Full of lush details and eerie mysteries, It Was Her House First by Cherie Priest (Grave Reservations) is a ghost story for HGTV fans.
Flush with her brother's life insurance payout and mourning his loss, Ronnie Mitchell purchases a decaying mansion that was once home to silent film star Venita Rost with renovation in mind. Though it's not yet her dream house, Ronnie is in love and determined to make it work, despite the lack of plumbing and electricity, abundance of mold and rotting wood, and the fact that the last person who tried to renovate the house died suddenly.
Ronnie soon discovers a creepy basement shrine to Venita that holds the actress's diary. With no other evening entertainment, Ronnie devours Venita's innermost thoughts and fears leading up to her tragic end. As more and more bone-chilling and strange encounters transpire, Ronnie realizes she is more than just another renovator and begins to understand that she must make peace with the house's past inhabitants to survive.
Priest merges the magical with the natural, transporting readers into not only the dilapidated house with its commonplace dangers but also all its former splendor. The novel's multiple perspectives, in the 1930s and the present day, draw readers into the lives of the characters. Through Priest's precise prose, the scent of rotting carpet, the taste of a strong gin drink, and the sound of a child's laughter come alive. It Was Her House First is an atmospheric, heartbreaking novel of loss and shattered trust that will make readers take a second glance at old, crumbling houses and wonder what secrets they could hold. --Alyssa Parssinen, freelance reviewer and former bookseller