WINNER OF THE 2015 BRAM STOKER AWARD FOR SUPERIOR ACHIEVEMENT IN A NOVEL
A chilling thriller that brilliantly blends psychological suspense and supernatural horror, reminiscent of Stephen King's The Shining, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House, and William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist.
The lives of the Barretts, a normal suburban New England family, are torn apart when fourteen-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia.
To her parentsā despair, the doctors are unable to stop Marjorieās descent into madness. As their stable home devolves into a house of horrors, they reluctantly turn to a local Catholic priest for help. Father Wanderly suggests an exorcism; he believes the vulnerable teenager is the victim of demonic possession. He also contacts a production company that is eager to document the Barrettsā plight. With John, Marjorieās father, out of work for more than a year and the medical bills looming, the family agrees to be filmed, and soon find themselves the unwitting stars of The Possession, a hit reality television show. When events in the Barrett household explode in tragedy, the show and the shocking incidents it captures become the stuff of urban legend.
Fifteen years later, a bestselling writer interviews Marjorieās younger sister, Merry. As she recalls those long ago events that took place when she was just eight years old, long-buried secrets and painful memories that clash with what was broadcast on television begin to surfaceāand a mind-bending tale of psychological horror is unleashed, raising vexing questions about memory and reality, science and religion, and the very nature of evil.
Ā© 2015 HarperAudio (Audiobook): 9780062411525
Release date
Audiobook: 2 June 2015
WINNER OF THE 2015 BRAM STOKER AWARD FOR SUPERIOR ACHIEVEMENT IN A NOVEL
A chilling thriller that brilliantly blends psychological suspense and supernatural horror, reminiscent of Stephen King's The Shining, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House, and William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist.
The lives of the Barretts, a normal suburban New England family, are torn apart when fourteen-year-old Marjorie begins to display signs of acute schizophrenia.
To her parentsā despair, the doctors are unable to stop Marjorieās descent into madness. As their stable home devolves into a house of horrors, they reluctantly turn to a local Catholic priest for help. Father Wanderly suggests an exorcism; he believes the vulnerable teenager is the victim of demonic possession. He also contacts a production company that is eager to document the Barrettsā plight. With John, Marjorieās father, out of work for more than a year and the medical bills looming, the family agrees to be filmed, and soon find themselves the unwitting stars of The Possession, a hit reality television show. When events in the Barrett household explode in tragedy, the show and the shocking incidents it captures become the stuff of urban legend.
Fifteen years later, a bestselling writer interviews Marjorieās younger sister, Merry. As she recalls those long ago events that took place when she was just eight years old, long-buried secrets and painful memories that clash with what was broadcast on television begin to surfaceāand a mind-bending tale of psychological horror is unleashed, raising vexing questions about memory and reality, science and religion, and the very nature of evil.
Ā© 2015 HarperAudio (Audiobook): 9780062411525
Release date
Audiobook: 2 June 2015
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Overall rating based on 497 ratings
Thrilling
Scary
Page-turner
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Anushree
30 Jun 2018
What is real horror? The visceral, more relatable dread? Is it reading or watching crazy-eyed, projectile vomit spewing teenage girls in impossible body contortions? Someoneās descent into psychosis embellished with some āinexplicableā occurrences that defies science and hence opens up our imagination to the world of demons and, The Devil himself? Or the regular bump in the night stuff which is fun but equally forgettable? While this book acknowledges what has become the āhorror genreā in popular culture, it uses the same collective consciousness against us, in a way that we are left flummoxed. This is a book pokes fun at what we understand and categorise as supernatural, when at the same time we as society are comfortable to live with the knowledge that there is neglect, abuse, marital discord, depression and loneliness... afflictions that haunt most of us. Thereās just one gripe I have with this book: it is nothing like the way it is marketed. But thatās not to say that it isnāt a great work that will haunt you for a long time.
Neer
6 Jul 2021
A bit creepy and scary. A book that talks about mental health in a totally different level.
Labster
3 May 2022
What a thrill to read this story! Finally a book on mental illness mixed with horror theme done perfectly.
Aanchal
11 Apr 2023
I liked the concept but could have been written a better way. Spooky at some places, boring at others. A 3 star for me š
Rachna
28 Apr 2020
Chilling and unexpected
English
India