The List of Unspeakable Fears, the latest critically acclaimed novel by author J. Kasper Kramer!
Essie O’Neill is afraid of everything. She’s afraid of cats and electric lights. She’s afraid of the silver sick bell, a family heirloom that brings up frightening memories. Most of all, she’s afraid of the red door in her nightmares.
But soon Essie discovers so much more to fear. Her mother has remarried, and they must move from their dilapidated tenement in the Bronx to North Brother Island, a dreary place in the East River. That’s where Essie’s new stepfather runs a quarantine hospital for the incurable sick, including the infamous Typhoid Mary. Essie knows the island is plagued with tragedy. Years ago, she watched in horror as the ship General Slocum caught fire and sank near its shores, plummeting one thousand women and children to their deaths.
Now, something on the island is haunting Essie. And the red door from her dreams has become a reality, just down the hall from her bedroom in her terrifying new house. Convinced her stepfather is up to no good, Essie investigates. Yet to uncover the truth, she will have to face her own painful history—and what lies behind the red door.
Now available in hardback, paperback, ebook, and audiobook from Simon & Schuster/Atheneum!
Praise for The List of Unspeakable Fears
“Kramer has chosen an innately creepy setting. . . [and] delivers a thrilling read with poignant commentary on the value of immigrants’ lives and one’s capacity to become a stronger, better person.”
Booklist, starred review
“Intricately and elegantly plotted, and full of vividly rendered details, Kramer’s novel is a deliciously creepy ghost story with a mystery at its core and, given discussions about vaccines and contagion, special resonance for the current historical moment.”
Publishers Weekly, starred review
Also by J. Kasper Kramer
A powerful middle grade debut with three starred reviews that weaves together folklore and history to tell the story of a girl finding her voice and the strength to use it during the final months of the Communist regime in Romania in 1989.
Ileana has always collected stories. Some are about the past, before the leader of her country tore down her home to make room for his golden palace; back when families had enough food, and the hot water worked on more than just Saturday nights. Others are folktales like the one she was named for, which her father used to tell her at bedtime. But some stories can get you in trouble, like the dangerous one criticizing Romania’s Communist government that Uncle Andrei published—right before he went missing.
Fearing for her safety, Ileana’s parents send her to live with the grandparents she’s never met, far from the prying eyes and ears of the secret police and their spies, who could be any of the neighbors. But danger is never far away. Now, to save her family and the village she’s come to love, Ileana will have to tell the most important story of her life.
Praise for The Story that Cannot be Told
“By turns surprising, poetic, and stark, The Story That Cannot Be Told is one that should most certainly be read.”
Alan Gratz, New York Times bestselling author of Refugee
“A mesmerizing debut.”
Publishers Weekly, starred review
J. Kasper Kramer 