Review of Where the Eidolon Sleep by Kelly Lidji
A.E. Jackson Review Score: 3 / 5 Ravens
How was this review scored?
Kelly Lidji does it again! The third installment of her Delaware-based supernatural mystery, featuring Claire - the bookstore owning, novel writing, new mother - and her special daughter Maggie. Fans are in for another fine treat. This time, the duo are joined by young Albert… who died in Woodland during a tragic plague.
Maggie plays with Albert, the ghost child, at her Gram’s house - while communicating with a few other ghosts as well. The returning reader is greeted with a quick recap that new readers will find helpful. Then, once again, two stories parallel as the historic tragedy unfolds and Claire and her kin handle present-day troubles. Well done, Kelli Lidji!
How would you feel if your child could see the undead? Claire Mumford is just coming to terms with it when tragedy strikes her. Now she is trapped at home recovering and can't escape the very ghosts that haunt her six year old. Ghosts that don't rest easily.
Can she uncover the mystery of the plague that struck over twenty citizens in the tiny hamlet of Woodland, Delaware in 1903? Can the spirits that are haunting their lives finally be put to rest? Can she find where the smallpox riddled bodies were buried and give them peace before they they run out of patience?
This time balancing four points of view - which Lidji manages like an operatic stage director - Claire, Maggie, Albert, and Elias - Albert’s father. Claire is even removed from the game briefly - and readers get to see the story from spirit-Claire’s POV for a moment!
The devil is in the details with this novel. It would ruin quite a few suspense building surprises to go into too much detail. Suffice it to say, Little Albert is naughty and sneaks out on Halloween night to ‘flower’ a mean old neighbor. Which is when he finds and brings home a child’s stuffed bear - covered in small pox! The great tension is knowing the risk the child faces, that is the true scary suspense for the reader.
In the past, citizens of the small hamlet of Woodland continue to suffer the tragedy of a small pox plague. While in the present, Claire finds a research assistant to help unravel the mystery. The knowledgeable companions Lidji brings forward are well-developed and serve their purpose while not coming across as contrived or flat.
While entertaining, the author seems to have found a reliable formula that works for her stories. They are enjoyable, but this reviewer would like to see Lidji throw a new curve ball into future works - keep it fresh for readers.
Once again, local history and supernatural occurrences are on display in a way that only Kelly Lidji can manage. Climactic action rises in both the historic account and Claire’s own supernatural encounters throughout the novel. Breathing life in the past, and weaving storylines together, she is an author on the rise.
Kelli is a gifted storyteller. Readers will enjoy her books quite a lot. It is not just the story she tells, but how she tells the story that brings great enjoyment and pleasure.
Kelly Lidji lives in Lewes, Delaware with Jason and her two macaws, Rufus and Finn. She grew up in the 80’s trying to raise the ghost of Maggie Bloxom with her friends out at Maggie’s Bridge in Woodland, DE.
‘Maggie I Have Your Baby’ is her first novel. She followed it up with ‘That Devil Knows My Name’, ‘Where The Eidolon Sleep’, and ‘81 Miles’.
Read more from Kelly Lidji at http://kellylidji.com and find her on social media at Facebook(kellylidjiauthor).