The House on Orchid Street by T.M. Wright

The House on Orchid Street Reviews

• 
  Erik

  Wright once again skillfully weaves settings and characters that lend to his unique sense of the surreal. At the end of each chapter readers may find themselves shaking their heads slightly, blinking once or twice, then eagerly attacking the next page.
  
  The novel's main character, Katherine, finds herself the proud owner of a house previously located on Orchid Street half a century earlier. After a series of haunting murders, a fire destroys most of the homes on Orchid Street. The last remaining house is relocated to the countryside where she purchases it as part of her plan to gain independence in her life.
  
  Shortly after Katherine moves in, the house's reputation for strangeness becomes apparent. In the midst of unfolding the mystery behind her brother's death and strengthening her resolve to become her own woman, Katherine encounters forces that have lingered since the house's days on Orchid Street. Wright doesn't easily divulge the answers to all of our questions. That's part of the fun and intrigue of this novel.
  
  We get a strong sense of who the characters in The House On Orchid Street are just through their actions and dialogue. By the end of the novel the reader gets the feeling Katherine is at peace with what she has found. Exactly what does she find? That is left for us to intuit. But Wright gives us just enough of a glimpse and incentive to make the discovery process compelling.
• 
  Craig

  Though it's not noted anywhere on the copyright page or cover, this is a reprint of a novel from 1983 titled Carlisle Street that Tor published. There were some very minor wording and name changes, but it's the same thing almost exactly. I was annoyed at the feeling that I'd been tricked into purchasing the same book again.
• 
  Sara

  A haunted house tale that's more of a haunted neighborhood tale, this book has its share of unconventional ghosts.
  
  Katherine leaves her boyfriend Larry and moves into an old house set in the woods. She's an artist; she paints and apparently has enough money to live on. This is not the first novel with that type of scenario. (Wish I could do that!)
  
  From there, the book fills up with unlikable characters, both living and dead. I had a hard time getting inside Katherine's head. She's easily manipulated and not very strong and totally surrounded by manipulative men. However, in the end, I found I never liked her, either.
  
  As for the horror aspect, its not terribly scary and not easily resolved at the end. That's fine as far as horror goes, but I do have unanswered questions.
• 
  Booklover Butterfly

  If you are looking for something scary, then keep looking because The House On Orchid Street won’t give you even the smallest fright. I can appreciate the ambience that the author, T M Wright, was trying to create, but I didn’t feel the overall “scary vibe” that was intended. The concept behind the novel was interesting, but it could have been executed better. Without giving anything away, it starts off with a woman moving into an old house that has a dark past, and as the novel progresses, the reader gets glimpses of what occurred in and around the house. A bunch of negative events occur, leaving the woman distressed, but she figures things out a bit in the end and the story pretty much ends there.
  
  I could appreciate the unique characters and situations in the novel, but I felt like they weren’t developed enough. A connection between the characters and the reader never developed, so I was disinterested in what happened and didn’t particularly care when the novel didn’t feel concluded or wrapped up in a satisfying way in the end.
  
  One of my biggest frustrations with the book was the dialogue between characters. It felt forced and unrealistic at times. During moments of anger, fear, and confusion, the main characters would yell “damn” and “damn you”. If that had been said once or twice, I wouldn’t have noticed it, but it was frequent and annoying which made it almost impossible for me to immerse myself in the story.
  
  The House on Orchid Street wasn’t impossible to get through, but it wasn’t memorable or enjoyable for me. I didn't hate it with a passion, but I can't say I would ever read it again or even remember it in a year from now. I’d say skip it and look for something with more scare power.
• 
  Kelly

  Okay, I’ll admit it, the moment I saw the book, I thought it was going to be another one of those books. You know what I mean, the ones that are mildly entertaining but completely forgettable. Well, faithful readers, it has finally happened. I have found a new love and his name is T.M. Wright.
  
  Delivering a plot so sophisticated, Wright weaves the past and the present with class and patience. Excited, I anticipated every page with bewilderment and delight. The pace in the book is deliberately slow and subtle with a powerful build-up. The author refuses to give in to cheap thrills and reckless speed. The atmosphere is clouded with an air of confusion and darkness. You feel as though something just might jump out at you and you can hardly breathe.
  
  T.M. Wright’s style of writing is refined with a graceful prose. Appearing as if he were whispering in your ear, he allows the reader to come to his or her own conclusion. Catching you off guard, the characters appear to be one dimensional only to unfold, change and grow. Demanding to be felt and heard, these characters not only resonate but they haunt you well after you’ve put the put book down.
  
  My rate? Are you kidding? I give this book a 5.
  
  -As reviewed for Horror-Web.com
• 
  Cathy

  I picked up this book at the library thinking that it would be a decent read; it was not. When I get a book in the horror section, I'm looking for a scare (granted, I am rather disillusioned and it takes quite a lot to scare me, but that is far from the point) this book did just that. I was scared by how horribly written this book was.
  This book appeared to be written by someone with bi-polar during one of their manic phases. It jumped around so much that I couldn't bear to read it and would put it down and just stare at it and wonder, "What the hell am I doing reading this?" I finally made it to the end and it finally, kind of, sort of, had a climax brewing when BAM, it's over. I am very disappointed in this book and do not think I will be giving this author another shot.
  
• 
  Sarah

  I was surprised to see how negative the reviews were for this book. I thought it was really good. Sure, it wasn't the typical "edge of your seat" suspense, it was more quiet horror, little subtle things that were off until the situation becomes extremely disturbing. It's just a different kind of book that a zombie novel or some kind of graphic gorefest. I really enjoyed it, it ended in an unexpected way, and it was really more about relationships in the ways they go wrong then ghosts and monsters. I really enjoyed this book
• 
  Robert

  None of the elements of this ghost story coalesced into a satisfying narrative: the characters were not only unsympathetic but downright unlikeable and annoying (with exceptionally bad dialogue at times), and the whole story felt somewhat sketched in, rather than fully drawn. This is the first TM Wright book I really didn't like much; you know you're in trouble when the kindest thing you can say about a book is that it was a quick read. Wright can and has done a lot better.
• 
  John Bruni

  This book was off to a good start with an interesting mystery and a nice build up, but after a while, it turned into a slow burn. Too much of a slow burn. And it didn't pay off as well as it should have. Also, there isn't a single likable character in the book. There isn't anyone a reader can identify with. In fact, everyone, including throwaway characters, are reprehensible. Ordinarily, that could be interesting, but here it just turns me off. The first half is pretty cool, though.
• 
  GracieKat

  It has been a bit since I've read this book but I remember I didn't like it too much. Too boring and slowly paced. Also, the main character was very hard to connect with so I didn't feel too much for her.
• 
  Debra

  Stephen King recommended author: "T.M. Wright is a rare and blazing talent!"
  
• 
  Melissa Justice

  The ending confused me.
• 
  Sandra

  Very odd - started off well then went downhill.
• 
  Karen Berriman

  A creepy ghost story that was good.
  
• 
  Kevin

  I just really did not enjoy this as at all. What little of interest was woven in (the killings) were completely dropped and pointless, giving say to the book's meandering nonsense.
• 
  CanadianBookOwl

  This book was different. Good but weird. In a good way.
• 
  Courtney

  I tend to go on author kicks where I'll read everything by one author that I can get my hands on. My latest was Iris Murdoch...I think T.M. Wright is the next. He fits well with my recent horror bender as he's pretty well a master of the literary horror genre. Great writing, good stories, more subtle horror.
• 
  Laura

  An okay ghost story. There could have been a lot more expansion and delving into both the main characters past, as well as the past of the house, or the main antagonist. I read it in less than a day, though, so I guess I can't say it was horrible. Good beach book.
• 
  Michelle Johnson

  WARNING: THIS BOOK IS A REPUPLISHED VERSION OF THE BOOK "CARLISLE STREET". Carlisle street was published in the 80's, and the only thing the author did with this version was change some names, otherwise the book is exactly the same.
• 
  Beverly Brooks

  One of the worst books I have every read, thankfully it was in big print so was able to read it fast just to finish it. There was no real story to it & scary it was NOT! Will not be picking up another book by this author
• 
  Jeannie Sloan

  OK book. Nothing special. The School was much better.
• 
  Jeremy Stephens

  Golf clap.
• 
  Katrina

  Truly awful, I'm angry with myself for wasting so much time on this, I should have given up instead of trying to force myself to finish it. Life is too short to read crappy books.
• 
  Dacia

  Had me hooked from beginning to end, BUT disappointing ending!! (a lot of unanswered questions).
• 
  Brenda

  Another great horror writer