Critter Chat: The Curse of Hester Gardens by Tamika Thompson

Name: Critter Chat: The Curse of Hester Gardens by Tamika Thompson
Start: 2026-06-24T19:00:00-04:00
Location: 1413 Eoff St, Wheeling, WV 26003-3554, United States

Schedule

Wed, 24 Jun, 2026 at 07:00 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

1413 Eoff St, Wheeling, WV 26003-3554, United States | Wheeling, WV

I'm not sure how many haunted house books we've read together, but it's several at this point. This one is a gothic horror novel that explores family dynamics, gun violence, systemic oppression, and the supernatural.
It's a newer release (March 31, 2026), so get it on those library hold lists now (if you're an Ohioan or have an Ohio address to use, the Cincinnati library must be featuring it and has 77 audiobook copies available currently. If you need help getting this set up, let us know!
Reminder that we are meeting at Midge's Kitchen now. The entrance is on 15th St. behind St. Matthew's. You'll see a glass door that says "State Cellar" overhead. BYO-whatever, and we may have some snacks/beverages to share.
Description:
"We Need to Talk about Kevin as if written by Jason Reynolds and Tananarive Due meets Model Home by Rivers Solomon in an innovative twist on the haunted house novel: about a mother desperate to protect her sons from the twin specters of gun violence and otherworldly menace in their public housing project.
'Nona McKinley raised three boys in the Hester Gardens section of Medford, Michigan, an impoverished community divided by those who follow their faith in God and those who turn to crime to survive. With her drug dealer husband behind bars and her eldest son shot to death at eighteen, Nona has devoted herself to ensuring her other children escape their brother’s fate.
Her second son Marcus is on the right path. He's a valedictorian heading to an Ivy League school. He can get out.
But then, strange things start happening to Nona and other residents: mysterious footsteps are heard when she’s alone, people have phantom encounters in the streets, unattended appliances go off at all hours. Even more concerning is the state of Nona’s living sons. Her youngest, Lance, is hanging around with a bad crowd, and Marcus becomes moody and secretive. Sometimes he even seems to act like a different person entirely.
Nona has her secrets too. Her affair with the married church pastor has been weighing on her conscience, but that’s not the only guilt haunting her. She fears that someone—or something— is seeking revenge for an act she made in a moment of weakness to protect her family. And now everyone in Hester Gardens must pay the price . . .'"