The Knocking - Publishers Weekly Review - "Bahr shines in this creepy gothic thriller"

The Knocking

Laura Lee Bahr. Little A, $16.99 trade paper (316p) ISBN 978-1-6625-3774-5

Bahr (Who Is the Liar) shines in this creepy gothic thriller about a female journalist in 1850. Reporter and women’s rights advocate E.A. Howe has been sent by her employer to seek out newspaper publisher Horace Greeley at Castle Doldrum, his home outside New York City. Howe is supposed to show Greeley an editorial denouncing Congress’s passage of the Fugitive Slave Act in hopes that Greeley will use his status as “the man with the most important opinion in America” to echo the article’s message. Upon arriving at Castle Doldrum in the middle of the night, Howe receives a frosty reception from Greeley’s staff. Then, from her makeshift bed, she hears mysterious knocking sounds. The following day, she learns that Cathie Fox, a young medium whom Greeley has taken under his wing, is on site to summon the spirit of Pickie, Mrs. Greeley’s deceased child. Intrigued by Cathie’s psychic gifts, Howe draws on her journalistic skills to learn more about the medium, soon uncovering frightening secrets within the house, including a planned poisoning and Cathie’s conviction that the structure is “eating her alive.” Bahr exploits gothic tropes and her historical setting for maximum atmosphere, gradually ratcheting up the suspense to a fever pitch. It’s a memorable ghost story. (July)

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