Hell House

Posted on 28th November 2008No Responses

Cover of Hell House

Rolf Rudolph Deutsch is going die. But when Deutsch, a wealthy magazine and newpaper publisher, starts thinking seriously about his impending death, he offers to pay a physicist and two mediums, one physical and one mental, $100,000 each to establish the facts of life after death.

Dr. Lionel Barrett, the physicist, accompanied by the mediums, travel to the Belasco House in Maine, which has been abandoned and sealed since 1949 after a decade of drug addiction, alcoholism, and debauchery. For one night, Barrett and his colleagues investigate the Belasco House and learn exactly why the townfolks refer to it as the Hell House.

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Creepy…
I’m a sucker for good horror stories and “Hell House” really hit the spot. It is truly one of the most entertaining and fun horror novels I have ever read. It is a book that knows what it is; “Hell House” does not take itself too seriously and stays on task. Its simple, direct and reads quickly and easily.

Four people are sent on an expedition to explore Balasco House, which has been called “the Mount Everest of haunted houses”. The notorious terror that has taken place within its walls has offered the house a more appropriate name: Hell House.

It didn’t take long for me to get goose bumps while reading this book. Richard Matheson so effectively built up the atmosphere and tension in Belasco House that it only took a rocking chair seemingly rocking by itself to seriously creep me out.

The most intriguing part of the book, in my opinion, is the sordidly morbid and vile history of Belasco House. It is certainly not the typical simple or cliched history you might find in present day Hollywood movies; Hell House’s past is much darker and macabre then one might expect. Matheson has a frighteningly vivid imagination that knows no bounds.

The characters in “Hell House” are not particularly memorable or overtly important. They have enough humanity, however, to facilitate the necessary conflicts that unfold and to make the reader care whether or not they meet their doom in the dark halls and dusty rooms of Belasco House.

The most engaging character, of course, is Hell House itself. It takes many forms and keeps Dr. Barret, Mrs. Barret, Florence Tanner and Benjamin Fischer guessing about its true identity and the source of its power. Are the victims of Emeric Belasco trapped in Hell House, forced to terrorize those who dare enter the front door? Is Belasco’s son involved in the haunting, or a tormented soul not permitted to continue on to the next life? Is Belasco a being so powerful he can manifest your deepest fears before your eyes? Most importantly, will any of them be able to survive a force that knows their darkest desires and primary weaknesses?

Richard Matheson is a master story teller, but one gets the feeling he may have rushed through this book. There were times I found myself chuckling at the simplicity of the writing and wondering if Matheson misplaced his thesaurus while writing it. He seems to have a tendency to reuse verbs adjectives to the point of distraction.

Other than a few minor grammatical and syntax annoyances, “Hell House” is a lot of fun to read and will likely stick with you long after you’ve finished. The characters, while stubborn and arrogant at times, play an important role. Matheson was careful to use them to effectively move the story along yet make sure none overshadowed Belasco House, the most important character of all. This is a magnificent book and I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys feeling their hair stand up on the back of their neck.

3 Stars When curiosity kills more than a cat
I picked this up because I adore haunted house stories, they’re a nice juicy break when I’m in the mood for something wicked and I was curious about it after hearing everyone always recommending it as the scariest haunted house book ever. Well, it’s not the scariest, in the least, I was disappointed that it never chilled me but it was entertaining and it didn’t shy away form the usual formula these novels follow.

Abandoned and left to decay, the Belasco house is called the Hell House because of horrific and despicable acts that took place there in the early 1900′s leaving the building enveloped in a thick, cloying coat of black aura and seeping negative energy. Years ago some very indulgent and immoral parties took place in the once great house but overtime the madness got so big that the energy couldn’t be contained and everyone that indulged there disappeared and was never heard form again. All the expeditions that were send to demystify the bizarre happenings have turned up dead, all but one man, Benjamin Franklin Fischer, and twenty years later he is back at the dark, heavy doors with a new team and perhaps a new way of battling the demons of his past. Accompanied by Dr. Barrett, a physicist and his wife Edith along with Florence Tanner who’s a medium, the small group gets a salary form a dying millionaire and is send to prove any facts they can about survival, mainly about surviving death since the Hell House is anything but abandoned even thought no one dares to live there. Each character has his and her own reason for wanting to prove something, but not everyone is as passionate about saving any souls form the house as Florence, whose extreme openness makes me vulnerable form the start. It isn’t long before everyone starts bickering about what really haunts the house when the manifestations grow form eerie to violent and intense. Tour of the house reveals perverse and perhaps dirty photos and art that give it a menacing feel and it touches the female characters as they have some major issues with their own $exuality. The spirit of Emeric Belasco is not only always present but those who dined and partied in his house also seem present, keen on keeping the new guests trapped forever.

Overall I liked the story, it was interesting and had a nice feel to it, but it wasn’t very scary, I enjoyed that the haunting started manifesting rather quickly, there was no beating around the bush but I felt that the characters fell a little flat and were slightly underdeveloped. The most annoying was the medium; Florence Tanner. She was a necessary vehicle for unleashing the evil but she was so susceptible and weak that she made me angry, always putting everyone else in danger with her actions. In the end we were supposed to care about her but I found it hard, she disagreed with the doctor and was always protected by Fischer, why, I don’t know, it was never really clear and the weirdness between the doctors and his wife was also suddenly almost uncomfortable. An older couple who never lie close and are never tender, only polite and professional towards each other suddenly have issues in a haunted house that is famous for it’s perversions, hmmm big surprise there…can you guess what happens? Another annoying bit – after the scares, and beating and blood the characters kept coming back to the house, I swear the book almost begged for revolving doors because they just couldn’t stay away…dead bodies, possessions, flying tables, who cares, lets all sit at the table and finish our pork chops and peas then wash it down with coffee, never mind that half way though someone can be killed……It’s almost as if the ego to solve the mystery was bigger than everyone’s desire to salvage what they had left and live. I did like one part of the ending, when a chunk of the mystery is finally revealed, it was a little kick in the gut and I said out loud ” No way!” and it certainly added to the book but it didn’t make it a perfect horror novel. I say read it, enjoy and don’t get too annoyed, and I will certainly read more of Matheson, his ideas are interesting and he’s a talent in the literary world.

- Kasia S.

5 Stars Definitive Haunted House Novel
After reading Hell House, I immediately ordered all three volumes of Richard Matheson’s Collected works. It is hands-down the best haunting novel I’ve read, and possibly the best horror novel. Steven King often refers to Matheson as his main influence – and it is abundantly clear why when you read this book. I think I can safely say that The Shining, Pet Semetary, 1408, Rose Red and others would not exist without this book having lead the way (and I think it is better than each of those, including Kubrick’s Shining). Coldheart Canyon is an excellent horror novel by Clive Barker – and I feel it was also very heavily influenced by Hell House.

Almost each scene begins with the characters sliding their legs out of beds in a house regarded as `the Mount Everest of Haunted Houses’. You come to feel that sensation of sheets on your legs – and it’s a real gateway into sharing the rest of their experiences, both physically and psychologically. I don’t want to ruin any surprises for anyone – but this book is the real deal. The images linger with you when/if you go to bed at night. It triggered a couple very late reading sessions – I couldn’t put it down (clich? but true).

It has been a while since I have not wanted a book to end – since I mourned the final pages and losing touch with well realized characters in a story that never grew (at least a little) stale. I got that feeling in this case, and I’m sure it’s a book I’ll reread. Spread the word: Matheson is genius. He is going onto my short list of favorites somewhere beside Ray Bradbury and above Steven King.

2 Stars Hill House was creepy, Hell House is schlocky
A friend gave me this one a few years ago, telling me it was “the sickest thing he had ever read.” I finally picked it up and read it today (yes, in one day, it is that short) and I understand why he said that, because titillating nuggets of Marquis de Sade-style sacrilege and perversity are the centerpiece of the book. Even though the sadistic sexuality is described in mercifully elliptical terms, Matheson still tells enough to make you imagine it, and it created a very uncomfortable squirmy sensation .. at least for me. Some reviewers have described it as “erotic” but I thought it was sickening .. overtly, grossly misogynistic.

The pornographic shock value is this book’s only power. It isn’t scary, not even slightly. The “haunting” aspect of it is laughable. It plays like a by-the-numbers Hollywood “frightfest” that throws a bunch of meaningless special effects at the audience to distract from the fact that the story makes no sense and the characters are as shallow as cardboard cutouts. Dr. Barret was ludicrous as a “scientist” and nobody’s behavior had any sort of logical consistency. One minute they’re being exposed to mind-numbing horror, and the next minute they’re acting as if everything is fine. If the house just tried to kill me, I wouldn’t be putting on my pajamas and getting into bed. I would be trying to get the heck OUT of there. This book had potential .. the backstory about “Evil Emeric” Belasco was tantalizingly horrific (he’s like a combination of the Marquis de Sade and Aliester Crowley) but it reads like Matheson wrote it in a hurry; he just wasn’t trying. I feel disappointed and a little DIRTY after reading _Hell House._

Shirley Jackson’s masterpiece _The Haunting of Hill House_ might not have all the salacious thrills that jaded modern horror fans crave, but it was much more finely crafted and much more MATURE than this. At least Jackson’s characters were believable and her ghostly phenomena were more realistic (based on actual accounts of genuine hauntings, not Hollywood movie versions). I recommend Hill House, but Hell House is not worth visiting unless you have no other way to waste an afternoon.

5 Stars Not for the weak of soul
“Welcome to my house, I’m delighted you could come. I am certain you will find your stay here most illuminating. It is regrettable I cannot be with you, but I had to leave before your arrival. Do not let my physical absence disturb you, however. Think of me as your unseen host and believe that, during your stay here, I shall be with you in spirit.” ~ Emeric Belasco

Belasco House…Hell House…within these dark passages and cavernous rooms resides the residue of pure, unadulterated evil.

This book begins with the new owner of Belasco House assembling a crew to determine what, if anything, haunts this tomb-like mansion. The crew consists of Dr. Lionel Barrett (a scientist), his wife Edith, Benjamin Franklin Fischer (a physical medium whom had experienced the house previously), and Florence Tanner (a mental medium with a profound religious faith). We accompany the group on the third attempt to discover the source of ghostly disturbances within the house. The first two attempts resulted in the murder, suicide, or mental deterioration of the investigators involved…all those except Fischer that is.

Our introduction to the House is through brief glimpses as the thick, eerie fog surrounding the mansion and Bastard Bog clears. The tour through the house leaves us chilled to the bone. As we walk room to room, corridor to corridor, the foreboding feelings steadily increase. These walls have witnessed all manner of unspeakable events.

The House is dark and angry and soon begins its attack on its unwelcome guests. The House exploits the weaknesses that reside deep within one’s soul and employs those weaknesses to devour and utterly destroy the host of such vulnerabilities. Can anyone truly survive the horrors of Hell House?

Matheson is a true literary genius. He swiftly seizes the reader and propels you into a sinister world of appalling sexual exploitations, atrocious physical cruelties, and sickening mental molestations.

Hell House is one of the greatest haunted house stories I have encountered. This book is an older book, with its first publication in 1971. However, its age does not diminish its content or reduce its affect on those who face the challenge of Hell House itself.

Though the book draws you in and confronts you head on, do not look to the movie, The Legend of Hell House, to give you the same frightful sensations. The film was released in 19-seventy…something…and was not produced for the zombie-movie generation.

Hell House is not a book for you of weak character. Read it only if your soul is stout and sturdy enough to withstand the atrocities which dwell between these eerie covers.

“All your needs have been provided for, nothing has been overlooked. Go where you will, and do what you will – these are the cardinal precepts of my home. Feel free to function as you choose. There are no responsibilities, no rules. `Each to his own device’ shall be the only standard here. May you find the answer that you seek. It is here, I promise you. And now..,auf Wiedersehen.” ~ Emeric Belasco.

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