Weekly Reader: The Eidola Project (An Eidola Project Novel) by Robert Herold; Historical Horror Brings The William James Gang Together Again-For The First Time

 

Weekly Reader: The Eidola Project (An Eidola Project Novel) by Robert Herold; Historical Horror Brings The William James Gang Together Again-For The First Time

By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews

Spoilers: Earlier this year I reviewed Moonlight Becomes You by Robert Herold. It was a historical supernatural mystery in which William James, co-founder of the American Society for Psychical Research, forms The Eidola Project which investigates unusual phenomena in post-Civil War America. Accompanying him are Annabelle Douglas, James' assistant, Sarah Bradbury, a medium and former carnival performer, Dr. Edgar Gilpin, an African-American scientist and inventor, and  Nigel Pritchard, a Confederate vet with precognitive abilities. In Moonlight, the quintet investigated a series of werewolf attacks in a small Virginia town while also fighting the KKK, mistrust from locals because of their multiracial and unisex makeup, and their own suspicions, prejudices, and biases. 

The Eidola Project, the first book in the series, takes us back in time to the James Gang's first meeting and their backstories that created those suspicions and biases. They also investigate the home of Lenore Hutcheson, a reclusive heiress whose home is haunted by malevolent spirits. 

There are some very creepy moments spread throughout the book. Sarah and Nigel's visions are terrifying. Most notable is Sarah's vision of practically drowning in a pool of blood and Nigel offering her his hand (resulting in their meeting with Nigel). The ramifications are even more eerie when the vision comes true and involves a trip between worlds and a face to face with scary creatures. 

There are plenty of scary spirits as soon as the Eidolas enter the Hutcheson household, some that do physical and psychological harm to our protagonists. Sarah gets possessed by a ghost and almost tricks herself and her friends to jump off a cliff. Another apparition gets into a fight with Nigel causing him to harm himself. That's not even going into the ending when one of the characters is caught alone with the Big Bad of the story.

As with Moonlight Becomes You, The Eidola Project uses supernatural horror as a metaphor for real life conflicts in 19th century America. In Moonlight Becomes You, racial issues are upfront with the presence of the KKK, segregation, and the arguments between Nigel and Edgar. Race is important in this book, particularly since it shapes Nigel and Edgar's feelings towards each other. There is a powerful dialogue between the two where Edgar reveals his past as a former slave and Howard University graduate that shows that even though Nigel believes that he is Edgar's superior because of his skin color, Edgar is much better in terms of character and intelligence.

This time the focus is on gender. Annabelle and Sarah's backstories are elaborated upon and show the forced limitations that they have been given and why they make the choices that they have made.

Annabelle is a highly intelligent woman who is just as dedicated in the pursuit of psychical science as James. However, she can never be regarded as highly as him. In this time period, she has very few chances to become a scientist or researcher in her own right.

Not only that, but Annabelle feels the stigma of being labeled a "spinster" which resurfaces with memories, possibly visitations from her late mother. She also harbors an infatuation with the very happily married James. She suppresses her emotions as tightly as women were required to in her day but her visions become a window to her tortured soul, opening up her fears and insecurities. It's no wonder that by the second book, Annabelle acquires an addiction to laudanum.

Sarah has baggage of her own. Her spiritualist skills come about when as a child, she heard the voice of a recently murdered girl. Most people fear her or think she's crazy, particularly her own family.

She ends up kidnapped and sold to a carnival. Sarah feels like an outsider among so-called normal people so she befriends the sideshow performers. Madame Tsuritsa, a fortune teller, takes her in hand and becomes a mentor to her. 

Sarah is used by many around her for her abilities. In many ways, she is similar to the real life Fox Sisters, two sisters that professed to have medium abilities and kick started the Spiritualist Movement. They were used and abused by many around them, particularly their older sister, Leah. One of the sisters confessed to faking the communications with the dead but the Spiritualists continued into the 20th century and today. Lily Dale, NY is the home of many spiritualists, even now.

Like the Fox Sisters, Sarah was exploited by the people around her. The carnival owner, Dodgerton, collects the money while she works and after Tsuritsa's death sexually assaults her. By the time Sarah meets the Eidola Project, she feels abandoned and used by nearly everybody, not to mention she possesses abilities that frighten her and could eventually drive her insane. 

Similar to Annabelle, Sarah's powers overwhelm her and could be destructive, but they also give her a measure of power and recognition. She may not have had those without her ability to communicate with the dead. She is able to free many of the repressed feelings that Annabelle, an ordinary woman of her era, has to bury.

Similarly, Lenore is also limited by her gender and physical characteristics. She has albinism so can barely leave her house and she is restricted by her status as a wealthy woman. She is also very religious and because of this is made to feel as though she is a worthless sinner. Like Annabelle and Sarah, Lena longs to find an escape and emotional release. There are too many spoilers connected to her but let's just say, her only companions are ghosts and that can certainly drive a person into rage.

The Eidola Project is a book filled with scares but the most frightening aspects are how many people, particularly women, are constrained and held by the roles and expectations that society holds for them. It takes the power of the dead to bring the real people underneath those constraints to come forward.