Book Review : We Hear The Dead by Dianne Salerni

 

“When given a choice between money and the good opinion of society, a lady must always choose her reputation.”

– Dianne K. Salerni, We Hear The Dead

 

Synopsis: It started out as a harmless prank. But soon enough, spiritualism was the fastest growing movement of the nineteenth century, and Maggie Fox was trapped in a life of deceit. 

Meticulously researched by the author, We Hear the Dead reveals the secret of how the Fox sisters faked their rapping sounds and their motives for inventing the séance and founding spiritualism. 

 

I won this book from the Dianne K. Salerni during the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop and I’m glad I did. If I hadn’t  I don’t think I would ever picked this book up. For some reason, I was wary of independent and small book publishers and was surprised by We Hear The Dead. It is a thoughtful and thorough novel with an interesting story to tell.

The protagonist is Maggie Fox, although she sometimes tosses the reigns to her sister Kate Fox for a chapter or two. What begins as a prank by the two young sisters to fool their niece, quickly turns into something beyond their expectation. The girls begin to attract attention for their ability to communicate with spirits, too afraid to admit its all fake (or is it)and becomes a full-scale religion.

The first thing to know about this book is that this is based on the true story of Maggie and Kate Fox. Salerni has done a great job of digging up a long forgotten tale and weaving it into an entertaining novel. You really begin to feel for the characters and enjoy the ride.

No matter how little or less page time a character received, they all felt fully fleshed out. Maggie is a forward thinker for her time, who is trapped in between the life could have and the life she should have.

The novel quickly turns from a story about these sisters deceit and into a romance that could give Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy a run for their money. The romance elements offer some of the most exciting and emotional parts of the novel. It is hard to believe a relationship like this got lost in the pages of history.

The novel takes place over a number of years and by separating each part into sections, Salerni made the novel flow without feeling rushed or awkward.

I really enjoyed We Hear The Dead and was sucked into it. Salerni signed this copy hauntingly yours, but I have to say this book wasn’t too scary. I think it’s a great intro to historical fiction for people who don’t usually read historical fiction.

Sourcebooks | Indiebound |Amazon.com