The Hills Know

by Breanna Leslie

When Mel's mother passes away, she and her husband are tasked with sorting her estate. The affair is long and tedious, but when she and her husband, Jamie, discover Mel's inherited property in West Virginia, they have no idea that life would drop them right in the middle of those lonely hills.

Amid the move, a career change, and a surprise pregnancy, unexpected disturbances rattle Mel to her core and leave her shaken while questioning her mental state. But when she discovers the bloody truth about her new home, there's no going back. Something tragic happened, but the truth of it, only the hills know.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Paranormal

177 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 13, 2022

Reviews

[Brendon Lowe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mel's mother passes away and they discover a house she owned is left to her and her husband. They move to the area and strange things start happening while they live in the house. Dark secrets come to life about the house and its previous occupants. Mel starts questioning her sanity as she has a family disposition for mental illness. Is the house haunted or is it all in her head?

This was just ok for me. I have felt I have read this story and similar versions of it so many times before. It didn't really bring much tension for me as I was reading it. I also really disliked Mel the main character so that didn't help much either. Her belief that the house is haunted but wont tell her husband about any of it? For fear he will think she is going insane just didn't make sense for me. If these incidents were happening I would be telling someone and getting out of there not hanging around.

This just probably wasnt for me personally and not a gripe on the author or the story but I felt it just wasnt very original. 2.5 stars upped to 3.

[Keegan Eichelman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chilling Through and Through

This book is a terrifyingly beautiful piece of artwork. The chill starts slow, like the hint of coldness in the air on the first day of Fall, but it whips you into an icy winter...QUICK. Horrifying images, things that go bump in the night, doors that won't stay shut, freaky claw marks and the even bigger question: WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED IN THIS HOUSE??? I know you'll be as hooked as I was!

[Amanda Ruzsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It can be disheartening to feel like nothing is going right. But when things suddenly start looking up, there’s no going back for this couple. Moving and starting a new life can be horrific as these two unsuspecting humans come to learn after inheriting a house. Definitely high creepy factor and lots of spooky happenings.

[Kayla ✧♥︎ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Typical "wife sees things but the husband doesn't believe her since her family has history of mental illness"

2.25 ★

This was such a typical "horror"/thriller trope. If you've seen one with it, you've seen them all. If you haven't, then maybe you will think this book is alright haha. It wasn't horrible but it wasn't great. I thought it was just okay.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one is for anyone who likes ghost stories and a bit of folk magic! Hanging out with the main character during the creepy build up was fun. Is she experiencing mental illness? Is it her pregnancy hormones? I wasn’t expecting what is finally revealed.

The audiobook narrator worked well for the story. The voice was engaging and genuine.

[☽ Autumn ☾ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn’t too sure about this book at first and up until I got about 75% through I thought it was going to be a 4 star book, but I was pleasantly surprised. Highly recommend!

[Michela · Rating 4 out of 5]

When her mother passes away, Mel and her husband find out that she left them a property in West Virginia: it's a beautiful old house, in the middle of the hills, isolated and with no reception but incredibly charming. Since they both need a change, they decide to move. But during the renovations, they start noticing weird events in the house and Mel, now pregnant and scared, questions her mental health. But the past can't stay hidden forever and Mel is determined to understand what is really going on in her house and put an end to it.

Who doesn't love a haunted house? It's a classic trope of the horror genre, certainly not very original, but one of my favorites. If you're like me and enjoy dark atmospheres and feeling chills down your spine, while also being charmed by an intriguing plot, then The Hills Know by Breanna Leslie needs to be on your TBR. The reader follows Mel in her "investigation": she is looking for information about the tragic past of the house she inherited, and at the same time she is exploring her mental state, her feelings during pregnancy and her relationship with her husband. I didn't always agree with Mel's choices, as she often remains at the mercy of the events without reacting or asking for help, but luckily I don't need to like a character to enjoy a story. I think the main (little) issue I had with this narrator is that she explains most of the unusual events she witnesses as consequence of her "pregnancy hormones": the reader is well aware she's pregnant, she doesn't have to repeat "pregnancy hormones" 100 times.

Having said that, my favorite thing about this novel is that it almost reads as a movie: I could picture every single scene and character in my head, and for me this is proof that The Hills Know is a great book. I finished it in less than a day, it's well written and I couldn't put it down (it's also not very long). Overall I really enjoyed it, and I would recommend it to all horror and suspense lovers.
4 stars.

TW: violence, death, abuse

* I'd like to thank Breanna Leslie and Reedsy Discovery for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.25⭐️ The author really captured the spooky atmosphere and keeps the reader engaged. Is this mysterious house in the middle of West Virginia with no cell service that her mother left her haunted? Hormones from her pregnancy? Is she losing it? The story reveals itself really well and has a great slow-burn feel. The narrator for the audiobook is also, very good.

If you like “haunted house mysteries” then I believe you will enjoy this one.

Note: I received an Audible copy from the author for a fair and honest review.

[Kate Victoria RescueandReading · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn’t sure what to think of this book at first. It took me almost half the story to settle in for the ride. In the end, I really enjoyed the ride and the conclusion.

You’ll start out thinking this is your basic haunted house story, and to an extent, it is. It’s also a mystery, of two women who are brutally killed without justice being found for them. It’s a story that explores the darker side of pregnancy, the fear of miscarriage, and mental illness as well.

The main characters weren’t my favourite, but the side characters (Lizzie, Teresa, etc) I liked.

[Nora (NoraLeest) · Rating 3 out of 5]

2,5 ⭐️

A very atmospheric read about a woman who inherits a house in the middle of nowhere from her late mother, except she had no clue this house even existed. Her mother had it rented out but none of the tenants stayed for long. You can probably fill in the rest.

I didn’t find this book very scary. However, it was VERY atmospheric in such a way that I felt like I could clearly see the house and surroundings in my mind’s eye.

Don’t read this to be blown away, but if you’re looking for some slightly creepy, easy and atmospheric entertainment: you came to the right spot.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. I enjoyed this audiobook very much! Thank you to the author for sending me a copy to listen to. I LOVE haunted house type stories, there are so many ways to make them unique. This story was brutal and heartbreaking. I teared up at the end. If you like spooky haunted house stories, especially the relative-passes-away-and-you-inherit-a-creepy-house-you-had-no-idea-existed ones, then definitely give this book a shot. The narrator did a wonderful job.

[Abbey · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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“I was seeing things in my home. Black masses, rotting corpses, and figures. Or were they people? At what point do the dead stop being people and become shadows bouncing off walls?”
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After her mother dies, Mel inherits a house in West Virginia she didn’t even know her mom owned. She and her husband quit their jobs in Cali and move to the hills. As they are fixing the house (and find out they are going to have a baby)… the gruesome history of this house comes to light.
.
This book was the perfect pallet cleanser! It is short and even though I had no intention of doing so… I read this baby in one sitting.
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I first got hooked on @ work when she introduced me to Kindle Vella (check out her story Stix if you haven’t read it yet) and The Hills Know was an amazing debut novel. The ghost story is creepy and sucks you in instantly. It’s short and sweet and I was rooting for Mel the whole time!

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nach dem Tod ihrer Mutter erfahren Mel und ihr Ehemann von dem einsamen Haus in West Virginia, das Teil ihres Erbes ist. Dort angekommen lernt Mel die grausame Geschichte des Hauses kennen.
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Mel ist eine wirklich sympathische Protagonistin und aus ihrer Perspektive ist auch das ganze Buch geschrieben. Mit ihrem Ehemann Jamie bin ich nicht ganz so warm geworden, vermutlich hätte es mir deutlich besser gefallen, wenn er mehr auf Mel und ihre Bedenken eingegangen wäre. Bereits mit dem Umzug in das abgelegene Haus nach West Virginia wird die bedrohliche Atmosphäre aufgebaut und mit jeder Seite wird es immer bedrohlicher. Ebenso wird der Spannungsbogen der Handlung immer steiler und ich konnte wirklich gut mitfiebern, weil ich unbedingt wissen wollte, was genau passiert ist. Zum Ende hin werden alle Fragen gut aufgelöst. Der Schreibstil ist angenehm zu lesen.
.
Super spannend

[Dianna Durfee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!

Very well written! I could not put it down. For anyone that loves a good mystery and the paranormal, this book will not disappoint! I look forward to reading more by this author.

[Cameron Trost · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Hills Know by Breanna Leslie is the book I chose to review this month from among those requested by authors as part of the review club hosted by The Book Hangout Spot on Facebook. This is Breanna's début novel and she has published it herself...and done a fine job.

The Hills Know is a haunted house story that uses the tropes of the genre and classic plot devices in an original way. The writing is engaging and the characters believable to point of feeling that there might just be a touch of autobiography...a disturbing thought in view of how the tale unrolls.

The story starts with Mel and her husband, Jamie, moving from California to West Virginia after Mel inherits a house. They change jobs, move in, and start renovations...and Mel unexpectedly turns pregnant. This, the reader will immediately understand, becomes the key to what follows. Like I said, not an original premise, but Breanna owns her story and tells it well, weaving the idiosyncracies of the setting into the tale and exploiting local folklore and customs to often chilling effect. This is a brooding ghost story that turns the screw little by little, building the tension slowly until we reach a dramatic climax, and there are passages that will give the reader a shiver or two.

Having recently read Ghost Story by Peter Straub and A Stir of Echoes by Richard Matheson, I finished The Hills Know without a doubt in my mind that this is a far more successful example of the genre than those two famous novels. We sympathise with Mel and Jamie; her struggle to work out what is happening now and has happened in the past, and his patience as he bears the full brunt of the physical and psychological changes she is going through. The setting, characters, and particularities of West Virginia (not that I've ever even been to the States) carried the plot and added to its mystical flavour and infusing a contemporary story with colonial traditions of witchcraft and superstition. A short, well-crafted, and spooky novel for fans of ghost stories.

[deidra · Rating 5 out of 5]

speaking as a card-carrying member of Appalachia, we're a peculiar brood of people. we wave at folks we don't know, consider a funeral a high social event and no matter if you've lived on the creek for 20 years, if you moved far off from there, you're still a Yankee and we still need to keep an eye on ye.

The Hills Know by Breanna Leslie is a tale of a couple moving from California to the wilds of West Virginia after the wife inherits a house when her mother dies. now, moving in itself, is a horror story. the last time we moved, i told my husband i would burn the place down before i would go through the sheer maniacal cruelty of packing, tugging, lugging and losing boxes from one house to another.
Ms. Leslie has taken a familiar theme--a ghost story--and woven a beautiful, flowing tale that sinks into your bones, waiting breathlessly to discover if the couple will survive the hidden secrets of their new home.

i especially appreciated the care taken with the contrast between the two lifestyles. i felt like Ms. Leslie nailed it because i could see folks from my circle in the West Virginian characters, their voices and mannerisms. i really loved that.

and i must add, i read this book on Audible, my first time in doing so. it was an entirely different experience and i found myself, waiting impatiently for the next sentence to be read. i wonder if this is what it felt like in radio's golden age.

anyway, The Hills Know was a lovely experience which i know is an odd thing to say. to be sure, there were plenty of chilling moments and a great ghost story at the heart of it, but i was so invested in the main characters', in wanting them to succeed, that i was more concerned about that. isn't that the sign of a brilliantly written book?

5 out 5 stars
highly recommended.

[Lisa Robbins · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the premise of this book. Move to an inherited house sight unseen, only to find that it's haunted. It was well written with great imagery. My issue with this book is the main characters were completely unlikeable. Jamie seemed like kind of a jerk who made big life decisions without taking to Mel first. Mel was annoying, stubborn, and made a lot of bad choices. For a woman who has suffered multiple miscarriages, I'm surprised pregnant Mel drank cup after cup of coffee since caffeine isn't recommended during pregnancy. Most people I know who have had miscarriages take every precaution they can to limit risk to the baby. I realize that characters making bad decisions are key in many horror and suspense books, but I had a hard time caring if bad things happened to these characters. I thought the narrator did a good job, but the audio quality was inconsistent. Some chapters were fine, some sounded echoey, some had weird background noises. It was a little distracting, but overall the narration was good.

[Brandon Wills · Rating 5 out of 5]

"It was like the hills knew what had happened. The birds fell silent, and the gentle rushing of the stream melted away."

From the beginning, this story was filled with mysteries and riddles. I found myself guessing, going back and reading previous pages, trying to answer these for myself. In the end, my guesses were wrong, and I loved it.
This book was a slow-burner, and there's nothing wrong with that. If a story develops correctly, and the climax runs into you like a train, that is a fantastic, satisfying conclusion to the time we invest in a story. This is how I felt this book was.
The story starts off with a couple deciding to move to an inherited property in West Virginia after some aspects of their life suddenly change, thinking they would be better off having a brand new start, but then odd things start happening around their home.
Questions mount, mysteries abound, and tragedy is woven into a heartbreaking tale.
I recommend this for anyone who enjoys a good, old-fashioned haunted house story.
4.5/5!

[Sea Caummisar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gothic fiction/ old haunted estate/ mystery.
I don't read too many paranormal stories, but I have to admit that this one has some spookiness to it.
After her mother's death, Mel finds out she has inherited a house that she never knew existed. Forced by life troubles to move there, the married couple faces larger problems they would have never dreamt.
The author did a great job of slowly unraveling the house's mysterious past.
The house is in a rural area w/ no internet or cell service. That would be a hard no for me. I could never live there.,.. but this book almost romanticized the idea of disconnecting from our devices. This book did make me realize how much more productive I could be if I stayed off the internet. Anyway, that's just my own personal side note from this read.
This would be a great read for people who like ghost stories and haunted estates

[Desiree · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not finish. It wasn't terrible but I just continued to find myself bored and finally had to put it down around 3/4 of the way through.

The story in general had a lot of potential and the execution could have been better. None of the characters had much depth. The relationship between Mel and Jamie was pretty toxic. In my opinion there was too much mental and emotional abuse for either of them to seem as happy as they were which was pretty annoying.

There was an attempt at suspense but that fell short. The "horror" was very tame and there wasn't really any mystery. When there was an opportunity for suspense and mystery everything was basically spelled out right then and there.

As much as I hate to DNF a book, I just couldn't continue with this one. I absolutely will not pick it back up for a second attempt and I probably would only recommend it to ages 12-17.....maybe.

[Beatrix Starling · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book if you love hauntings, it's got all the usual stuff: family moves into a new home, there's a baby involved, then things go bump in the night.... And of course nothing is exactly as it first seems.
Really talented writing, and the audiobook was well read.
I would love to be surprised though with a different angle, i would have loved this to stand out more with some surprises i didn't expect, but it didn't take away from the fact that it was a solid haunted book that should be on top of your haunted list as it's well deserving.

[Amy Porter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went into this book blind and was not at all disappointed!

This is haunted house story that will have you on edge for sure! I have to ask myself what is with people inheriting houses from dead relatives and not expecting things to go bad, have they not watched any horror movies? :)

This book is a thriller in all ways, edge of your seat, creepy house, creepy small town, creepy woods, oh and ghosts!!

This is a top of my haunted house reads for 2023 and I am so glad I read it!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

[Yvette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apart from some confusion at the start of the book which made it unclear how they come to be in possession of the house and one instance in which the actions of the couple did not make any sense at all, this was a very good read for me.
The solution felt a bit rushed and could have been drawn out a bit more or more slowly revealed, but the book had the correct vibe for me.
Following this author from now on!

[Brianna Raine · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I have read/listened to this year! I now need a paperback version to add to my shelf. The atmosphere built well and has everything I look for in a horror book. Ghosts, haunted house, witches, scary well (I have a fear of wells lol) a sitting on the edge of your seat intensity. If you like paranormal horror, this is a must read!

[LumberJoshTV · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't want to be too hard on this book because it was a decent read. It just felt rushed. I wanted to settle in with these characters but it felt more like an outline than a fully fleshed out story. It wasn't great but it was good enough for me to see what else this author writes because writers typically get better over time.

[Clark Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Haunted House Story

This book by Breanna Leslie is a good one. I had no idea what it was about when I downloaded it to my Kindle. It was recommended to me on Facebook.

There isn’t too much I wish to relate here. Read it for yourself. I did, and while it had very little if any gore, I thought it was a good horror book.

[Kiirstyannee.reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Breanna Leslie for the audiobook of this book! This was such a gripping read and from the very start I was HOOKED. A super quick read / listen it has all the creepy vibes and some surprises along the way. Definitely recommend this one as both an audiobook or ebook/physical because the narrator was excellent and the story was very entertaining!

[Emalee Plumley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Storyline! Needs More Editing.

This was a great book, but I noticed a lot of grammatical and spelling errors throughout. I recommend based on the storyline, though, and this book had a interesting one that kept me reading. It doesn’t get too slow even at it’s slow points, and the ending (last line) literally brought tears to my eyes.

[Hope Mosley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been on my TBR for the longest time. I’ve been in a horror/thriller mood lately and this book did not disappoint. Classic ghost story/haunted house! It kept me guessing until the last few chapters. If you’re looking for a ghost story with a happy ending this is it. I really enjoyed this story and am rating it 5/5 stars!!!

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just ok for me - didn’t overly care about any of the characters and their choices were continuously questionable.
Jamie seemed to be a bit of a jerk, making big life decisions without discussing with his wife!