Title: The House at Watch HillAuthor: Karen Marie Moning
Series: The Watch Hill Trilogy #1
Genre: Urban Fantasy
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Rating: 3/5★
THE HOUSE AT WATCH HILL was a patient beast, born of dichotomy, a familiar stranger, a beautiful monstrosity. It seduced before it terrified.
And it would never be done with me… I was the sweetest thing the evil in those walls ever tasted.
****
Zo Grey is still reeling from the sudden death of her mother when she receives a call from an unknown attorney in Divinity, Louisiana, offering her an inheritance from a long-lost relative. With nothing left to lose, Zo heads to Divinity and discovers a sprawling mansion that seems to pull inward ‑ Watch Hill, an entity cloaked in shadows and laden with secrets. But there’s a catch: she must endure three years alone within its ominous walls to claim her fortune.
As Zo delves deeper into the mansion’s mysteries, she encounters a sinister, red-eyed owl, a captivating Scottish groundskeeper, doors that go nowhere, others that are impossible to open, and a turret into which there is no visible means of ingress, all while the townsfolk whisper of dark legends.
Unaware of her own ties to the house, Zo must confront ancient evils and unlock something deep and dark within herself . . . before evil consumes her completely.
I’ve been a fan of Karen Marie Moning’s books since 2011 when I first read her Fever series. I love those books so damn much. You won’t catch me saying any bad word about them. So of course I was beyond thrilled to find out that the author was finally back with the first book of a new urban fantasy trilogy. I had hoped to love it a little more but after the way the book ended I’m also highly excited to find out what happens next. It was a good read, just not a great one.
The story is about 24-year-old Zodeckymira “Zo” Grey who finds out after her mother died in a devastation fire that a long-lost relative left her a big inheritance in the shape of a large mansion in Divinity, Lousiana. Zo comes to find out that the inheritance comes with a lot of peculiar stipulations but even so she decides to give it all a chance and moves into the mansion. The town of Divinity and the house at Watch Hill opens up a whole new and magical world to Zo. And a lot of danger that might be too much for her to handle.
This book had a lot of info dumping which is also my main problem with the story in general. I was intrigued by this new life that Zo was thrown into but I could’ve done with a lot less information and facts being thrown at me. Some things seemed to be a little too convenient in the way that certain things were explained to Zo. In that area I was left a little disappointed, I must admit. But on the other hand I also understand that it’s a first book in a new series and the author needed to set the stage for it. I see a lot of potential for the next two books!
Aside from those slightly negative points, there were a lot to enjoy about this book though. I loved how Zo was introduced to a world of magic, witches, vampires and more. We also have two love interests so far, Kellan and Devlin, and I’m very intrigued by both. Especially Kellan because he was the most mysterious to me and certain things got revealed at the end. the author definitely didn’t lose her touch for shocking cliffhangers. I may have screamed a little bit.
I’m also very glad to say that Karen Marie Moning still writes beautifully and manages to both compel and amaze me. The book also had several intriguing and sometimes ominous characters. You never know if someone has good intentions towards Zo or wants to use her for the new power that she is just discovering now, including the love interests. The author also had this way of making the house come alive, as if a living thing (and who’s to say it isn’t?) as well as add intriguing points of view like Alisdair’s which I’m still not sure who or what it is. In short: I need the next book right now!
About the author:
Karen Marie Moning is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Fever Series and the Highlander series. She is a winner of the prestigious RITA award for best paranormal romance and is a multiple RITA award nominee, and a Goodreads Reader’s Choice Award winner. An alum of the Immaculate Conception Academy, she attended Purdue University where she completed a BA in Society & Law, with minors in Philosophy, Creative Writing and Theatre.
Prior to becoming a full time writer, she worked in the insurance industry directing commercial litigation and intercompany arbitration. She agrees with Jorge Luis Borges that paradise must be some kind of library.
It’s a good sign that you want to read the next book so badly, even if you didn’t like everything about this. I’d definitely give this a try myself if I didn’t have so many other books to read.
Thanks for sharing.