“With her latest, Hightower delves into a haunted family’s nightmarish past and their need to finally confront the evil that has torn them apart.”
The four Lasco siblings have been through a lot. They banded together to fight a world that failed to give them protection. One hellish night marked the end of their childhood. That night, the eldest brother Shawn was dragged behind closed doors to die.
The official statement of the violent death was “accidental”, but Nathan Lasco knows better, and has never forgiven their mother.
Two decades later, their mother, Stella, promises to reveal the truth of what happened on The Day of the Door. With a team of paranormal investigators, the Lasco family reunites one last time.
But no one is prepared for the revelations waiting for them on the third floor.
Why we’re excited about this book:
When it comes to visceral, emotional horror, no one does it better than Laurel Hightower. The author of Whispers in the Dark, Crossroads, Below, Silent Key, and the short-story collection Every Woman Knows This, Hightower’s short fiction has been featured in such publications and anthologies as Shadows in the Stacks, Never Wake: An Anthology of Dream Horror, Slash-Her, and Hell Hath Only Fury among others. Hightower has also co-edited The Dead Inside, We Are Wolves, and the recently released The Devil’s Backbone: Appalachian Horror. With her latest, Hightower delves into a haunted family’s nightmarish past and their need to finally confront the evil that has torn them apart. Chris Panatier (The Redemption of Morgan Bright) says: “The Day of the Door by Laurel Hightower is a sparking crucible of family strife from its brutal opening scene to its shocking end. Three adult children, whose lives have been shattered by the trauma of their brother’s death, finally get to confront the person responsible: their mother Stella. But that isn’t the whole story, is it? The Day of the Door is a propulsive, often terrifying read that diced my nerve endings. Take a deep breath before you dive in because Hightower always holds you under.”, and Hailey Piper (Queen of Teeth, Cranberry Cove) calls The Day of the Door : “An intense shard of trauma, poised to cut you. Hightower is a master at extracting the heart of a haunting and stuffing us into the claustrophobic hollow left behind. I will never get the séance out of my head.”
Why Laurel’s excited about this book:
“The Day of the Door deals with two subjects I find endlessly fascinating—toxic family dynamics, and the supernatural. I liked getting to focus on a family of adult children, on both their damage and how they’ve grown beyond their family of origin. I hope readers connect with their struggles and maybe even find some wisdom—but mostly I hope it’s at least half as disturbing as that Trevor Henderson cover.”
Unleashing from Ghoulish Books 23 April 2024, The Day of the Door by Laurel Hightower (with hellish cover art by Trevor Henderson) is available for pre-order now.
BOB PASTORELLA
