The Ghosts of Kerfol

Deborah Noyes

Jul 2013 · Candlewick Press

About this ebook

In an enthralling work of Gothic suspense, an Edith Wharton story inspires five connected tales set in the same haunted manor over the centuries. (Age 14 and up)

In her classic ghost story "Kerfol," Edith Wharton tells the tale of Anne de Barrigan, a young Frenchwoman convicted of murdering her husband, the jealous Yves de Cornault. The elderly lord was found dead on the stairs, apparently savaged by a pack of dogs, though there were no dogs -- no live dogs -- at Kerfol that day. In this remarkable collection of intertwining short stories, Deborah Noyes takes us back to the haunted manor and tells us Anne de Barrigan's story through the sympathetic eyes of her servant girl. Four more tales slip forward in time, peering in on a young artist, a hard-drinking party girl, a young American couple, and a deaf gardener who now tends the Kerfol estate. All these souls are haunted by the ghosts of Kerfol -- the dead dogs, the sensual yet uneasy relationships, and the bitter taste of revenge.

About the author

Deborah Noyes is the editor of the young adult anthologies Gothic! and The Restless Dead. She is also the author of Red Butterfly, illustrated by Sophie Blackall, and Hana in the Time of the Tulips, illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline. She lives in Somerville, Massachusetts.