Help for the Haunted: A Novel

John Searles

Sep 2013 · Harper Collins

About this ebook

An orphaned teen investigates the deaths of her demonologist parents in this occult mystery and coming of age tale by a New York Times–bestselling author.

“A dazzling, dark portrait of a troubled family beset by the supernatural. Searles ratchets up the tension with every passing chapter, and delivers authentic and well-earned scares—all written through the lens of a lonely teenager searching for answers. The result is a novel both frightening and beautiful.” —Gillian Flynn

Sylvie Mason’s parents have an unusual occupation: helping “haunted souls” find peace. After receiving a strange phone call late one snowy night, they are lured to an old church on the outskirts of town, where Sylvie falls asleep in the car and is awoken by the sound of gunshots.

Orphaned on that night, Sylvie comes under the care of her reckless, distant older sister, still living in the rambling Tudor house that guards the relics of her parents’ past. As she pursues the mystery of their deaths. Sylvie’s story weaves back and forth between the time leading up to the murders and the months following, uncovering the truth of what happened that night—and the secrets that have haunted her family for years.

A Boston Globe Best Crime Novel of the Year

An Entertainment Weekly Top Ten “Must List”

Winner of the American Library Association’s Alex Award

Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Booklist starred reviews

“I was completely consumed by Help for the Haunted; I read it in one sitting. I just can’t decide what I loved the most: its perfectly pitched teenage narrator; the ghost story that kept me riveted; the thriller that made me say, Oh, just one more chapter.” —Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of Lone Wolf and The Storyteller

“Searles craftily uses the conventions of the horror novel to cast light on the troubled dynamics at work inside a family, as well as the pressures from the outside world. His novel is both a suspenseful page turner and a provocative look at what it means to be haunted.” —The Columbus Dispatch

Ratings and reviews

To begin with, I love this fictious, "Ghost Hunters'" type world. At times I found it to be frightening, not so much with the supernatural but, what was going on behind closed doors. Of course, once you start reading the book and you find out what parents do for a living makes it dysfunctional to begin with. Perfect depiction of what it might be for children to have to grow up in an environment with fanatical ideology, paranormal, religion, and demonic beliefs. With twisted ending too..

Holy moly, I've got to go back and read again. The parents remind me of real life demon hunters, Ed and Lorraine Warren, right down to the raggedy Ann in a cage. dysfunctional family for sure. I felt drawn to the girls and kept wondering what happened to Rose's case worker that was bizarre as heck.

Things I liked: the creepy/supernatural factor as you read through it, the suspense, and mystery. What I didn't like: the explanation for everything supernatural in the book and the actual murderer. I feel like the author took his time writing the book very well and then he ran out of time at the end. The actual murderer is not a developed character and the explanation of why really didn't leave me satisfied. Overall it's still an okay read and I do not regret spending my time reading it.

About the author

John Searles is a New York Times bestselling and award-winning author. His books are published in over a dozen languages and have been voted “Best of the Year” or top picks by Boston Globe, Entertainment Weekly, Salon and the American Library Association. He has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, CBS This Morning, CNN, NPR’s Fresh Air and other shows to discuss his books.