I am an absolute sucker for a haunted house story, but PLAY NICE by Rachel Harrison -- in which the protagonist's mother dies, leaving behind a record of what she claimed was a haunting or possession of her and her three daughters -- takes everything I love about the genre and adds an emotional depth that's often lacking.

Harrison's easy-going prose lulls you into a false sense of security during the early stages of the novel, as we are convinced -- like our protagonist -- that the mother's memories of a haunting are exaggerated or played up. Playing with tropes and cliches in subtle and understated ways, Harrison gives us something that feels both familiar and surprising as we try to work out whether this story will end in blood and guts or something more unconventional. It is a story about belief -- in yourself, in our past, in the stories we hear -- and about coming to terms with the things we can't control both in the wider world and in our own families. And it's told at a beautiful and unsettling pace.

Like I say, I'm a sucker for a haunted house story, and PLAY NICE by Rachel Harrison may just be my new favourite!

Incredible. The MC grinded my gears but in a good way.
I love a haunted house story as well so this was top tier!

A cheeky haunted house story filled with family drama/trauma and an insufferable main character written so well, that it hindered my enjoyment of the book.

This book was so good!!!! I enjoyed reading it so much, it was one of those ones where you wanted to finish reading to see how it ended but I didn't want it to end.

The premise of a haunted house, being left to a trio of girls who seemingly have picture perfect lives grabbed my attention from the start.

The whole book was brilliant, but the writing was top notch, I felt genuine fear and anxiety while I was reading. I was on edge for the entire time.

Coupled with the book being written from Clio's POV, with the added snippets for Alex's book, it set the tone and atmosphere perfectly.

And the story itself???? EXCELLENT. I don't want to give anything away but it was so well done.

My only minor issue (and why I rated 4 stars) was that the ending felt kind of rushed, I felt like the rest of the book was so tense and drawn out (in a good way!!!!) and then the ending felt too quick, which was a shame.

On the whole though this was such a good book!

When her estranged mother dies and she inherits a purportedly haunted house, spoiled influencer Clio Barnes is forced to face her past.

Neither her two sisters nor her father want her to renovate the house. However, if none of her mother’s stories are true, what’s the harm?

Clio soon realises that the version of things which her family has perpetuated might not be the full truth. Was she really haunted as a five year old, or was her mother abusive and neglectful as she was always told?

Clio is about to find out what really happened all those years ago and what remains in her childhood home. It’s time to finally read her mother’s novel and to finally go home.

Clio is an obnoxious protagonist and the “notes” on the novel entries are hard to understand. However, the premise is an interesting one which is reminiscent of Riley Sager’s Home After Dark but with less sympathetic characters.

When Clio Barnes - stylist and queen of curated content - finds out her estranged mother has died, she reluctantly returns to the one place she swore she’d never go back to: the creepy childhood home where her mum once claimed a demon lived. Clio hasn’t seen her in 18 years, but a mysterious inheritance, a haunted house, and an annotated copy of her mother’s bizarre memoir might just force her to face the past… and maybe something else lurking in the walls.

What follows is a sharp, twisty blend of family drama and supernatural horror. Clio heads to the house planning to renovate and move on - but strange things begin to happen, and her mum’s old book starts to feel less like fiction and more like a warning. Is the house really haunted? Was her mother telling the truth? Or is Clio finally losing her grip?

I loved how this story balanced emotional tension with eerie, creeping dread.
You get:

🖤 Dysfunctional sisters with unresolved baggage
📖 A mysterious book full of truths (and lies)
💀 A big ol’ demon’y mystery
💬 A sassy, complicated main character
🪞 And a house that does not want to stay quiet

Clio wasn’t instantly likeable - she’s guarded, vain, emotionally shut down - but she really grew on me. Underneath the bravado is someone funny, messy, and unexpectedly real. Watching her figure out what’s true, what’s trauma, and what might be possessing her childhood home was a total ride.

If you’re into horror with heart, twisted family dynamics, and Rachel Harrison’s signature mix of humour and haunts - Play Nice totally delivers.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC!

This is an entertaining, fun story with a fresh twist on the old haunted house theme. A good pick for readers who prefer their horror to be on the lighter side with minimum frights and gore.

Wow I couldn’t put this down when the story really got going! What a gripping and creepy story, it had moments where I was genuinely scared reading it.

I loved Clio, the other two sisters were definitely needed for the story to be as good as it was, but no one could make me like Leda. All the characters were purposeful and interesting, they each added something to the story.

I really enjoyed the ending, I’m glad it went that way, it felt more realistic and believable.

Thank you NetGalley and Titan Books for the ARC.

This dark and witty novel is definitely one of a kind! It was unlike anything that I have ever read. It was not just about a haunted house, it was also about a multilayered dysfunctional family. The things that these characters said to one another made me laugh, which made the novel feel more realistic and balanced. I really enjoyed how this book is fast paced, but it explains everything at the same time. It has a strong build up and it ended up being well executed. While this book did give me some laughs, it also made me emotional, tense and sad. I loved the mystery vibes it had! It also came with horror, that slowly sneaks up on you! The twist that this book had, I did not see coming at all!

Overall this was enjoyable. The main character was difficult to like but I enjoyed the writing style and the cover is great! Would have liked it to be a bit more horror but I still enjoyed it. Thank you for the advance copy. 4.5 stars.

I've read every Rachel Harrison book and will read everything she writes until I die. I love, and have said that before, how she takes a trope or a supernatural being (ghost, vampire, demon, etc.) and builds this entire story around it with SUCH vivid characters, in SUCH a brilliant way. Play Nice is her first book that actually scared me a little bit and I had to stop reading one late evening. I will admit that I didn't like the main character, Clio, but I get that she was meant to be unlikeable. Loved the whole premise - the house, the mystery, the book; how the story unravelled and how it wrapped up. And there was a small, background character with a cat name Ophelia, just like mine! I'm already looking forward to Harrison's next novel, Kiss Slay Replay.

Rachel Harrison’s best book yet by FAR. Clio is such a fun protagonist to travel with, and anything to do with sisters is a real soft spot for me. I hope this is signalling a return to the glory days of Amityville-esque haunted house stories, but only if they’re done as brilliantly and as originally as this. I did think the few sex scenes felt a wee bit forced, but I did like the romance generally.

Clio has also inspired me to try to be better dressed? So thanks for that but my wallet is pissed.

Rachel Harrison never misses!
This is a great take on the classic haunted house tale in Rachel's signature 'voice' with flawed snarky characters and complex relationships.

It is uniquely modern blend of inner turmoil and external horror, and the emotional beats land just as hard as the spooky ones. Funny, sad, and a little unsettling in that classic Rachel Harrison way. The story felt fresh and weird (in a good way!), with sharp writing and characters that felt real and relatable. I loved the focus on friendship and grief—it added depth without weighing things down too much.

That said, I kind of wish it had gone a bit harder on the horror. It was eerie and creepy, but not quite as scary as I hoped. Still, the atmosphere, the voice, and the emotional moments totally worked for me. Harrison is so good at blending humor and horror with heart.


Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher eArc.

Another brilliant book from Rachel Harrison. I’ve loved everything I have read from this author. I read an eARC of this book on NetGalley so thank you to the author and the publisher.

This book appeared to be one thing at the start and then took a turn into something insightful, thought provoking and raw. There’s a real sense of challenging the narratives you’ve been given, finding the truth and growing up.

I couldn’t put this book down. I was completely invested in this haunted house tale. It’s genuinely creepy and unnerving and it’s hard to know what to trust as our main character finds out more about what’s been kept from her.

The main character was thoroughly entertaining. Clio is so brazenly self-involved, almost comedically so. But we learn more about her need for self-preservation as we (and she) discover the history of the house. She was a fascinating character because she’s inherently selfish, quite manipulative, fairly narcissistic, but I felt really protective of her as I learned more about her family. While she does use people to get what she wants, it’s very blatant and clean, the insidious lies and manipulation we learn about from others is a stark contrast.

The unravelling of the mystery of the house was brilliantly done. So eerie! I was utterly engrossed as we try to uncover the truth and watch the main character delve deeper to understand the childhood she doesn’t remember and the mother she’s lost contact with.

Loved this! Another amazing book from this author.

I went into Play Nice with mixed feelings. I've really enjoyed Rachel Harrison's previous work, but I often find that the promise of her blurbs doesn't quite match the execution. That being said, after reading the synopsis of Play Nice, I knew I had to read it.

The premise is brilliant, and the use of annotated novel entries was a highlight for me. I did not trust anyone in this book, including our protagonist, Clio, who I was fairly convinced must be possessed. Why else would someone be so consistently cruel and selfish without consequence? She bulldozes her way through relationships and every interaction with no self awareness.

I struggled to connect with any of the relationships in the book, particularly between Clio and Tommy, her father and between the three sisters. The forgiveness between characters came too quickly and too easily, making the emotional relationships feel unrealistic and a bit hollow.

That said, the horror elements really worked. I actually had to put the book down late at night because I was genuinely too spooked to keep going, a rare feat for a novel, and hats off to Harrison for that. The discomfort, the atmosphere, and the unease were all spot on.

If you're looking for something eerie, unsettling, and quick to get through, with shallow, unreliable characters and a creeping sense of dread, Play Nice is worth picking up.

Thank you to Titan Books via Netgalley for the ARC.

Absolutely amazing! Thank you so much for this advanced reader copy! My first 5 stars in over 3 months. Loved it, so creepy!! I had to actually stop reading alone late at night on one occasion! So fast paced, can't wait for more Rachel Harrison books!

For me, this was a clever blend of comedy and horror, Play Nice kept me guessing — is the demon real, or just the product of a messed-up childhood? A perfect balance between creepy and cosy. I actually laughed at myself for being too scared to sleep — even though this is definitely on the softer side of horror. Spooky fun with heart and humour.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Although the MC wasn't my favourite (I found her to be a little condescending of her sisters trauma around their childhood, like she was berating them for feeling sad) - the book still kept a grip on me. I was expecting some more scary parts but that didn't happen unfortunately.

Overall, it was enjoyable - I'll definitely look into more of Rachel's works in the future.

Play Nice- Rachel Harrison

I was sooooo looking forward to reading this and I straight up nearly passed out when I got approved for the ARC.

Rachel Harrison is one of my favourite authors and I absolutely love her writing style and this one lived up to my high expectations.

We follow the story of Clio- a popular influencer as she grapples demons from her past when she hears that her estranged mother has died. Fixing up the old family home seems like a great opportunity for instagrammable content and she is keen to learn more about her past while choosing wallpaper.

There were really strong characters here, and although I can’t say I loved Clio I did love this book.

Spooky, creepy and definitely haunted, I was desperate to find out how this one was going to pan out.

This one only lost points for me because I yearned for it to absolutely terrify me, and it didn’t quite do it.

Characters- 9
Atmosphere- 9
Writing Style- 9
Plot- 9
Intrigue-9
Readability -9
Enjoyment- 9
9/10