PositiveFiction UnboundAuthor Jeremy C. Shipp likes to throw in details to remind us that this story, which we could easily assume is taking place in the mid-nineteenth century, is actually set in the present day. There are 84-inch, high-definition, wall-mounted televisions, smart phones, a security camera system. These details work to heighten the Gothic elements by the intrusion of sudden, modern contrasts. The bits of today that appear thicken the atmosphere of the past by comparison. This short novel is dense with detail and quick to take turns that impress you to keep reading. You’ll want to finish it one sitting because there is never a reason to put it down. Especially if you are in the mood for some Gothic fiction before our second Southern Gothic post on novels, pick this one up and it will give you a good, hard dose.
