This Is Not a Ghost Story

Andrea Portes — 2020

Nothing is as it seems in this chilling, twisting tale by bestselling author Andrea Portes, perfect for fans of Madeleine Roux and Danielle Vega. Rife with dark humor and chilling twists, This Is Not a Ghost Story is American Horror Story meets There’s Someone Inside Your House. It will have readers flipping back to the very first page after the shocking finale. I am not welcome. Somehow I know that. Something doesn’t want me here. Daffodil Franklin has plans for a quiet summer before her freshman year at college, and luckily, she’s found the job that can give her just that: housesitting a mansion for a wealthy couple. But as the summer progresses and shadows lengthen, Daffodil comes to realize the house is more than it appears. The spacious home seems to close in on her, and as she takes the long road into town, she feels eyes on her the entire way, and something tugging her back. What Daffodil doesn’t yet realize is that her job comes with a steep price. The house has a long-ago grudge it needs to settle . . . and Daffodil is the key to settling it.

Reviews

Amanda Autumn Berrey@booksofautumn

Jun 13, 2024

Wasn’t for me. Super anticlimactic in my opinion. The twist was surprising but not great. I wasn’t a fan

Shu-Ning Coates@cherrysvn

Jan 27, 2022

Now that I’ve finished it, the title makes more sense. But, I think this book, or the author, was trying to make everything way to suspenseful. It was supposed to be a horror, but Daffodil made everything too funny. It wasn’t suspenseful, there were too many cliffhangers that didn’t do it’s job, and the end was rushed. There should’ve been something between the middle and end. Because it ended all too quickly, but not in a good way. The ending also could’ve been a nice twist, but it wasn’t written well enough to be enjoyable. And the moment where she found Zander didn’t belong. I think the book could’ve been written much better, or at least maybe added more plot:

This review contains a spoiler

Lauren Attaway@camcray

Jan 26, 2022

Daffodil Franklin is spending the summer before she starts college running from her problems and housesitting a house that may or may not be hunted. From the beginning to the end, it is almost as if we’re sitting on a conversation with Daffodil, and the storytelling style really gave me The Twisted One Vibes. There are a few spooky moments, but this one overall did not win me over. Still, I enjoyed the unique tale and the upbeat ending. Thanks to HarperTeen and NetGalley for the ARC!

Sofie@spearl

Jan 13, 2022

I'm giving this a shot, though other reviews don't have me hopeful. ________________ I don't even have the words to describe to you what I just read. It truly... is not a ghost story. Not really. Not in the way you'd expect. I can't even really tell you if I enjoyed this book or not. Because I don't know. This book feels larger than life. Here's the thing... I don't know what it is trying to say. I don't feel smart enough to understand why this story needed to be told, but I do understand that I'm glad it was. I loved Daffodil. Some reviews say they don't like her, but I found her riveting. I loved Portes tangental style of writing. I could never predict where things were going. Not once. Daffodil is definitely an unreliable narrator. In that way (along with some other details of the novel) this book reminded me of We Were Liars. Just some wisps of it. I typically, or at least, historically, have never really enjoyed books that leave things open-ended. That don't wrap up. That leave me with questions. But something about This Is Not a Ghost Story left me feeling... deeply satisfied. I don't know how. I still don't even understand most of what happened in this book. But I do know that I couldn't put it down. Portes wrote about (view spoiler)[ Daffodil's mental illness in such an honest, heartbreaking way. I resonated with her. A LOT. More than I'm comfortable admitting. (hide spoiler)] Somehow, I'm tempted to give this 5 stars. I won't, because I reserve that for only my favourite of reads, but I have a feeling this book will stick with me for a while.

Micol Scalabrino@micolreads

Jan 5, 2022

Daffodil wants to escape the summer and she ends up in an old manor, paid to take care of the house. Only, nothing is quite alright. Discovering secrets with Daffodil, getting to know what really happened to her boyfriend, you are thrust into a world of supernatural and paranormal. But this is not a ghost story, it’s more. I found this book interesting; it was weird and amazing at the same time to be in Daffodil’s mind. I was ready to read a thriller, horror book, but I was surprised to see a psychological turn. I was able to feel the dread, fear and the need to uncover all the secrets right along the protagonist. Unfortunately, I found the book really slow, almost boring. This actually didn’t lower the vote, as you can see. At the end, I was so shocked, happy and sad at the same time that I completely forgot everything that happened while I was reading it. Final vote: 4/5 Final vote: 4/5

Emily C Peterson@etrigg