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Amity Micol Ostow Books

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Amity Micol Ostow Books

For the first half of this book, I really wasn't certain what to think. The paranormal stuff began really early in the book and was happening to two different families at the same time, one in the past, one in the present. It wasn't difficult to figure out who was who or what part of the story I was reading, but it almost seemed to be a case of the author revealing a bit too much too soon. I didn't feel that there was much suspense or intrigue leading up to the actual terrifying events.

In some ways, I felt as I went further into this book that it was an homage to Stephen King's the shining--the use of parentheses and italics frequently reminded me of the way that book was written.

I enjoyed parts of this book very much and other parts I didn't feel were very well explored. I never felt particularly close to any of the characters, but the story itself was interesting enough to keep reading.

In the end this was a book I was glad I had the opportunity to read, and I think those with a love of supernatural tales will appreciate the effort of the author.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from Edelweiss. All opinions are my own.


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Amity Micol Ostow Books Reviews

I should begin by saying that the low, two star rating has more to do with my expectations going into the book, rather than the book itself. Unfair? Possibly, but when you work at creating a tie between your story and an actual, well known story/urban myth, then you open yourself up to be judged by these expectations.

Amity features alternating point-of-view chapters, the first focused on child sociopath Connor, who moves into Amity with his family ten years before our second narrator, Gwen. Through their shared experiences, we uncover the secrets of the Amity house, yet its nothing new or exciting or horrifying. Most of the alternating chapters are simply regurgitating what the previous one touched upon. If we had seen it through a different angle, it would have made more sense. But we don’t. We see Connor having nightmares that wake him at 314am, we then see Gwen having nightmares at 314am. Connor sees a strange creature going into the boat house in the middle of the night. Following chapter, Gwen sees a strange creature going into the boat house in the middle of the night. There are differences between the narratives at times, but they are few and far between.

Then, there’s the horror, or lack of, in Amity. We hear about all of these things that have poisoned the earth at Amity, have created such a toxic and evil environment that it infects all of its inhabitants forever. But we never see it. The only “scary” things we see are the swarm of flies/wasps that attack on one occasion, the possible cryptid sighting, animal corpses, one attempted drowning, and one allusion to familicide. Yes, it’s meant to be a young adult book, but there is so much more that could be done within the confines of that age group that weren’t. The setting, which at first seemed ominous, just grew boring by the end of the first third of the book. Maybe young tweens might like the book and find it scary, but above twelve, I find it hard to believe readers haven’t been exposed to better horror in either literature or cinema.
Told in parallel narratives, 10 years apart, Amity is a creepy, horrifying tale of a home, rotten to its core, and the effect it has on two families. We have two narrators, both in their late teens – around 17 Connor and Gwen – who provide readers with first-hand accounts of their descents into madness, and Amity’s history, which appears to lead them to it.

Connor and Gwen each have siblings they are close to, seemingly keeping them rooted in some sort of reality, at first. Connor is a sociopath with an anger management problem and far deeper, darker issues roiling under his surface. His twin sister, Jules, is the only thing in the world he has any feeling toward. He and his family arrive at Amity when his father – a shady businessman and an abusive drunk – attempts to escape yet another bad series of business deals.

Gwen’s family arrives at Amity looking for respite. Gwen has recently been hospitalized for a psychotic break, and the family just wants to start over. When Amity reveals herself to Gwen, her brother, Luke, attempts to stem the tide of what he initially believes is her breakdown, returning. Gwen’s Aunt Ro knows better, though. She may be portrayed at first as some sort of new age free spirit, we see Amity set to work on her, too.

Amity is alive, and she feeds on her occupants. She starts slowly, insidiously, but once she has her claws in you, you can’t escape.

There may be parallels drawn between Amity and the Amityville Horror – haunted house, violent history, even the eye-shaped windows of the home – but Amity stands very much on her own. Ms. Ostow builds a layered, compulsive tale – I couldn’t stop reading it – of growing horror with a shattering conclusion. Teens who grew up on the shock horror of films like Hostel and Saw need to sit down and read a good, old-fashioned, scare-the-pants-off-you haunted house story. Amity is that story.
This book had me turning pages, and not wanting to sleep. Very well written,loved every moment of it and now I want more!
Good read for a middle schooler.
Interesting take on an Amityville Horror type of story. It definitely has its eerie moments. I was able to read it during a single day and enjoyed it. I'll be on the lookout for other books by Ostow.
For the first half of this book, I really wasn't certain what to think. The paranormal stuff began really early in the book and was happening to two different families at the same time, one in the past, one in the present. It wasn't difficult to figure out who was who or what part of the story I was reading, but it almost seemed to be a case of the author revealing a bit too much too soon. I didn't feel that there was much suspense or intrigue leading up to the actual terrifying events.

In some ways, I felt as I went further into this book that it was an homage to Stephen King's the shining--the use of parentheses and italics frequently reminded me of the way that book was written.

I enjoyed parts of this book very much and other parts I didn't feel were very well explored. I never felt particularly close to any of the characters, but the story itself was interesting enough to keep reading.

In the end this was a book I was glad I had the opportunity to read, and I think those with a love of supernatural tales will appreciate the effort of the author.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from Edelweiss. All opinions are my own.