the way that she acts. Sophia isn’t the most likeable main character, but she is certainly interesting.
We get to meet many side characters throughout this book; all of them are well-rounded and bring several interesting elements to the story. I don’t know if it’s because this book had me on edge from the first page but I didn’t trust any of the side characters at all. We also get some romance in this book which was a nice addition. I would have quite liked less of a focus on the romance and more on the jump-scares but the romance doesn’t take away from the book.
Following reading this book I watched the author, Katya de Becerra, talk about the book and her process of writing it. It was such an interesting talk that allowed me to understand the book in even more depth. I think Katya de Becerra is an extremely talented author who has a real skill at writing horror books. I would certainly read another book by her in the future.
Overall, When Ghosts Call Us Home is a creepy, haunting and mysterious YA horror that I enjoyed reading. I would recommend this one for those who are fans of found-footage and haunted house horror. Just don’t read it in the dark!
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