Craven Manor in Creatures, Creatures Everywhere!

Jan 30, 2019 Latasha rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-own, horror, ghosties-haunted-house, a-z-challenge

there is some really great scenes here. i really like how some of the characters and scenes are described. The story is good but not really scary. the characters are just fine.

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Jun 14, 2021 Michelle rated it liked it

Shelves: 2021

This was a 'middle of the road' Darcy Coates book for me. It didn't hold the creep factor of Ashburn House or the fun Carrow Haunt, but it was quick and enjoyable.
And I loved the end! ...more

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Oct 10, 2021 Fiona Knight rated it really liked it

Shelves: horror, ghost-stories

3.5 stars, rounded up for finishing strong.

Daniel put the lamp down and reached towards the door. He couldn't stop himself. He had no intention of touching any of the four locks, but he wanted to understand the mystery. His fingertips brushed the wood in the centre of the painted cross, and he instantly recoiled. Something had thrummed through the wood, like a low electrical current. With it came an immense sense of malaise. Suddenly, he felt as though his whole world were a second away from cru 3.5 stars, rounded up for finishing strong.

Daniel put the lamp down and reached towards the door. He couldn't stop himself. He had no intention of touching any of the four locks, but he wanted to understand the mystery. His fingertips brushed the wood in the centre of the painted cross, and he instantly recoiled. Something had thrummed through the wood, like a low electrical current. With it came an immense sense of malaise. Suddenly, he felt as though his whole world were a second away from crumbling, as though the shadows were alive, creeping towards him, their long, cruelly sharp fingers twitching as they stretched towards his throat.
Do not enter the tower...

Daniel is out of cash, a job, and almost a home - everything, really. Which makes it the perfect time for a mysterious letter offering an opportunity that sounds too good to be true: restore the gardens at Craven Manor, and not only will he be paid in gold, but he'll be able to live in the groundskeeper's cottage, too. All he has to remember is never to bring anyone to the property, or be outside between midnight and dawn - oh, and if anyone knocks in that time do not answer.

So of course he takes the job, because this is the world we live in now, and Daniel's reached the point where it's starve or deal with obviously haunted gothic mansions. And sure, things may go bump in the night, but he's actually enjoying the work, there's a cute cat for him to try and help, and his absent boss is actually pretty understanding, if the notes he leaves are anything to go by. Then, of course, he makes the mistake of trusting his (living) awful cousin, user and just general asshat Kyle - and it's there things start to go downhill.

I did actually really enjoy this, particularly the unexpected tone it took on as we got into it, but there were a couple of down points that almost knocked another star from the rating. The writing is fine, straightforward and easy to breeze through, but it's no great shakes; Daniel is a sweetheart but for someone at the end of his rope he's managed to hang on to a LOT of his naivete; and in a couple of points suspending disbelief has to work just a bit too hard. I'm all for completely out of the box ideas, but they have to keep internal logic.

Overall though, definitely happy I read it. (view spoiler) ...more

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Feb 21, 2019 Ami Morrison rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, horror, paranormal-fiction, ha-reads, ghosts, kindle

Originally posted on the book blog Creature From the Book Lagoon

"Daniel is desperate for a job. When someone slides a note under his door offering him the groundskeeper’s position at an old estate, it seems too good to be true. Alarm bells start ringing when he arrives at Craven Manor. The mansion’s front door hangs open, and leaves and cobwebs coat the marble foyer. It’s clear no one has lived there in a long time. But an envelope waits for him inside the doorway. It contains money, and promise Originally posted on the book blog Creature From the Book Lagoon

"Daniel is desperate for a job. When someone slides a note under his door offering him the groundskeeper’s position at an old estate, it seems too good to be true. Alarm bells start ringing when he arrives at Craven Manor. The mansion’s front door hangs open, and leaves and cobwebs coat the marble foyer. It’s clear no one has lived there in a long time. But an envelope waits for him inside the doorway. It contains money, and promises more. Daniel is desperate. Against his better judgement, he moves into the groundskeeper’s cottage behind the crypt. He’s determined to ignore the strange occurrences that plague the estate. But when a candle flickers to life in the abandoned tower window, Daniel realises Craven Manor is hiding a terrible secret… one that threatens to bury him with it."

Craven Manor drew me in right away. It did not take long at all to set up the plot or the characters. I was so curious about who sent Daniel the invite to work at the Manor, and who was this mysterious owner, Bran. When Daniel took the job, there were all these crazy rules that were so WTF and odd that I couldn’t wait to find out why those rules were there in the first place. The book had a great subtle creepy vibe to it that I loved. It creeped up on you. This book really hooked me early on and I pretty much flew through it, waiting to see just what the hell was going on. It was enjoyable from start to finish. I was extremely happy with the ending and I was pretty bummed when the book was over. I wasn’t ready to say good-bye to the world inside.

The characters of Craven Manor are what really draws you to this story. Daniel is such a kind person in a desperate situation, you really wanted to root for him to find success. You felt his desperation and fear of being homeless again. You really felt his struggles with his cousin Kyle. Normally a character that is super nice kind of makes you sick at how sweet they are, but with Daniel, it felt very natural and organic. He wasn’t a goody- goody, he was just a kind person with a good moral compass. Another great character from the story is the enigmatic owner of the manor, Bran. I will admit it… I absolutely fell in love with Bran! He is a mysterious guy with family issues. Is he good? Is he bad? You go back and forth about that through the whole book. I can’t say too much about him because I don’t want to give anything away. He was a very fun character. There is also the cousin Kyle. OMFG Kyle. What a jackass character. He was such a pain in the butt. I don’t know how Daniel put up with him for so long. The story is also filled with some ghosts, an old cat and some crows. It is hard to talk about those characters though, without giving too much away.

The author did a great job at giving us an atmospheric, creepy story. She had such nice, clear descriptions of everything that you felt like you were right there in Daniel’s shoes. I personally loved how the ghosts looked. A very classic ghost look. Craven Manor wasn’t an overly scary book, but it definitely made you glad you weren’t reading it at night with the lights off. I enjoyed the author’s style so much, I went and bought a few more of her books and I can’t wait to read them!

Craven Manor was a very nice ghost story. With a creepy atmosphere and a mysterious plot with characters you want to cheer for, it was hard not to love this story. The way the author described things, it was easy to immerse yourself in the story. I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend reading it! ...more

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Nov 04, 2023 Jen from Quebec :0) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-ve-been-putting-off, tbt-soon, copies-i-own, color-challenge-for-book-covers, reading-challenge-books, horror, mysterious-mysteries, ongoing-challenges-and-groups, thriller-and-or-suspense, 2023-books-read

I love Darcy Coates, and pick a Coates book when I am unsure what to read next as they are never a bad choice, and readers can't go wrong. I liked this book a lot, but note: I would consider this more of a mystery or suspense novel, as opposed to a horror story. NOT a complaint! Just letting people looking for hardcore horror know! -Jen from Quebec :0) ...more

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