The Place Where They Buried Your Heart

By: Christina Henry

Narrated by: Leiana Dooley

A woman must confront the evil that has been terrorizing her street since she was a child in this gripping haunted house novel from the national bestselling author of The House That Horror Built and Good Girls Don’t Die.

On an otherwise ordinary street in Chicago, there is a house. An abandoned house where, once upon a time, terrible things happened. The children who live on this block are told by their parents to stay away from that house. But of course, children don’t listen. Children think it’s fun to be scared, to dare each other to go inside.

Jessie Campanelli did what many older sisters do and dared her little brother Paul. But unlike all the other kids who went inside that abandoned house, Paul didn’t return. His two friends, Jake and Richie, said that the house ate Paul. Of course adults didn’t believe that. Adults never believe what kids say. They thought someone kidnapped Paul, or otherwise hurt him. They thought Paul had vanished in a way that was ordinary, explainable.

The disappearance of her little brother broke Jessie’s family apart in ways that would never be repaired. Jessie grew up, had a child of her own, kept living on the same street where the house that ate her brother sat, crouched and waiting. And darkness seemed to spread out from that house, a darkness that was alive—alive and hungry.

Critic reviews

“The Place Where They Buried Your Heart is an ode to all facets of a haunted house tale. Henry masterfully layers childhood nostalgia and complex family relationships with genuine chills and eerie thrills. I was equal parts moved and terrified. Read this under the covers with a very strong flashlight!" - Erin A. Craig, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Thirteenth Child

“The Place Where They Buried Your Heart is a cosmic blast of haunted house horror in which Christina Henry explores the complex bonds of families—both the ones we lose and the ones we gain—and how those relationships can be found in the most unexpected of places. It’s a story about monsters, and murder, and loss, but it’s also a story about the ferocity of love, and the improbable ways it can capture our hearts.” - Philip Fracassi, author of Boys in the Valley

"An excellent, original haunted house story, but its truly unsettling magic is the way it delves into the ability of the past to haunt an entire neighborhood, across generations."
—Christopher Golden, New York Times bestselling author of The Night Birds and Road of Bones

First horror story I've enjoyed in a long time

This was a page turner or an ear bender. It's engaging and different and interesting. I definitely recommend it!

Adult Monster House

The marketing is actually true for once! I have a few issues with the story, but ultimately really enjoyed it.

Found this story fascinating!!

The story turned out fascinating! Liked the characters well and how they changed. The relationship between Jessie and her mother seemed so realistic and true. The changes in Jessie’s life was interesting and worth following through out the story. Definitely should read for the haunted house story.

Usually a Henry fan

I really really enjoyed Near the Bone so I figured I'd give this a shot but..ugh. I really disliked this book. The characters were unlikeable and had no substance and therefore were unrelatable. The story and the "rules" of the house seemed to just arrive and change willy nilly whenever they wanted the story to make sense. The ending was SO anticlimactic. All of the events build up to this small encounter that seems to be resolved in like 1 hour with barely any opposition at all. The whole story reads like a cheesy campfire story or a bad episode of Are You Afraid of The Dark (trust me though I love ayaotd!) I don't know if it was just the narration but it felt like a 12yo retelling their first scary story. I'm not trying to be so harsh but I'm just surprised because like the title says I usually like Henry.