The Haunting of Hill House (Penguin Classics)

The greatest haunted house story ever written—the inspiration for the hit Netflix horror series!

One of The Atlantic’s Great American Novels of the Past 100 Years

First published in 1959, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House has been hailed as a perfect work of unnerving terror. It is the story of four seekers who arrive at a notoriously unfriendly pile called Hill House: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of a “haunting”; Theodora, his lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a friendless, fragile young woman well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the future heir of Hill House. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable phenomena. But Hill House is gathering its powers—and soon it will choose one of them to make its own.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

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Published Nov 28, 2006

235 pages

Average rating: 6.67

690 RATINGS

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In The Void

In The Void is quarterly, virtual horror bookclub, allowing members the opportunity to enjoy our selections without the pressure of a monthly meeting!

The Thriller Crush 📚 🔪❤️ Book Club

JOIN US 👻 OR WE'LL COME FOR YOU 🪓 For women who ♡ creepy books. Please bring your ideas & anything you wld like to share w/our family.

Community Reviews

What Bookclubbers are saying about this book

✨ Summarized by Bookclubs AI

Readers say *The Haunting of Hill House* is a masterpiece of psychological horror and a foundational haunted house story, praised for its masterful at...

BMC
Mar 21, 2025
7/10 stars
The Netflix Hill House series is one of my favourite so I wanted to read the inspiration. It was hard to read this without comparing, but ultimately I didn't enjoy it as much. It did have the spookies and the setting and the character. However, it felt a little flat and I didn't love the ending.
Thriller Crush
Feb 23, 2025
3/10 stars
I was ready to explore the numerous factors that are involved in a haunted house, however the scary part in this 📖 isn't Hill House, it's the mind. I imagine this story based on a female character was scary for its time (1959). During 1850-1900 women were placed in mental institutions when they didn't behave accordingly to men. During 1940 Lobotomies were used on these women which ruined them for the rest of their lives. I would warn that if you're looking for scary, this is not it. This is a psychological story. Hill House might be the asylum Eleanor has been locked up in. Creating this paranormal study led by Dr. Montague is the only way she can cope. Dr. Montague cld be her real life Psychiatrist. There are many parts implying that it cld all be inside her own head. Enjoy & decide for yourself.
Cynthia M.
Mar 28, 2026
6/10 stars
"The Haunting of Hill House" by Shirley Jackson is a masterpiece of psychological horror and the foundational modern haunted house story . Its power lies not in monsters or gore, but in the masterfully crafted, all-pervading atmosphere of dread. The house itself, described as "not sane", is the main antagonist
Chance Meek
Mar 02, 2026
4/10 stars
People rave about this book as being the most scariest book they’ve ever read, and it was an utter bore. The writing was ok, just didn’t captivate me.
Steph Boggs
Feb 24, 2026
6/10 stars
The book is even more amazing than the TV series. Very well written and truly has you sitting at the edge of your seat.

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