Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie

Hello everyone.  I hope you're having a great day.  

Did you ever watch scary movies when you were a kid?  I've already told you I snuck into the family room to see a minute of The Exorcist, which was way too frightening for me.  We would often watch less vomit-is (I'm certain that is a real word) movies. We'd be on the floor, on our stomachs, chins propped on hands, elbows on the floor. Now, even if I could get in that position, which I can't, I'd fall asleep in two seconds. As a kid, it was a favorite way to watch TV.  Two For a Guillotine and The Legend of Hell House (a great book) were two of our favorites.  As adults, the latest thing is ghost hunting shows. In fact, an episode of the TV show A Haunting was filmed in our Victorian house.  People go through houses looking for things to move or voices, hoping to see an entire ghost. Frankly, I thought it was all baloney, until things started happening in our house.  When you hear hard-soled shoes coming up your long wooden staircase repeatedly, but there is never anyone there, you don't dismiss the paranormal as easily.

I recently read Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie.  This is the story of a ghost hunting TV show called Fade to Black, filming their thirteenth episode.  The show stars a married couple, Matt and Claire, who are very excited to be able to explore Foundation House in Virginia.  This house was previously owned by the Paranormal Research Foundation whose members conducted odd experiments in the house before they all went missing. As we learn about the filming crew and the previous owners, the house begins to come alive in a terrifying way.

This book was long. 433 pages.  It really didn't need to be so long.  Considering the length, the character development was minimal, and I just didn't care about them as you would expect with so much page real estate. In the writer's defense, this story is told through texts, journals, film clips, etc. So, making the characters endearing may have proven difficult.  In addition, because of the style the book reads very quickly.  Do not find the length intimidating. I think most will find the plot unique and imaginative.  I wonder, though, if the author has watched many of these types of shows.  He has the group getting an EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) where you can hear ghosts talking on a tape recorder.  I've heard hundreds, sometimes it's singing or whistling, sometimes it's talking but it is always short, rarely more than a single sentence and often very difficult to hear.  In this book, the author has the team getting a clear EVP of 399 words!  Please, figure out some other way to get the info into the storyline, this broke the mood. Despite my criticism, which I really don't mean that way, the book was fun.  If you like ghost hunting shows, horror books, imaginative stories, you'll likely find this very enjoyable.

Despite my thinking of Casper as the ghost gold standard and the most sperm shaped cartoon, I think what was in our house was female, protective and kind...thankfully.

Wait...what was that noise?