A Guest in the House – Emily Carroll
A Guest in the House by Emily Carroll / ISBN 9781250255525 / 250-page hardback, 7 x 9.8 inches, published in 2023 by First Second
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In Emily Carroll’s haunting adult graphic novel horror story, a young woman marries a kind dentist only to realize that there’s a dark mystery surrounding his former wife’s death.
After many lonely years, Abby’s just gotten married. She met her new husband―a recently widowed dentist―when he arrived in town with his young daughter, seeking a new start. Although it’s strange living in the shadow of her predecessor, Abby does her best to be a good wife and mother. But the more she learns about her new husband’s first wife, the more things don’t add up. And Abby starts to wonder . . . was Sheila’s death really by natural causes? As Abby sinks deeper into confusion, Sheila’s memory seems to become a force all its own, ensnaring Abby in a mystery that leaves her obsessed, fascinated, and desperately in love for the first time in her life.
Emily’s masterful balance of black and white, surreal colors, rich textures, and dramatic lettering is assured to bring this story to life and give readers a chill up their spine as they read.
“Emily Carroll is the master of comics horror, we can only thank whoever blessed/cursed her with the gift to creep under the skin and thrill with visceral image as only she can. Reading A Guest In The House is to feel small and sad and longing, but curious, sensual, forbidden – then terrified, trapped, racing to an end you can’t look away from. I loved it, of course I did!!” ― Kate Beaton
Emily Carroll is the writer and artist of numerous award-winning comics, both online and in print. Her debut horror comics collection, Through the Woods, won both the Eisner Award and the British Fantasy Award in 2014. Her work includes When I Arrived at the Castle from Koyama Press, a baroque horror story dealing with lust and addiction, and a graphic novel adaptation of Laurie Halse Anderson’s novel Speak. She is also known for the short comics she posts on her website. Emily lives in Ontario, Canada, with two dogs and her wife, artist Kate Craig.
