The Haunting

By: Natasha Preston

Narrated by: Bailey Carr

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The #1 bestselling author of The Island is back with another pulse-pounding, twisty listen!

Haunted by the past . . . terrified of the present.

Penny knows she must forget about her ex, Nash. Ever since his father was revealed as the brutal serial killer who traumatized their small town last Halloween, Penny’s parents have forbidden her to have anything to do with Nash or his family. It’s hard not to think of him—but she’s trying.

That stops when she goes shopping with friends for a costume. What she finds instead is ripped from a horror movie: someone from school bleeding out on the floor of a dressing room. Stabbed.

People are quick to blame Nash and his sister, Grace, but as Halloween nears and the body count rises, Penny can’t help thinking this copycat killer is someone no one else suspects. . . .

©2023 Natasha Preston (P)2023 Listening Library

Critic reviews

A Publishers Weekly bestseller!

"An entertaining Halloween thriller."—Kirkus Reviews

storyline and title

I thought the storyline kept me very engaged. the title definitely made me think it was going to be paranormal of some sort. I kinda thought it was gonna be this whole dream or memory Of the main girl (forgot her name 🙃) and she was the ultimate killer but it definitely didn't turn out the way.

what just happened

so first of all spoiler alert



why did it have to end like that!? bang.. then what? does grace get shot, does she live or die? what happens to everyone once the cops come? ughhh

i loved how i was so deeply invested into this book, i love the suspense, i love how i was actually getting scared and my heart would race, this was good. I kinda suspected grace at some point just seemed off she was always gone but omar completely shocked me!

Not about a haunting at all

The name of this story is rather odd considering there was no paranormal activity of any kind. The plot was so-so and it was pretty easy to guess who was the killer early on. Especially if you read true crime often. I found the narrator to be a frustrating, selfish teen so it was hard for me to get into the book because her reaction to every incident was annoying. The ending … I mean it’s a cliff hanger but also an odd way to end it. Overall, Not a book I’d recommend.

The thrill of what is going to happen

I love it . I was so in to it . It is best thrill book I have heard

So engaging!

Loved the whole story. Author makes me wonder what happened next! My mind has all these scenarios and I don’t know which one is true!! Great way to keep me engaged.

Such a good thriller

I COULDNT put this book down. I loved it and it kept me guessing the entire time i was reading it

The end?

The book was well written, but it all built up to what didn’t even sound like a conclusion. I had to go back because I thought the player had skipped forward. I know it’s supposed to leave you wanting more, but it was so abrupt it seemed like the author left it unfinished. It was disappointing after investing time and interest for the book to end without am actual ending.

The haunting

At first, I couldn’t realize why it was called hunting, but I get it for the most part now. I will say like a couple of Natasha Preston‘s books. It is left on a cliffhanger. I doubt that will be a second one but you know we can hope.

It was entertaining

The story was a little basic for my tastes. It wasn’t bad at all, it just was typical and simple

Sadly not the best Preston novel

I love Natasha Preston and own most of her novels. I love the characters and the twists of her stories! However it was hard for me to like Penny as a character. It felt like the writing for her was poor and also the narrator made the story hard to listen to. She reads in a constant tone and it's hard to tell when things are serious or funny. The twist was interesting but ended so suddenly it left too many questions to really be enjoyed.