this is a really hard book to rate. i mean it's definitely a 'horror' book but there is nothing necessarily scary about it. the entire thing is vaguely unsettling, but not much really HAPPENS. and then it just ends in much the same way it began, so i'm left here without any real sense of resolution. (view spoiler)[and i feel like you are supposed to be surprised when it's revealed merricat poisoned the family instead of constance but i was just like sitting there like ...well duh. (hide spoiler)] also it is full of tropes that i think we are all kind of sick of today, but it was written some 50 years ago. so i feel like if i was someone reading this in 1962 i would definitely be a bit more impressed than i am reading it now in 2017. for the most part it was enjoyable though and i think i am going to check out some of jackson's other works.