The home that belonged to Angela Toussaint’s late grandmother is so beloved that townspeople in Sacajawea, Washington, call it the Good House. But that all changes one summer when an unexpected tragedy takes place behind its closed doors . . . and the Toussaint’s family history – and future – is dramatically transformed. Angela has not returned to the Good House since her son, Corey, died there two years ago. But now, Angela is finally ready to return to her hometown and go beyond the grave to unearth the truth about Corey’s death. Could it be related to a terrifying entity Angela’s grandmother battled seven decades ago? And what about the other senseless calamities that Sacajawea has seen in recent years? Has Angela’s grandmother, an African American woman reputed to have “powers” put a curse on the entire community? A thrilling exploration of secrets, lies, and divine inspiration, The Good House will haunt readers long after its chilling conclusion.
Book Review Blog: The Good House
I went into The Good House with high expectations based on the positive reviews it has garnered on reputable internet outlets and book forums. I was not familiar with author Tananarive Due and because of the good things I’ve about The Good House, she was quickly picked up on my radar. It was a similar experience I had with author Ania Ahlborn that prompted me to pick up this, my first foray into Due. I was in the mood to read something frightening, and from what I’ve read, The Good House was the way to go.
Angela Toussaint, an attorney from L.A., comes back to her family home “the good house” to celebrate the 4th of July when a sudden, and inexplicable, tragedy occurs sending Angela’s life spiraling into a whirlwind. But, this event is only the beginning, and soon the people of Sacajawea, Washington seem to befall a spell that renders them violent, causing turmoil to those around them, even to their loved ones.
This snippet is promising, and I would be hard-pressed to say that I was not excited to bury myself in this book. To say that the author, Tananarive Due’s writing is good would be selling her short as her writing is impeccable. She had me from the very beginning, as I felt intertwined with the lives and misgivings of her characters. Like a daytime TV soap, I yearned for the drama, and I wanted more. But, also like said TV soap, sometimes the TV producers don’t know when to quit while they are ahead and eventually run the show to the ground.
This is not to say The Good House was a bad read. On the contrary, because of Due’s writing, I wanted to keep reading. But, unfortunately, the book started to lose the pizzazz it had in its first half. I began to lose interest and, frankly, I think it would have worked slightly better if it were more compacted and a little shorter. At 496 pages, you have your work cut out for you if you plan on tackling this one.
Due brings a lot of elements into The Good House that make for an intriguing read: family tragedy, culture, religious beliefs, relationships, a rising superstar she represents after pursuing an alternate career after the tragedy, a missing dog, an old flame, voodoo (pronounced voudou – I learned this from the book) and the supernatural. There is a lot thrown into the pot and a lot to take in and often found myself being through left, right, up and down with everything that was going on I even almost lost sight of where this was all taking place and for some reason, I thought everything was taking place in New Orleans, Louisiana what with all the talk of voodoo, curses, magic, spells and all.
In the end, for me, it was too much for me to enjoy as I felt like I had to work hard to stay interested in the story. Again, Due’s writing is nearly flawless, but it was not enough for me to thoroughly enjoy the book. Yes, she had me in the beginning, and I was all in until I wasn’t anymore. Again, perhaps if it were slightly shorter I would have enjoyed it a bit more because, to be frank, there were too many parts that dragged.