A Spell for Saints and Sinners - by Emily Carpenter (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Like a gender-flipped You but dripping with Southern Gothic atmosphere, a young psychic on the verge of losing everything becomes obsessed with a wealthy, beautiful heiress in this clever, darkly atmospheric novel of psychological suspense set amid the lush, moss-draped beauty of Savannah.

In front of an elegantly shabby townhouse on a Savannah side street sits a hand-painted sign: Miss Edie, Psychic. Ingrid White inherited the house and business from her beloved grandmother, a local celebrity in town. But unless Ingrid can find a way to pay for crushing property taxes and mounting repairs, she's going to lose them both.

Ingrid has faith in the homespun witchcraft Edie passed down to her, yet hope and clients are dwindling. . . . Until Sailor Loeffler's bachelorette party changes everything. Sailor is local royalty--part of the vast "Savannah Sauce" empire, beautiful and wealthy beyond imagining--and Ingrid's reading is so accurate that she becomes the bride-to-be's confidante. To keep that access and all the privileges it brings, Ingrid relies more and more on hexes and dark spells--using the baneful magic Edie always warned her against.

As Ingrid works even riskier spells, she is drawn further into the Loefflers' inner circle and the obstacles in her path melt away. But is it witchcraft or other, more earthbound forces? Ingrid can feel the lines blurring even as her powers seem to grow, until she must confront the truth about just how far some people, including herself, will go to keep the life they've always wanted . . .

Review Quotes

Praise for Emily Carpenter

"Carpenter's brisk southern gothic skillfully deploys the genre's familiar tropes to explore the disturbing ramifications of abuses of power and societal complicity. Horror fans will find it hard to put down." --Booklist STARRED REVIEW for Gothictown

"Influenced by Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery," Carpenter creates a Southern gothic tale for horror-curious readers... Those who prefer a slow-burn story with an increasing sense of unease will enjoy this book, and fans of suspense novels with a small-town setting could find this a perfect way to try some gothic horror. Read-alikes include The Invited by Jennifer McMahon and The House Next Door by Anne Rivers Siddons." --Library Journal on Gothictown

"Emily Carpenter packs a multitude of twists and turns into Gothictown, delivering a gothic mystery with a high entertainment value. But peering past the murder, romance and supernatural intrigue, this story is ultimately an exploration of privilege and the lengths people will go to maintain the upper hand." --Atlanta Journal Constitution

"A high-energy read that effortlessly reinvents the modern Gothic while delivering all the elements that make the genre so captivating: a haunting atmosphere, a dark legacy, a determined heroine and a whisper of horror. I love the Gothic and I love Gothictown." --Jayne Ann Krentz, New York Times bestselling author

"Just the right amount of creepiness to add a scary but not terrifying element to the promised gothic tale, and the post-pandemic what-do-I-do-now feeling is spot on." --firstCLUE on Gothictown

"The story masterfully intermingles mystery and psychological tension, making Gothictown a very engaging read. While Billie wrestles with her new reality, so does the reader, in this thrilling adventure into the depths one will go to for family and the haunting shadows which can lurk beneath the surface of a picturesque facade." --John Raab, Suspense magazine on Gothictown

"Carpenter has a spectacular voice, and I was drawn into this story immediately. With all the gothic spookiness layered into a suspenseful family drama, this pulse-racing story of a New York family relocating to an idyllic southern town with a dark secret is timely, intense, and terrifyingly good." --J.T. Ellison, New York Times bestselling author of A Very Bad Thing on Gothictown

"Troubled waters rise slow, and dark, and sneaky in Gothictown... Prepare to breaststroke your way through Carpenter's latest feat to where the floodwaters recede, revealing an utterly satisfying conclusion." --Robert Gwaltney, award-winning author of The Cicada Tree on Gothictown

"Inviting and atmospheric, this engrossing tale of a charming town hiding a chilling past is southern gothic at its best. Carpenter expertly turns up the heat as a seductive offer turns out too good to be true and dark secrets come to light, raising the temperature until the plot boils over. I was hooked from the very beginning!" --Katherine Wood, author of Ladykiller on Gothictown

"A gothic banger of a story. Carpenter's talents really shine here: quirky characters that come alive on the page through her voicey Southern prose, and a sneaky, steady building of tension to claustrophobic proportions. Creepy in the best possible way, Gothictown is an absolute knockout." --Kimberly Belle, internationally bestselling author of The Paris Widow

"The Queen of Southern Gothic dominates in this unputdownable feast in which deeply-drawn characters who inhabit a tantalizingly secretive southern town play a role in deadly secrets that link back to the past. Haunting, atmospheric, sexy, wildly vivid, original, and entrancing, Gothictown proves Carpenter is the master of balancing all the ingredients for a reader's sleepless night of turning the pages." --Shannon Kirk, international bestselling author of Method 15/33 and Gretchen

"An early entry in the beach-thriller sweepstakes, Carpenter's story is much more layered and nuanced than most." --Vulture on The Weight of Lies

"Carpenter's refreshingly modern gothic tale offers great fun." --Publishers Weekly on Reviving the Hawthorn Sisters

"An exciting, gothic-tinged quest sure to delight fans of women-driven mysteries." --Kirkus Reviews on Reviving the Hawthorn Sisters

"The bestselling author of Burying the Honeysuckle Girls returns to uncover a faith healer's elusive and haunted past. Read it in one sitting!" --Frolic on Reviving the Hawthorn Sisters

"Simply riveting. This is the kind of book where the past has a pulse--and teeth. It's a page-turner for sure, with well-drawn, complicated characters whose choices linger long after the last page is turned." --Joshilyn Jackson, New York Times bestselling author of Never Have I Ever on Reviving the Hawthorn Sisters

"Fast-paced and teeming with long-held secrets, Emily Carpenter's Until the Day I Die will have you rooting for the whip-smart, resilient mother-daughter team of Erin and Shorie Gaines as they race against time and unknown evil to salvage the life they have so carefully crafted. The twisty, jaw-dropping conclusion of this electrifying thriller will leave you guessing and gasping for breath right up to the final page. A must-read!" --Heather Gudenkauf, New York Times bestselling author of The Weight of Silence and Not a Sound on Until the Day I Die

"Seductively sinister, with a fierce, feisty mother-daughter duo you'll be cheering for. A fast, frightening read." --Jessica Strawser, author of Not That I Could Tell on Until the Day I Die

"This shocking cat-and-mouse thriller will shatter your expectations--and Carpenter's skill for brilliant and twisty storytelling will have you gasping in surprise. Buckle up for a terrific ride--this is timely, unpredictable, and irresistible!" --Hank Phillippi Ryan, nationally bestselling author of Trust Me on Until the Day I Die

"In Until the Day I Die, Emily Carpenter proves once again she's a thriller powerhouse. Packed with heroines you'll cheer for, villains you'll love to hate, and plot twists galore, this story will have you on the edge of your seat until you breathlessly turn the last page. What a ride!" --Hannah Mary McKinnon, author of The Neighbors on Until the Day I Die

"Emily Carpenter has written a hell of a thriller with language as lush as its Southern setting." --Benjamin Percy, author of The Dead Lands, Red Moon, The Wilding, and Refresh, Refresh on Burying the Honeysuckle Girls

"Southern Gothic in all its creepy inbred finery. I found myself rooting for recovering addict Althea as she teeters on the brink of relapse while uncovering the horrific secret behind her family's inherited madness and premature death." --Amy Plum, international bestselling author on Burying the Honeysuckle Girls

About the Author

Emily Carpenter is a bestselling author of suspense novels including Burying the Honeysuckle Girls, The Weight of Lies and Gothictown. Born and raised in Brimingham, Alabama, she graduated from Auburn University and worked in New York City as an actor, producer, screenwriter, and behind-the-scenes soap opera assistant for the CBS shows As the World Turns and Guiding Light. She now lives with her family outside Atlanta, Georgia, and can be found online at EmilyCarpenterAuthor.com.