The House Next Door
By Anne Rivers Siddons

     If there was ever a horror book worthy of being re-released, it is The House Next Door by Anne Rivers Siddons. Originally published in 1978, Siddons wrote her sole horror novel, although she has written many other novels, many set in the South’s “low country.” The House Next Door is just as special as Siddons’ other works, although this book is especially unique because it is Siddons’ sole venture into the horror genre.

      A married and childless (but happy) couple, Colquitt and Walter Kennedy live in an wonderful, upper-class neighborhood. They worked hard to be able to afford to live in such a substantial neighborhood, and they have made friends with various neighbors on the streets over the years. Their content existence is uprooted one day when construction of a large, contemporary home begins in the vacant, wooded lot next door to theirs. The construction is a new beginning next door, but for the Kennedy’s, it marks the end of a period of blessed solitude

     Colquitt and Walter gradually adapt to the construction noises and they have to admit, the new home is beautiful. They meet their new neighbors and even become friendly with the architect of the house next door—a red-bearded young man named Kim. As the new neighbors slowly begin to settle into their home, a series of isolated, disturbing events plague them. It appears that the house next door brings out the worst that live there and it seems to “feed” on its residents by taking whatever they deem most precious. It seems that whoever lives in the home is doomed.

      The House Next Door is a first-rate horror novel and it is told through the perspective of the next door neighbors, the Kennedy’s. The characters are well-drawn and interesting and there is an even flow of suspense throughout the entire book. It is a page-turner that has a shocking and satisfying ending. One of the most unique elements of the story was that most “haunted houses” always seem to have a history of sorts or they are very old house, or both. Siddons takes her plot in a different direction as the house next door is brand new and it is a contemporary design. I thought that was a unique, fresh take on an often used plot, and The House Next Door is a worthy read for many fiction fans, especially those who enjoy horror and thrillers.