The Damned

December 15, 2014
Pyper (The Demonologist) makes a familiar plotline fresh in this literate supernatural thriller. In 1989, at the age of 16, Danny Orchard’s twin sister, Ash, dies in a fire in an abandoned Detroit house. Danny himself almost dies that night as well, but his survival, coupled with his somehow coming into possession of a watch that was buried with his late mother, leads some locals to believe that he passed beyond the veil and returned. But for Ash, a sadist in life, death is no obstacle for her to continue tormenting her sibling. As Danny grows into adulthood, she haunts him. When he finds happiness with a woman (whom he met speaking about his near-death experiences), Ash also targets her, leading Danny to seek the truth of Ash’s death in the hope of putting her ghost to rest once and for all. As in the best horror, Pyper’s keen eye for the quotidian makes the fantastic feel plausible. Agent: Stephanie Cabot, Gernert Company.

January 1, 2015

Danny Orchard is a (literally) haunted man, his adult life shadowed by the ghost of his twin sister who died at the young but certainly not innocent age of 16. Ashleigh (shortened to "Ash" most of the time, which seems appropriate given her fiery death) made other lives miserable before her own ended, committing everything from the murder of small animals to acts of sexual sabotage (forcing a boyfriend to cut off his own fingers on a table saw). Although Danny achieves modest fame upon writing a memoir about his brush with the afterlife, he exists alone because Ash's spirit threatens to sabotage any connection he makes with others. Ash's rage awakens when he falls in love, and Danny soon realizes that he will need to make another trip "beyond" to truly lay his sister to rest. VERDICT Pyper's (The Demonologist) depictions of the afterlife are visceral and frightening (especially those set on the 8 Mile strip in a desiccated, otherworldly Detroit). The midstory shift to mystery (who killed Ash, and why?) and revelation of family secrets propels the novel to a satisfying conclusion. Recommended for fans of horror and narratives of family dysfunction and supernatural psychopathy. [See Prepub Alert, 9/1/14.]--Victoria Caplinger, MLS, Durham, NC

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.