Sinatra, Spooks, and the Sick House
Except perhaps for Darcy Coates, Ambrose Ibsen is my favorite contemporary practitioner of the haunted house tale. He is excellent at taking what ought to be the most groan-worthy, over-used archetypes and tropes in all horror writing, and turning them into something fresh, scary, and engaging. I think that’s a neat trick and a testament to his skill.
Starting in 2016, Ibsen began writing a series around a private investigator named Harlan Ulrich. Investigative mysteries are typically where I turn when I need a break from horror. I have felt for years like the venn diagram crossover area of horror and mystery is under explored territory. So I was excited to turn to this new venture by Ambrose Ibsen. As usual, he did not disappoint.
Riffing off Raymond Chandler’s classic noir novels, the action starts in the office of our intrepid private eye when in walks that one routine case which turns out to be a rabbit hole. Harlan Ulrich is contracted to find a missing uncle and beloved country doctor named Dr. Siegfried Klein. Klein disappeared suddenly after receiving a mysterious note from someone named “A.B.” beckoning him to come to the Sylvan Hospital in Moonville. The trick is, Moonville is a ghost town and the Sylvan Hospital, called “The Sick House” by the locals, was closed down by the state half a century ago.
Harlan drives off to Moonville’s neighboring (and deeply unfriendly) town of MacArthur to find the good doctor. What he uncovers is something far more complex than a missing person case. The local historian is useless. Dr. Klein’s housekeeper is missing. The police are busy with other matters. Klein may not be quite the genteel, beloved country doctor everyone thinks he is. Best of all, the Sick House where Klein was presumably heading at the time of his disappearance is so packed with malevolent ghosts that it’s standing room only in there.
Ibsen’s previous experience working on tales of spooky houses is clearly on display when dealing with the ghost town and its Sick House. He’s on home turf and it shows. It’s without a doubt the scariest part of the book. The mystery Harlan Ulrich eventually uncovers is somewhat color-by-numbers and experienced mystery readers will see where he is heading before he gets there. That said, the ending is satisfying and gets the job done.
Ibsen is a good writer and knows what he’s doing. Many of his best traits are visible in this work. He prioritizes story over long descriptive passages. I like the way he hints at deeper narratives behind supernatural occurrences, but withholds information from the reader so we better experience dissociation, confusion, and sometimes a lack of resolution alongside his characters. You’re given all you need and nothing you don’t. He isn’t the sort of writer to create grand worlds you live in for a while. He dazzles, shocks, and scares. Then he moves on.
For me, the linchpin of any good mystery is the investigator. It is nearly impossible to come up with genuinely new material for any mystery. In my personal opinion, what keeps most of us coming back to them again and again is the protagonist. This is maybe the one part of the novel which comes off as a little weak. Ulrich is clearly based on the popular Sam Spade model perfected by Raymond Chandler so many years ago. Odd personality quirks have been added to make him more engaging and less formulaic. He’s a bit of a hypochondriac, obsessive about Frank Sinatra, and has a coffee addiction which is on the verge of being troubling. But on the whole, readers will recognize this guy from dozens of detective novels. Even as we are meeting him for the first time, we’ve known him for years. Then again, there is a reason why the classic noir hard-boiled detective is so popular. He’s a well worn archetype, but he is one most readers tend to like.
In the end, this is not Ambrose Ibsen’s strongest novel, but it is fun, enjoyable, and thoroughly creepy. If you like either haunted house tales or old-fashioned detectives you’re probably going to find something you like here. If you like well written scares, you will certainly find something to enjoy here.
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