This Cursed House
This Cursed House by Del Sandeen, published by Penguin Group on August 5, 2025, is a Southern gothic horror debut that explores themes of identity and family. The story follows twenty-seven-year-old Jemma Barker, who leaves her life in 1960s Chicago for a job with the mysterious Duchon family in New Orleans. As she seeks a fresh start, Jemma soon uncovers the unsettling truth about the family: they are under a curse, and they believe she holds the key to breaking it.
Readers will find a narrative rich in gothic elements and historical context, as Jemma grapples with her unique ability to see spirits and the complex dynamics within the Duchon family. The characters, from the haughty grandmother Honorine to the enigmatic cousin Fosette, reveal layers of secrets that span over a century. This edition, comprising 384 pages, delves into the intersections of race and heritage, presenting a haunting tale that intertwines personal and familial struggles against a backdrop of supernatural intrigue.
Official synopsis Publisher
In this Southern gothic horror debut, a young Black woman abandons her life in 1960s Chicago for a position with a mysterious family in New Orleans, only to discover the dark truth: they’re under a curse, and they think she can break it.
In the fall of 1962, twenty-seven-year-old Jemma Barker is desperate to escape her life in Chicago—and the spirits she has always been able to see. When she receives an unexpected job offer from the Duchon family in New Orleans, she accepts, thinking it is her chance to start over.
But Jemma discovers that the Duchon family isn’t what it seems. Light enough to pass as white, the Black family members look down on brown-skinned Jemma. Their tenuous hold on reality extends to all the members of their eccentric clan, from haughty grandmother Honorine to beautiful yet inscrutable cousin Fosette. Then the shocking truth comes out. Jemma learns the Duchons are cursed—and they believe only she can free them.
As Jemma wrestles with the gift she’s run from all her life, she unravels deeper and more disturbing secrets about the enigmatic Duchons. Secrets that stretch back over a century. Secrets that bind her to their fate if she fails.
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