Synopses & Reviews
It is April 1922. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle arrives in New York on a spiritualist crusade. To packed houses at Carnegie Hall, he displays photographs of ghosts and spirits; of female mediums bound and gagged, ectoplasmic goo emerging from their bodies. In the newspapers, he defends the powers of the mysterious Margery, one of the most famous mediums of the day. His good friend Harry Houdini is a skeptic, and when Doyle claims Margery's powers are superior to Houdini's, the magician goes on the attack. Into this mix of spirit-chasing celebrities enters Molly Goodman, a young reporter whose job is to cover the heated debate. As she wanders into this world of spooks and spirits, murder and criminal frauds, Molly discovers herself; her true love, her place in the world even her relationship to her beloved dead brother, Carl.
Review
"A shivery delight." Booklist (Starred Review)
Review
"[A] well-paced and gripping novel..." Library Journal
Review
"The writing is good, but there's quite a lot that doesn't come together." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"In this cunning novel, spirit and body escape their shackles, trade places, and dance while we read on, delighted." Andrea Barrett, author of Ship Fever: Stories
Synopsis
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle arrives in New York on a spiritualist crusade, defending the powers of the mysterious medium Margery. His good friend Harry Houdini is a skeptic, and when Doyle claims Margery's powers are superior to Houdini's, the magician goes on the attack.
Synopsis
From the winner of the PEN/Hemingway Award, a debut novel featuring Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
About the Author
Gabriel Brownstein won the PEN/Hemingway Award for his collection The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Apt. 3W. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.