SHORTS, NOVELS, AND OTHER THINGS

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SHORTS, NOVELS, AND OTHER THINGS

Book Review: The Haunting of Chatham Hollow by Mae Clair and Staci Troilo (@MaeClair1 and @stacitroilo) #mystery #ghosts #haunting #paranormal

What kind of book do you get when two writers, both known for their award-wining literary excursions into evil and paranormal mysteries, combine their talent in a seamless fashion? A humdinger of a book!

Ward Chatham founded the village of Chatham Hollow in the 1700s. Despite his wealth, he died a bitter and evil man, leaving the rumor that he had buried his wealth somewhere within his home, Chatham Manor.

In 1888, the wife of the mayor of Chatham Hollow decides to hold a sΓ©ance to see if the spirit of Ward Chatham can be summoned. Not one but two spiritualists are invited to the sΓ©ance – Benedict Fletcher, a fake, and Victor Rowe, a true spiritualist. Rowe, against his wishes, is talked into trying to communicate with the father of one of those attending the sΓ©ance using automatic writing. As he finishes, he is confronted by a dark malevolent spirit, and a mysterious, nonsensical line appears at the end of his writing.

A century later, the mayor of Chatham Hollow village decides to reenact the sΓ©ance as part of the activities surrounding the town’s Founder’s Day celebration, inviting descendants of the people who attended the original gathering. One of them comes with a dark purpose.

Reporter Aiden Hale resents being assigned to write the story about the sΓ©ance. He doesn’t believe in ghosts, despite his grandmother’s insistence that he has paranormal talents, and is particularly reluctant to be present when a paranormal research team arrives to film the event for a TV show. His research leads him to feel that something or someone is threatening the Hollow, and he is drawn into complex rivalries that have persisted for more than a century.

The two authors have created a can-not-put-down book that showcases their talents. Mae Clair has done a perfect job in creating the Chatham Hollow of the past with her brilliant descriptions that put the reader there, while Traci Troilo amps up the mystery and goosebumps in her creation of the present-day village with a malevolent spirit and frustrates the reader with the many roadblocks Aiden faces in his research, some of his own creation. Their twists and turns in the story keep you riveted and the chapters of past and present meld together into one great story.

Five stars. You’re going to love this book!

About the authors:

A member of the Mystery Writers of America and International Thriller Writers, Mae Clair is also a founding member and contributor to the award-winning writing blog, Story Empire. She has achieved bestseller status on both Amazon and Barnes & Noble, with several of her novels chosen as book club selections.

Staci Troilo grew up in Western Pennsylvania writing stories and poetry in her free time, so it was no surprise that she studied writing in college. After receiving creative and professional writing degrees from Carnegie Mellon University, she went on to get her Master’s Degree in Professional Writing, and she worked in corporate communications until she had her children. When they had grown, she went on to become a writing professor, and now she is a freelance writer and editor.

You can find The Haunting of Chatham Hollow on Amazon:

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29 thoughts on “Book Review: The Haunting of Chatham Hollow by Mae Clair and Staci Troilo (@MaeClair1 and @stacitroilo) #mystery #ghosts #haunting #paranormal”

    1. I had a cataract op yesterday and so it’ll be a few days before I can resume reading – but I’m really looking forward to it. I’ve just finished Diana’s superb The Necromancer’s Daughter and need to write a review on that. So many good books waiting for me!

  1. Fantastic review, Noelle. I also thought the way Mae and Staci divided the time periods worked wonders. The writing quality was seamless and the story riveting. Congrats to both authors on another excellent review!

  2. Noelle, I’m doing a happy dance that you so enjoyed the story. Thank you so much for this wonderful review and for sharing it with your readers! I’m elated! πŸ€—β€οΈ

  3. I loved this book, and it’s one of my top reads of 2022! Congratulations to Staci and Mae on this masterful new release. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Noelle. Have a wonderful weekend πŸ’•πŸ™‚

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