{"id":21653,"date":"2024-11-16T01:00:33","date_gmt":"2024-11-16T05:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/?p=21653"},"modified":"2025-08-23T17:00:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-23T21:00:09","slug":"book-the-dolls-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-the-dolls-house\/","title":{"rendered":"The Doll&#8217;s House"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"book-3206\" class=\"bdb-book-info\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book_thedollshouse.png?fit=250%2C375&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"The Doll&#039;s House\" class=\"alignright\"\/><strong>Title:<\/strong> The Doll's House<br \/><strong>Author:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/author\/lisa-unger\/\">Lisa Unger<\/a><br \/><strong>First Published:<\/strong> <span content=\"2024-09-12\">September 12, 2024<\/span><br \/><strong>Publisher:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/publisher\/amazon-original-stories\/\">Amazon Original Stories<\/a><br \/><strong>Pages:<\/strong> 98<br \/><strong>Genre:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/genre\/horror\/\">Horror<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/genre\/mystery\/\">Mystery<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/genre\/paranormal\/\">Paranormal<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/genre\/short-stories\/\">Short Stories<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/genre\/thriller\/\">Thriller<\/a><br \/><strong>Format:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/format\/ebook\/\">Ebook<\/a><br \/><strong>Source:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/source\/kindle-unlimited\/\">Kindle Unlimited<\/a><br \/><strong>Rating:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/book-database\/rating\/3.5\/\"><span class=\"bdb-font-awesome-star-wrap\"><i class=\"fas fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fas fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fas fa-star\"><\/i><i class=\"fas fa-star-half-alt\"><\/i><i class=\"far fa-star\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/217442094-the-doll-s-house\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/addtogoodreads.png?ssl=1\" align=\"left\" border=\"0\"\/><\/a><br \/><br \/><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong> <p>When Jules first meets the handsome artist Kirin, she\u2019s still mourning her husband\u2019s death, but a fairytale romance soon sweeps her off her feet. Now she and her daughter Scout are moving out of the city and into Kirin\u2019s once-lonely mansion. He\u2019s thoughtfully updated and adapted the home to match their personalities. But Scout is determined to keep her father\u2019s memory alive by rejecting the new life her mother and Kirin have spun for her.<\/p>\n<p>Scout\u2019s sullenness begins to fade, though, when she finds a beautiful handmade doll in one of the many empty rooms in the house. Kirin says that the doll belonged to his late sister and he\u2019d like Scout to have it. Scout\u2019s hopeful for a connection over their shared grief, but as she grows more curious about Kirin\u2019s sister, she can\u2019t escape the feeling that a danger lurks in the house\u2026and its gaze is fixed on her mother.<\/p>\n<strong>Get the Book:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YWigPE\" target=\"_blank\">Amazon<\/a>\r\n<hr \/><\/div>\t\t<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n\t\t\t{\n\t\t\t\t\"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\/\",\n\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Review\",\n\t\t\t\t\"datePublished\": \"2024-11-16T05:00:33+00:00\",\n\t\t\t\t\"description\": \"The Doll's House\",\n\t\t\t\t\"publisher\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Radical Dreamer\"\t\t\t\t},\n\t\t\t\t\"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/pastelgoth.net\\\/blog\\\/book-the-dolls-house\\\/\",\n\t\t\t\t\"itemReviewed\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Book\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"The Doll's House\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"author\": [\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t{\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Lisa Unger\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/pastelgoth.net\\\/blog\\\/book-database\\\/author\\\/lisa-unger\\\/\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t],\n\t\t\t\t\t\"isbn\": \"\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"numberOfPages\": 98,\n\t\t\t\t\t\"publisher\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Amazon Original Stories\"\t\t\t\t\t},\n\t\t\t\t\t\"image\": \"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/pastelgoth.net\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/book_thedollshouse.png?fit=250%2C375&ssl=1\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"datePublished\": \"2024-09-12T00:00:00+00:00\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.goodreads.com\\\/book\\\/show\\\/217442094-the-doll-s-house\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"genre\": \"Horror\"\t\t\t\t},\n\t\t\t\t\"author\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"name\": \"Jamie\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/pastelgoth.net\\\/blog\\\/\"\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t, \"reviewRating\": {\n\t\t\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Rating\",\n\t\t\t\t\t\"ratingValue\": 3.5,\n\t\t\t\t\t\"bestRating\": 5\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t\n<h2>Review<\/h2>\n<p><strong>The Doll&#8217;s House<\/strong> is an interesting little novella that straddles the line between horror and mystery thriller with a dash of paranormal. The story is told from the dual POVs of a mother and daughter, Jules and Scout, as they grapple with their grief over the loss of Doug, Jules&#8217; husband and Scout&#8217;s father. The story begins at the start of their &#8220;new life&#8221; as they move in with Jules&#8217; new beau, Kirin. I enjoyed the characters in this story and found the discussions of grief palpable, especially Scout, whose experiences mirrored much of my own. I found myself highlighting plenty of passages in the book and thought that the mother-daughter relationship was developed well.<\/p>\n<p>I was surprised but appreciated how grounded this novella was in the present day, particularly over the inclusion of AI and smart homes, which added an element of unease to the story. The dolls were also creepy but a bit under-utilized. There were a few parts I found a bit cheesy (anime eyes!?), and the mystery is a bit predictable but the book was overall enjoyable. I just wish that the book could have been longer to flesh out some of the weaker aspects of the story.<\/p>\n<p>This is the longest story that I&#8217;ve read by Lisa Unger, having sampled two other shorts featured on Amazon&#8217;s original story collections, and my favorite so far. It has ended up being a bit of a redemption read for me, as I felt only lukewarm about the other stories I had read, and I&#8217;d like to pick up one of her full-length novels to see if they would work better for me.<\/p>\n<h2>Quote<\/h2>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;It\u2019s not really <em>hate<\/em>, though. It\u2019s a childish <strong>rage<\/strong> mingled with <em>desperate love<\/em> and a <strong>deep disappointment<\/strong> that you\u2019ve turned out to be a <strong>human<\/strong> full of flaws and <em>bad decisions<\/em>.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<h2>Content Warnings<\/h2>\n<span class=\"ubb-spoiler\"><a class=\"ubb-view-spoil\">View Spoiler &raquo;<\/a><span style=\"display: none;\" class=\"ubb-thespoil\">Dead Parent, Murder, Suicide, Violence <a class=\"ubb-hide-spoil\" style=\"cursor: hand; cursor: pointer;\">&laquo; Hide Spoiler<\/a><\/span><\/span>\n<h2>About the Author<\/h2>\n<div class=\"ubb-about-author\">\n<h3>About Lisa Unger<\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/author_lisaunger.png?fit=200%2C200&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignleft ubb-about-author-photo\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/author_lisaunger.png?w=200&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/author_lisaunger.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/author_lisaunger.png?resize=75%2C75&amp;ssl=1 75w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Lisa Unger is a New York Times and internationally bestselling author. With books published in twenty-six languages and millions of copies sold worldwide, she is widely regarded as a master of suspense. Her new release is CONFESSIONS ON THE 7:45, a Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee.<\/p>\n<p>Unger\u2019s critically acclaimed books have been named on \u201cBest Book\u201d lists from the Today show, Good Morning America, Entertainment Weekly, People, Amazon, Goodreads, and many others. She has been nominated for, or won, numerous awards including the Hammett Prize, Macavity, Thriller Award, and Goodreads Choice. In 2019, she received two Edgar Award nominations, an honor held by only a few authors, including Agatha Christie. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, and Travel+Leisure. She lives on the west coast of Florida with her family.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ubb-author-links\"><a href=\"https:\/\/lisaunger.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Website<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/lisaunger.com\/blog\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Blog<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lisaunger\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Twitter<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/authorlisaunger\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Facebook<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/author\/show\/18445.Lisa_Unger\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Goodreads<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/47S3lca\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Amazon<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/launger\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Instagram<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCLrsCkHXr4FQjW3ktFCAZlA\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">YouTube<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Review The Doll&#8217;s House is an interesting little novella that straddles the line between horror and mystery thriller with a dash of paranormal. The story is told from the dual&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21655,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9],"tags":[70,3283,246,340,4642,309,403,1068,4498,4515],"book-author":[347],"book-illustrator":[],"book-series":[],"book-publisher":[],"book-genre":[],"book-source":[],"book-format":[],"class_list":["post-21653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-review","tag-american-literature","tag-creepy-dolls","tag-ghosts","tag-grief-and-loss","tag-grief-horror","tag-mother-and-daughter","tag-robots-and-ai","tag-serial-killers","tag-set-in-the-2020s","tag-smart-house","book-author-lisa-unger"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book_thedollshouse-header.png?fit=1080%2C540&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21653","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21653"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21653\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21815,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21653\/revisions\/21815"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21655"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21653"},{"taxonomy":"book-author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-author?post=21653"},{"taxonomy":"book-illustrator","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-illustrator?post=21653"},{"taxonomy":"book-series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-series?post=21653"},{"taxonomy":"book-publisher","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-publisher?post=21653"},{"taxonomy":"book-genre","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-genre?post=21653"},{"taxonomy":"book-source","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-source?post=21653"},{"taxonomy":"book-format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pastelgoth.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/book-format?post=21653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}