Smithy - by Amanda Desiree (Paperback)

About the Book

Linguistic researchers and their chimpanzee subject move into an abandoned mansion in 1972 Newport, RI in an ill-fated attempt to study the primate mind.

Book Synopsis

"This original haunted house tale, with a unique plot and compellingly vivid characters, moves from uneasy to creepy to all-out 'keep the lights on' terror." --Library Journal, starred review.

In the tumultuous summer of 1974, in the shadowy rooms of a rundown mansion in Rhode Island, renowned psychologist Dr. Piers Preis-Herald brings together a group of seven collegiate researchers to study the inner lives of man's closest relative―the primate. They set out to teach their subject, who would eventually be known to the world as Smithy, American Sign Language. But as the summer deepens and the history of the mansion manifests, the messages signed by their research subject become increasing spectral.

Nearly twenty-five years after the Smithy Project ended in tragedy at Trevor Hall, questions remain: Was Smithy a hoax? A clever mimic? A Rorschach projection of humanity's greatest hopes and fears? Or was he indeed what devotees of metaphysics have claimed for so long: a link between our world and the next?

Review Quotes

"A heartbreaking, terrifying experiment in slow-burn horror. You will believe in Smithy." -- Scott Thomas, author of Kill Creek

"Smithy is a compelling freezer burn of a book I'm still thinking about days later."-- Kaaron Warren, author of Tide of Stone and Slights

"Inventively told and utterly original, Smithy is a startlingly good debut and one that announces the arrival of a serious horror talent. Keep an eye on Amanda Desiree. She's a major rising star." -- Gwendolyn Kiste, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Rust Maidens and The Invention of Ghosts