“Help for the Haunted” by John Searles – Peace in the Afterlife
Though it is certainly a questionable career to specialize in, they cause harm to no one and live out their lives peacefully. One night, they receive a phone call which prompts them to leave. Later, they are both found brutally murdered in a church.
A year later, as Sylvie is living with her older sister, her mind starts to become increasingly curious at the mystery which led her to be where she is, and so Sylvie embarks on a quest for the truth, leading her down a very dangerous road where she finds much more than she bargained for.
Such is the premise of Help for the Haunted by John Searles, and though it may seem like we are heading for some kind of haunted house horror novel, the truth could not be further than that. There is certainly an element of menace from the supernatural in this novel, but the real story lies in the journey Sylvie has to make in order to find the truth.
Such is the premise of Help for the Haunted by John Searles, and though it may seem like we are heading for some kind of haunted house horror novel, the truth could not be further than that. There is certainly an element of menace from the supernatural in this novel, but the real story lies in the journey Sylvie has to make in order to find the truth.
Her path is about as hard as can be, as the police are pressuring her to make statements under oath, her sister cares little about her, her only other relative is missing, the kids mock her for her parents’ former profession, and to make things stranger, she has numerous encounters which made her question what her parents did with their lives. There is a lot of text in this book dedicated to spiritual and paranormal topics, but the subject matter never becomes too heavy or complex for the reader to follow.
One of the more interesting aspects of the novel is the disjointedness of Sylvie’s narrative. She combines memories and current happenings in a non-chronological order, prompting the reader to try and put all the pieces together by him or herself, effectively making us the detectives. This is perhaps symbolic of Sylvie’s shattered state of mind, her desire to learn the truth, but also her fear of stumbling upon something she rather wouldn’t know existed.
All in all, though Searles’ writing style may appear chaotic to some, I found that it helped to become more impartial in his writing. In many cases, he completely disappears from the text, leaving only the characters and events to speak for themselves.
All in all, though Searles’ writing style may appear chaotic to some, I found that it helped to become more impartial in his writing. In many cases, he completely disappears from the text, leaving only the characters and events to speak for themselves.
It seems as if he isn’t interested in sending a message, but rather, to entertain the reader and make him or her think about questions that do not have conclusive answers. Those who enjoy books about the mystical and paranormal will certainly take a liking to Help for the Haunted, especially considering the strong mystery element which complements it all.
 | John SearlesPersonal site John Searles is a magazine editor and American writer who was born and raised in New England. He obtained an undergraduate degree at a Connecticut State University, after which he attended New York University on a writing scholarship. His essays have appeared in numerous magazines and newsletters, not to mention he wrote two bestsellers, Boy Still Missing and Strange But True. |
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