Halloween Reads: Review for Help for the Haunted by John Searles.

 

Book: Help for the Haunted

Author: John Searles

Pages: 395

How Long it Took Me to Read: 3-4 hours

Plot Summary: It begins with a call in the middle of snowy February evening. Lying in her bed, young Sylvie Mason overhears her parents on the phone across the hall. This is not the first late-night call they have received, since her mother and father have an uncommon occupation, helping "haunted souls" find peace. And yet, something in Sylvie senses that this call is different than the rest, especially when they are lured to the old church on the outskirts of town. Once there, her parents disappear, one after the other, behind the church's red door, leaving Sylvie alone in the car. Not long after, she drifts off to sleep only to wake to the sound of gunfire.

Nearly a year later, we meet Sylvie again struggling with the loss of her parents, and living in the care of her older sister, who may be to blame for what happened the previous winter.

As the story moves back and forth in time, through the years leading up to the crime and the months following, the ever inquisitive and tender-hearted Sylvie pursues the mystery, moving closer to the knowledge of what occurred that night, as she comes to terms with her family's past and uncovers secrets that have haunted them for years.

General Thoughts and Review: Another book for my books leading up to Halloween.

First things first, this is not a horror book. I had picked it up thinking this would be a proper, good old horror novel. It was not. With that slight disappointment out of the way, let’s get to review for this book.

The plot sounded interesting and I was curious about the deaths of the Masons and who was responsible for their murders. Apart from the obvious murder mystery, I also was curious about the lives of the Mason’s in the years leading up to the double murder. The Masons were ghost-whisperers/helpers for those suffering from hauntings. This set the tone for the book. Where they really gifted? Did their gifts with the supernatural get them into a mess they couldn’t get out of? Or was it something else? The book answers these questions by the end and in my opinion does so in a satisfactory way.

Apart from the murder mystery, the book is also a great insight into a family, a different family at that. A family, where the parents have an unusual job and their girls aren’t sure if they agree with their parent’s way of life. I loved reading about their complicated life. 

Oh this book is set in the 1980s and 1990, a fact I enjoyed. What can I say? I am a 90s kids. 

I also liked Sylvie’s character.  She is quiet, strong, smart and reads classics (I might be biased but I love a girl who reads.) I loved seeing the Masons through her eyes. I liked her little investigation into the deaths of her parents. I also felt sad about her life post the murders and how the townspeople had turned against the Mason girls. The bullying she faces at school and the calm and collected way in which she deals with it further endeared her to me.

As much as I liked Sylvie, I disliked Rose (her older sister, who might have had something to do with the murders), she was Sylvie’s legal guardian and she was doing a terrible job at raising her sister. Even in the years leading up to the murders, Rose acts out, is rude and pushes her parent’s buttons endlessly. By the end of the book, you do see Rose in a new light and she is redeemed by the end, a little redeemed but not wholly.

On the whole, I enjoyed the book a lot. I read it in pretty much one sitting. I was slightly disappointed when it wasn’t a proper horror book but the murder mystery and the complicated family aspect made me enjoy the book.

On a side note- If you’ve seen The Conjuring, the Masons reminded me quite a bit of the couple in the movie. That similarity made this book slightly spooky at times.

Rating: 4.5/5