ARC Review: If I Stopped Haunting You by Colby Wilkens

If I stopped Haunting You is the debut novel by Colby Wilkens, and is a rather unique pairing of romcom and horror.

I want to begin by saying that I did like this book, not as much as I had hoped, but enough that I would give this author another try.

I liked the discussion about the struggle BIPOC authors face in the publishing industry and the issues they face in trying to tell the stories they want to tell versus the stories publishers want them to tell.

The mix of horror and romance worked better than I might have thought, however the quick change between the characters being in terror, and making out against a wall in a haunted castle were startling and seemed out of place.

The romance trope in this book was enemies to lovers, but Penelope’s hate for Neil seemed over the top for what she perceived he had done. I could see her being upset with his choices, but I thought she should have been more understanding about why he’d been forced to make the choices he had. Also, it seems like Neil did not have a reciprocal hate for Penelope until after the scene from the prologue.

On the horror side, there were definitely some creepy moments in the story and the author did a good job in making the castle come alive. However, I felt like there was something missing in the search for why the castle was haunted, and how Neil and Penelope solved the mystery.

The side characters of Daniela and Laszlo seemed superfluous to the story. It might have been better if they had just arranged for Penelope and Neil to end up at the castle alone together, because their presence really didn’t add much to the story.

I also felt like the additions of excerpts from the various published books of each of the characters did not add any value to the story, and wondered why they were included.

All in all, the story was enjoyable. I would recommend it to lovers of light horror, and spicy romance.

If I Stopped Haunting You will be available on October 15 2024.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.