Withered / A.G.A. Wilmot.

Title :

Withered

Author:

Format:

Books

Summary:

"A queer paranormal psychological horror novel, in the style of showrunner Mike Flannagan, showing the complex real-life terror inherent in grief and mental illness. After the tragic death of their father and surviving a life-threatening eating disorder, 18-year-old Ellis moves with their mother to the small town of Black Stone, seeking a simpler life and some space to recover. But Black Stone feels off; it's a disquieting place, one that's surrounded by towns with some of the highest death rates in the country. It doesn't help that everyone says Ellis's new house is haunted. And Ellis has started to believe them: they see pulsing veins in the walls of their bedroom and specters in dark corners of the cellar. They soon discover Black Stone, and their house in particular, is the battleground in a decades-long spectral war, one that will claim their family -- and the town -- if it's allowed to continue. Withered is queer psychological horror, a compelling tale that tackles important issues of mental health in the way that only horror can: by delving deep into them, cracking them open, and exposing their gruesome entrails."--

Language:

English

ISBN - ISSN:

9781770417038

1770417036

Physical Description:

329 pages ; 22 cm

Subject:

Teenage girls -- Fiction.

Haunted houses -- Fiction.

Haunted places -- Fiction.

First Title value, for Searching:

Withered / A.G.A. Wilmot.

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Library	Audience	Home Location	Material Type	Shelf Number	Status
Searching... Central	Adult	Fiction	New books	WILMO	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Oak Forest	Adult	Fiction	New books	WILMO	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Scenic Woods	Adult	Fiction	New books	WILMO	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Stanaker	Adult	Fiction	New books	WILMO	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Vinson	Adult	Fiction	New books	WILMO	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

A queer paranormal horror novel in the style of showrunner Mike Flannagan, showing the complex real-life terror inherent in grief and mental illness

After the tragic death of their father and surviving a life-threatening eating disorder, 18-year-old Ellis moves with their mother to the small town of Black Stone, seeking a simpler life and some space to recover. But Black Stone feels off; it's a disquieting place surrounded by towns with some of the highest death rates in the country. It doesn't help that everyone says Ellis's new house is haunted -- everyone including Quinn, a local girl who has quickly captured Ellis's attention. And Ellis has started to believe what people are saying: they see pulsing veins in their bedroom walls and specters in dark corners of the cellar. Together, Ellis and Quinn dig deep into Black Stone's past and soon discover that their town, and Ellis's house in particular, is the battleground in a decades-long spectral war, one that will claim their family -- and the town -- if it's allowed to continue.

Withered is queer psychological horror, a compelling tale of heartache, loss, and revenge that tackles important issues of mental health in the way that only horror can: by delving deep into them, cracking them open, and exposing their gruesome entrails.

Author Notes

A.G.A Wilmot (BFA, MPub) is an award-winning writer and editor based out of Toronto. Their credits include myriad online and in-print publications and anthologies, and their first book, The Death Scene Artist , was published by Buckrider Books in 2018. Find them online at AndrewWilmot.ca.

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Wilmot debuts with a gently creepy haunted house tale. When teenage Ellis moves with their mom, Robyn, back to Robyn's tiny hometown, Black Stone, following the death of Ellis's father, their only focus is recovering from their eating disorder. However, their new house--which the townsfolk whisper is "haunted" while the proprietors of the local occult store claim it is instead "hunted" by a supernatural force--soon unsettles Ellis: a strange heat emanates from behind its walls, and faint voices can be heard at odd hours. Together with their new crush, Quinn, Ellis investigates the morbid history of the house and the town. Though the scares are relatively minimal, the duo's efforts to peel back layers of town history make for a gripping mystery. Ellis's recovery from their eating disorder cunningly intertwines with the ghost story as Wilmot interrogates the human desire for control over one's body, natural forces, and even life and death. Readers looking for true frights may be disappointed, but others will be pleased they gave this a chance. Agent: Kelvin Kong, K2 Literary. (Apr.)

Booklist Review

Shortly after the death of their father, 18-year-old Ellis, who's in recovery from an eating disorder, moves with their mother to the seemingly quaint, small town of Black Stone, where the pair hope they can make a fresh start. But not all is as it seems in Black Stone, and Ellis' new home is at the center of the town's mysterious goings-on, with pulsating walls, shadowy specters lurking in the corners, and a mysterious voice that cries out in the darkness. As Ellis enlists the help of some other townspeople (including their crush, Quinn) to get closer to the truth, they'll have to confront their own haunted past if they hope to survive. Wilmot's fast-paced psychological-horror novel offers a fresh spin on the haunted-house trope, with well-drawn queer and trans representation at its center. This thought-provoking blend of psychological and supernatural horror will appeal to fans of Stranger Things and allegorical haunted-house novels like Carissa Orlando's The September House (2023).