Book Review: Anonymous by Christine Benedict

Sun 10/26 @ 2pm

Christine Benedict lived in the 100-year-old haunted farmhouse that stars in her book, Anonymous, recently re-released by Loconeal Publishing of Amherst, for many years. When she wants to catch someone’s attention, she asks “do you like mysteries?” and if you say yes, she makes a sale. She believes in her book.

In this mystery thriller, Debra confronts her fear of inheriting mental illness when she and her husband move into a farmhouse which may or may not be haunted, but she’s certainly hearing noises and seeing things moved around. There’s also some creepy people, including a part-time animal warden and a stalker who writes suggestive letters to her friend, Julie, who lives down the road. The two women find themselves immersed in two mysteries at once: what’s going on in the house and who the stalker is.

Their stories overlap as their fears escalate. Both women learn more about how their past and their relationships color who they believe themselves to be. We find ourselves disliking most of the male characters in the book for their creepiness or their weakness, while the women surprise us with how courageous they are in their husbands’ absences. We witness their growth.

The book is a page-turner made possible, in part, by the author writing the ending first. The book idea came about from actual anonymous letters Benedict received in real life thirty years ago. Her husband destroyed most of them and she kept three, just as Julie kept a few in the fictional rendering. Many of the “bump in the night” episodes in the book happened in real life during the period in which she and her husband lived in a 14-room manse. Like Debra, Benedict had to make peace with the ghost or confront the monstrous possibility that it was all in her head.

Benedict studied creative writing as an adult student at Baldwin Wallace College and studied John Garner’s Art of Fiction like it was homework. During Cleveland State University workshops, Anonymous was ripped apart even as it was praised.

Her serious study of the art of storytelling has paid off: her short stories have been finalists for Perigee Publication for the Arts and The Fish Short Story Prize. Clem Cairns, Fish Publishing, sponsor of The Fish Short Prize in Cork Ireland said: “A book full of drama and tension and at times quite a page-turner. Also with lovely passages, some fine writing. You have a great cast of characters, an excellent story. I look forward to reading your next novel.”

Cleveland mystery writer Les Robert said: “VERY well-written, nice suspense, especially good female protagonists.” But the most inspiring remark was from Kristy Steeves, retired Cleveland Channel 8 news reporter, who called Christine personally to say she was up until 2AM reading it.

When she’s not writing, Christine is a fitness trainer who also runs her husband’s business. She carves time out of her day to do what every writer wants to do: “engage the reader, move them along, and keep them hooked.” She’s currently working on a new novel entitled Where Willows Take Root, a literary historical novel set in 1966.

When asked for advice for would-be writers, Benedict said “Don’t give up. Listen to critiques, don’t be hurt by them, take what you need and throw away the best. Listen very carefully . . . read, read, read.” She elaborated by saying at first she was showing everything—she had to add the telling “train of thought” and thought patterns, which is the opposite of how most writers write.

Christine doesn’t need to have uninvited talks with strangers to ask whether they like mysteries when she appears at the Berea Library on Sun 10/26. She’s pretty good at publicity—upcoming events include Grafton Midview Public Library on Thu 10/30, the night before Halloween. She’ll join her Loconeal friends from Fri 11/21 through Sun 11/23 at the IX Christmas Connection.

http://cuyahogalibrary.evanced.info

Claudia Taller is the author of Ohio’s Lake Erie Wineries and is working on a second book about Ohio’s wineries. Her new book 30 Perfect Days, Finding Abundance in Ordinary Life is now available on Amazon, and she’s posting weekly excerpts from the book at http://claudiajtaller.com. A Cool Cleveland contributor for many years, she helps writers and other creative people discover possibilities for their lives through Igniting Possibilities events, including the next Word Lovers weekend at Lakeside 11/7 – 11/9.