The Inhabitants

Overview

After a run of misfortune, portrait artist Nilda Ricci could use a stroke of luck. She seems to get just that when she inherits a shadowy Victorian, designed by an architect whose works were said to influence the mind—supposedly, in beneficial ways. At first, Nilda’s new home delivers multiple gifts, including the unexpected appearance of a housekeeper who’d helped maintain the home for years. Also, Nilda finds herself falling for a handsome neighbor, a chemist whose herbal tonics boost her creativity to new heights. But as Nilda seeks revenge-by-painting against a contempt-worthy portrait subject, she begins having strange experiences in the house, making her wonder whether the place is haunted or whether its architect’s intentions were less than benevolent. She also begins to suspect that her neighbor, and his gifts of tonics, aren’t what they seem. All along, the housekeeper seems to be looking out for Nilda. But in time she reveals needs of her own, which may prove more powerful than anything in the house … or beyond it.

Reviews

"An inherited property, a child who sees ghostly presences, and a brooding, handsome love interest make The Inhabitants a Gothic treat." —Foreword Clarion Reviews

"Readers looking for multi-layered, engaging story lines that pay homage to and update beloved elements of classical literature, mystery and revenge dramas, and ghost stories will find The Inhabitants a compelling read. Castrodale's writing is at the heart of the novel's joys." —Compulsive Reader
 
“Take the classic Gothic element of a spooky old house, add a dash of modern #MeToo seasoning, and let everything simmer in the warmth of timeless maternal love, and you have Beth Castrodale’s deliciously clever new novel. The Inhabitants, dream-drenched and mysterious, tantalizes and satisfies to the final pages. A remarkable read.” —Chauna Craig, author of The Widow’s Guide to Edible Mushrooms and Wings & Other Things
 
“Beth Castrodale’s wonderful new novel is an engaging read that incorporates art, architecture, herbal medicine, #MeToo, and the supernatural. … The result is a page turner of a novel about deciding what’s real or imagined, making sense of the past, and looking to the future. Richly grounded in physical details and keen psychological insights, this superbly crafted novel delivers on many levels.” —Jan English Leary, author of Thicker Than Blood, Skating on the Vertical, and Town and Gown 
 
“Beth Castrodale’s moody and atmospheric new novel, The Inhabitants, will have you looking twice at gifts from neighbors and considering locks for your closet doors. The protagonist and her daughter arrive at Farleigh House, the eccentric construction of a nineteenth-century architect, for a new beginning. Instead, they’re met by mysterious forces from the past—a fireplace that erupts in faces, an unseen weight at the foot of a bed, and a wave of rage on a feeding frenzy. The Inhabitants, a modern-Gothic novel, reminds us not only that there is a place for the past in the present but also that going back must often precede moving forward.” —Cynthia Newberry Martin, author of The Art of Her Life, Love Like This, and Tidal Flats
 
“In her beautifully paced new novel, Beth Castrodale gives us a fresh take on the classic haunted-house tale. … Ultimately, The Inhabitants asks which is more terrifying: the spirits and the strange house they haunt, or the monsters that walk among us every day? Masterfully told and beautifully balanced, The Inhabitants is a terrific read.” —Jim Naremore, author of American Still Life and The Arts of Legerdemain as Taught by Ghosts
 
“From the idiosyncratic house the novel’s artist-mother heroine, Nilda, inherits, to the mysterious housekeeper she also inherits, to the eccentric neighbor who invents ‘creativity’ tonics for Nilda, to the revelation that the man whose portrait Nilda is commissioned to paint poses a danger that must be stopped, dread and fascination permeate Beth Castrodale’s fiercely feminist modern-Gothic novel. But while The Inhabitants is heady and menacing, it’s also a tender story about the undying devotion of motherly love.” —Michelle Ross, author of They Kept Running, Shapeshifting, and There’s So Much They Haven’t Told You
 
“The deceptively innocuous spell cast by The Inhabitants is like walking in a pleasant wood and encountering a coiled rattlesnake. This well-crafted book is highly recommended for those who love tales of the supernatural. The otherworldly elements are finely blended with life’s challenges, the lure of romance, magic potions, and the life-altering presence of evil.” —Morgan Howell, author of The Moon Won’t Talk
 

Author Biography

Beth Castrodale is the author of the novels MARION HATLEY, which was a finalist for a Nilsen Prize for a First Novel from Southeast Missouri State University Press; IN THIS GROUND, an excerpt from which was a shortlist finalist for a William Faulkner – William Wisdom Creative Writing Award; and I MEAN YOU NO HARM. She is also the recipient of an artist grant from the Mass Cultural Council.