The Legacy of Emily Hargraves

by Alan Rose

Funny, spooky, sexy, and literate, The Legacy of Emily Hargraves starts as a paranormal thriller and ends as a meditation on the nature of the human soul. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1934733091
• ISBN13: 9781934733097
• Release Date: December 2007
• Publisher: Bennett & Hastings Publishing
• Length: 488 Pages
• Weight: 1.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

for anyone who is looking for something a little more substantial than a good scare

Only three chapters into the ghost story The Legacy of Emily Hargraves, I had some serious qualms that resulted in a daily dread of reading any further. The protagonists of the story are a gay male couple that is introduced into the ghost story with the most stereotypical lingo and traits. I felt like I was thrown into an episode of Will and Grace, and that is a position I try to avoid at all costs. Granted, this was my first experience reading any gay male fiction, so instead of writing off the book completely, I read on. To my surprise (and relief), the clichés of gay males was acknowledged and, after a few more chapters, my dread morphed into extreme absorption. The ghost story begins with partners James and Jerry moving into James' deceased aunt's historic home in Seattle. The two soon realize that they are not alone when the paranormal begins aggravating the house at any sexual contact between the two. The haunting that takes place both in reality as well as in Jerry's dreams to create a muddled vision of what is real and what is not. A second read could clear up any confusion, but I think it was Rose's intention to have that blurry line, making the book all the spookier. Aside from its haunting tale, the book is filled with humor as well as erotica; often times resulting in a one-handed read. Rose creates a truly perfect blend of laughs and fright as well as steamy sex scenes and romance, while also incorporating political commentary on being gay throughout the century. We are not given just one point of view of being gay, but rather, we are handed three generations of experiences and liberation. Besides being entertaining and political, The Legacy of Emily Hargraves is cerebral, convincing non-believers of the paranormal into questioning whether our reality and dimension of living is the pre-eminent form of life. An excellent read for those who ever doubted a paranormal existence, as well as for anyone who is looking for something a little more substantial than a good scare.