Episode Thirteen by Craig Dilouie

A haunted house horror story based on found footage and epistolary evidence didn't seem like it would stick the landing. I mean, horror is meant to be an immersive experience right? Right in the thick of things, the juddering shadows, the slow-building tension and the nerve-jangling screams? 

Think twice - In Episode Thirteen, acclaimed horror writer Craig Dilouie has rewritten the rules of this genre giving us a fantastic view of the horror that consumes the lives and work of this TV Filming crew; Paranormal investigators who are shooting at one of the most famous haunted locations in America - an old ramshackle building known as the Foundation House, where in the early 60's a bunch of scientists had conducted experiments in order to prove the existence of ghosts and also, use this to help with their hypotheses on expanding the human mind potential. 

As an idea, this premise sounds almost ridiculous but Craig pulls it off spectacularly well, in giving us an intimate deeply disturbing inside-view of a paranormal investigation gone wrong, despite the epistolary nature of the narrative. The best part of the story was how he strongly builds up each of the character of the investigation crew and then plays off the tension with their interpersonal relations and finally how things come to an explosive unexpected climax with reveals and twists that will blow your mind. 

Matt and Claire Kirklin are the leads of the ghost-hunting TV show and what works, is that despite them being complete opposites of each other, their deep bond of love and compassion for each other sees them through most things. Matt is the deeply passionate investigator who firmly believes in the concept of ghosts after a 'real' encounter with one during his childhood. He is in this for the betterment of humanity, to answer the most important question of, whether there is an afterlife or not. Claire, on the other hand, is the physicist out to debunk this whole theory. armed with science and an unflinching sense of practicality as she goes about finding evidence backed by physics to get answer to this same question. They are helped out by their loyal crew - Jake Wolfson, the camera-man, Kevin the retired policeman turned Tech Guy, Jessica the desperate actress looking for a big break. This is Episode thirteen of their show called Fade to Black and Matt realises that he really needs something spectacular to buoy up the ratings for the show as they bow out in style and hopefully get the nod for a continued second season of the show. 

Each of the crew here are in this, for some or the other personal reasons. Secrets in their cupboards that they want to hang onto, even while they hope they hit a jackpot. But the eerie spooky ghost-house actually gives them much more than they could have bargained for. 

Told in a third-party neutral POV built up from the crews' journals, video footages, text messages and fragments of documents found in the basement of this haunted house, I found myself initially distanced from each of the character through this impersonal narrative. But it soon grew on me and before long, I was hungry for more details as we peel back the polite masks of each of the character. And the tension sparks grow more fiery as their inner characters, the real faces behind the TV Facade is revealed. Kevin's a loud mouth, a man given to tall claims and much bluster and bravado, carried on over from his cop days. Jake's background makes him a quiet man, who wants to escape his violent background and observe and capture everything around him using a camera. Jessica, who's taken on a latin stage-name, is a coward and is motivated by her own selfish needs for her close family, including her sister and a young son back home. Clair is tired of pretending to be nice as part of the show and now just wants out. While Matt is growing frustrated with the pressures of ending the show on a high, while dealing with failures of his investigation. 

The fuse is lit at this stage with each other of their fears and frustrations taking front stage and soon, the fissures start to appear. It's amazing how much character depth Craig's managed to build with this style of narrative and it really keeps us immersed in the novel, as the secrets of the haunted house is finally revealed. The growing sense of dread and desperation leaps off the pages towards the second half and the tension really gets under your skin. The last few chapters were absolutely bonkers and messes with your mind even as the House gets what it wants, with each of the TV Crew. 

Keep your lights on at night as you frantically turn the pages on this one. This one's a haunted house horror done absolutely right. Craig Dilouie is a great find for me and I will absolutely devour his previous books now.