'Smithy' by Amanda Desiree is a novel that follows a group of young students and their professor conducting a unique study on a chimpanzee named Webster, also known as Smithy, to see if he can learn and understand human language through American Sign Language. The story is told in an epistolary format, using journals, letters, memos, and video and audio transcripts to piece together a narrative that unfolds in a creepy mansion in Rhode Island. As the summer of 1974 progresses, mysterious and unexplainable events start occurring, leading to a blend of horror and suspense as the tension builds through the eyes of the characters involved in the research project.
The narrative structure of 'Smithy' is reminiscent of a slow burn horror story with moments of terror and eeriness. The book gradually introduces supernatural elements, keeping the reader engaged and intrigued as they follow Smithy's interactions and behaviors in the eerie setting of Trevor Hall. The meticulous research done by the author on the subject of language acquisition in apes adds a layer of realism to the story, grounding the novel in a gritty and believable world where the characters navigate both scientific curiosity and unexplained phenomena.
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Content warnings include themes of psychological tension, animal behavior, and potential supernatural horror elements.
From The Publisher:
"This original haunted house tale, with a unique plot and compellingly vivid characters, moves from uneasy to creepy to all-out 'keep the lights on' terror." - Library Journal , starred review.
In the tumultuous summer of 1974, in the shadowy rooms of a rundown mansion in Rhode Island, renowned psychologist Dr. Piers Preis-Herald brings together a group of seven collegiate researchers to study the inner lives of man's closest relative-the primate. They set out to teach their subject, who would eventually be known to the world as Smithy, American Sign Language. But as the summer deepens and the history of the mansion manifests, the messages signed by their research subject become increasing spectral.
Nearly twenty-five years after the Smithy Project ended in tragedy at Trevor Hall, questions remain: Was Smithy a hoax? A clever mimic? A Rorschach projection of humanity's greatest hopes and fears? Or was he indeed what devotees of metaphysics have claimed for so long: a link between our world and the next?
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