Book Review | She is a Haunting

Jade Nguyen is in desperate need of money for college, so when her estranged father in Vietnam offers to pay in exchange for her help with renovating an old French colonial home, she agrees. However, when she arrives, she soon realizes that the house is haunted and oh, so hungry.

She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran is a chilling eco gothic that deftly explores diaspora and the horrors of colonialism.

Right off the bat, I want to point out that the writing style in this book is extremely poetic, which comes as a double-edged sword. At times, the writing is gorgeous and biting, but occasionally there are bizarre mixed metaphors that don't create a cohesive image and left me scratching my head. For instance, after accidently injuring her hand, Jade decides to dramatically open the window.

I throw the window open, a guillotine in reverse. Cool air rushes in, drying my skin and cooling me down, but I am a flame. Rain splashes on the sill and mixes with blood.

I have so many questions. Why does the simple act of open a window merit being likened to an execution device? It's pouring rain and humid outside, so how does opening the window dry her off? Why liken herself to a hot flame while mentioning that she’s physically being cooled off? I feel like more could be done to show the contrast here--like saying something along the lines of: “The damp air cooled my skin, but I still seared from within.”

Nitpicking aside though, there were some genuinely creepy ghost and bug scenes that gave me the heebie jeebies, and if you loved the themes and atmosphere of Mexican Gothic or The House of Drought, you’d probably like this one as well.

Thank you, NetGalley and Bloomsbury YA, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Book Details:

Publication Date : February 28, 2023

Publisher : Bloomsbury YA

IBSN : 9781547610815

Pages : 352

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