The Premonition at Withers Farm
While not quite wilderness any longer, Michigan in 1910 remains a very rural state. Perliett Van Hilton lives with her mother, an avowed spiritualist, renowned for conducting seances. Her late father, in contrast, was a devout Christian. Perliett seems to take a middle stance on all that, and is known for her sometime-curious rural healing practices. When first one, then another grisly murder of young women occurs, Perliett finds herself a possible next victim. Complicating her situation is her love/hate relationship with a local doctor, George Wasziak, and the unexpected arrival of a strange but compelling man.
In the present day, Molly Wasziak has already gone through heartbreaking miscarriages when her husband decides to buy an old farm for them. While still dealing with her grief, Molly almost immediately encounters eerie supernatural experiences all around her, possibly associated with the discovery of a slain woman on a nearby property. Could whatever may have happened in the past be returning now to play out the same murderous scenario?
The large number of characters, compounded by the continuous changes in time period, almost proved too challenging for me. However, before that happened, I became hooked. There are a number of frenetic tense action scenes during times of utmost stress, followed by grisly results. The characters are all highly interesting, and the two protagonists become continually more appealing as the story progresses. And both, despite their unnerving predicaments, exhibit welcome occasional flashes of self-deprecating humor. A bit of Stephen King, Rod Serling and Alfred Hitchcock, the novel kept me guessing to the very end. It is scary, wonderfully crafted and ultimately inspiring. Recommended.
