A Creepy Ghost Story: The Family Plot by Cherie Priest

It's been quite awhile since I've read a novel that creeped me out.  It was creepy  enough that I decided to only read it during the day, on my lunch hour in a busy hospital cafeteria. Either I'm getting soft, or it was a pretty darn good ghost story.

It was a pretty darn good ghost story.

I love Cherie Priest's writing.  Her Eden More series is about restless souls; usually from the Civil War Era.  She followed that up with her steampunk Clockwork Century novels; Boneshaker really put her on the radar of a lot of science fiction/fantasy fans.  I did read Boneshaker years ago, and did enjoy it quite a bit, but her gift, to me, lies in her ability to make you uneasy in the comfort of your own home.  And that is what The Family Plot did to me. 

Music City Salvage is on the cusp of financial ruin, and one big job will save the company.  Enter Augusta Withrow, the last member of the Withrow family.  For $40,000, Music City Salvage gets all the rights to her family's estate before it's torn down.  They have a week to claim everything they can from the house, the barn, and carriage house. 

Dahlia, Bobby, Gabe, and Brad travel to Chattanooga to the Withrow estate, up a badly maintained road on the side of a mountain.  What should be a routine salvage job is not so routine as eerie things start right from the get-go.  Is the house angry at its demise, or is there something else in the house that is really, really angry?  And why is Dahlia the center of all the attention?

One thing that annoys me about paranormal fiction is a super slow buildup in tension.  Don't get that here--it starts right away, and thankfully, Dahlia, Bobby, Gabe and Brad start comparing notes on what they've experienced pretty quickly.  Showering in any bathroom at the house is a very bad idea.  Going up to the attic by yourself?  Bad idea.  Trying to reason with the paranormal?  Bad idea.  It's a race to finish the job and get the hell out of dodge for this crew.  Things start escalating as they near the end of their time at the house and start putting the pieces together to discover what, exactly, happened in the Withrow home all those years ago that has made the place a nightmare for anyone who tries to make it a home.  

The end...well... it's one of those endings where you get to decide how it should end.  

Loved the mystery of the house; it truly was enough to make me uneasy, and I don't scare easily (Unless you're a bat. Then I freak out.  Ghosts?  No.).  Sometimes the evil that is done to people sets off emotions that don't die when our physical bodies stop.  Yikes.

Rating:  8/10 for a truly chilling story.  My appreciation for Cherie Priest's writing grows with every book she writes.  

Available in hardcover and e-book.    
 

Komentar

Posting Komentar

Postingan populer dari blog ini

The Book Charmer by Karen Hawkins

Gambar
Well, this book was charming for me. A quick read that hopefully is the beginning of a series of tales about the people in Dove Pond, North Carolina.  Karen Hawkins is a romance author, and when I first saw this book, I knew her name was familiar to me-probably because I shelved her romances for years while I worked at B&N! But, fear not. Yes there is some romance in this novel, but it most definitely isn't a romance novel. More of a feel good, Sweet Home Alabama-Reece Witherspoon-ish kind of novel. Yes, it could find a place on the Hallmark Channel. That being said, I'm not a huge fan of Hallmark movies, in that they just are a little too perfect. The folks in Dove Pond, and the two lead female characters, most definitely aren't perfect.  Sarah Dove comes from a long line of women who have special talents. Sarah's talent is one that I think every book lover would wish for themselves: the books talk to her and tell her who they should go to next. Sarah hears them, l
Baca selengkapnya

Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown

Gambar
I zipped through this novel in a day--my first of 2020. It read very quickly, and I had a hard time putting it down.  Why was it so compelling? I'm not sure. It's a dual storyline, between two women: Nellie in 1956, and Alice in 2018. Both are living in the same home, and married. Nellie is married to a man who swept her off her feet, and she quickly realizes he's not a nice man. Not nice at all. He wants a wife who is pretty, looks perfect all the time, cooks, cleans, and has babies. He's not afraid to use some physical force to keep her in line.  Alice is a modern woman, who recently left her job in New York City under a cloud--although she's kept that bit of information from her husband Nate. He thinks she quit. Nate wants to move out of the city and start a family in a home set in the suburbs. Alice, very reluctantly, agrees. She's a big city lady, and used to working a lot. Nate makes enough money that she can stay home and write her novel. Alice and Nate b
Baca selengkapnya

Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue

Gambar
This was a powerful novel, and if not for folks around me talking about it, I probably would have passed it by.  However, fate intervened, and I'm happy to have spent the time reading about Jende and Neni Jonga's experience as immigrants in America.  There is so much to talk about, it is definitely a novel you'll want to discuss with friends.  Jende is a native of Cameroon, and is living in New York City with his wife Neni and their young son, Liomi.  Jende had arrived in New York City alone, and spent a few years working hard, scraping up enough money to marry Neni and bring her to America.  His dream was to leave Cameroon, where opportunities to succeed were slim to none.  Jende is extremely hard working, of noble character, and polite to a fault.  He's also living in the U.S. without a green card, and an expired visa.   Jende's chance to make a huge leap in providing for his family comes when he's offered a job as the chauffeur to Clark Edwards, an executive
Baca selengkapnya