A House Unsettled
Description
鈥�[A] thoughtful reflection on how bigotry of the past informs the hauntings of the present.鈥�
鈥�STARRED review, The Bulletin of the Center for 颁丑颈濒诲谤别苍鈥檚 Books (CCBC)
Ghosts aren鈥檛 the only thing that can haunt a house.
With her dad鈥檚 incarceration, escalating fights with her mom, and an overbearing stepdad she鈥檚 not sure she can trust, Asha is desperate for the fresh start promised by a move to the country. Her great aunt Aggie鈥檚 crumbling, pest-ridden house isn鈥檛 exactly what she had in mind, but the immediate connection she makes with her new neighbor Cole seems like a good sign. Soon, though, Asha鈥檚 optimism is shadowed by strange and disturbing occurrences within the old house鈥檚 walls: footsteps stalking the halls; a persistent chill; cold hands around her neck in the middle of the night . . .
Fearing for her loved ones鈥� safety鈥攁nd her own鈥擜sha seeks out the source of these terrifying incidents and uncovers secrets from the past that connect her and Cole鈥檚 families and reach into the present. But as tensions with her mom and stepdad rise and Cole withdraws, Asha is left alone to try and break the cycle of violence that holds them all in its haunting grip.
Trynne Delaney鈥檚 debut novel explores the insidious legacies of violence and oppression鈥攁nd how Black, queer love and resistance can disrupt them.
Awards
- Joint winner, The List 2023, Toronto Public Library 2023
Reviews
鈥淎sha and Cole鈥檚 clash over their respective lived experiences is intensely rendered. Delaney capably crafts a creeping sense of horror that infuses this pensive paranormal tale with dread.鈥�
- Publishers Weekly, 8/24/2022
鈥淭hrough tense conversations about identity and hard-fought intimacy, the novel explores the ghastly legacies of racial and sexual injustice . . . [A] thoughtful reflection on how bigotry of the past informs the hauntings of the present.鈥�
- Bulletin of the Center for 颁丑颈濒诲谤别苍鈥檚 Books, *starred review, 10/1/2022