This book cemented my love for Nathaniel Hawthorne's books.

This wasn't a horror story. Nor a mystery. Not even a thriller. It acts like it was, but it wasn't. This wasn't a classic either. I'd like to speak to the people who decide what is a classic. It was just ok. Too much happening without reason and when the tiny mystery is solved as to why people died, you're left shocked at the simplicity and stupidity of the whole thing because there's pretty much no payoff for the reader. Besides that, it was an ok story that reads just fine.

I love a mystery thriller, and this satisfied my appetite. It is compelling, gripping, and just an overall great read. It's one of my favorites. Would recommend.

I can check it off my list. Don't feel the need to read it again.

Thought I'd like this one, as I have liked Hawthorne in the past, but it was a pretty big snooze. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mind-set for it.