Book signing: "In the Midst of the Sea" by Sean Padraic McCarthy

Join literary supernatural horror author, Sean Padraic McCarthy, as he discusses his new novel, “In the Midst of the Sea,” a gripping novel of psychological realism and paranormal invasion set on Martha’s Vineyard. McCarthy will read excerpts from his novel and discuss how his writing was inspired by the ghost culture of Martha’s Vineyard and the craze for spiritualism in 19th century Massachusetts.

A moody, atmospheric and terrifying horror thriller reminiscent of classic Stephen King, “In the Midst of the Sea” is an impressive debut novel by a gifted new writer. Trapped in an isolated old house on Martha’s Vineyard in winter, Diane Barlow is either seeing ghosts or losing her mind. After an estrangement from her parents, Diane came to Martha’s Vineyard to start a new life with her husband Ford and young daughter Samantha. The beautiful Victorian house that Ford inherited seemed the perfect home for a fresh beginning. But in the winter, when the tourists go home and the island is deserted, Diane is afraid she’s going crazy. Specters of people long dead flicker in and out of her vision. The antique dolls in her house never stay where they’re put. Samantha suddenly has a whole group of imaginary friends who live in the house and tell her terrible things. And Ford is becoming increasingly moody, unpredictable, and violent. While Diane investigates the horrifying history of the house, the past, the present, the living and the dead fatally intertwine, and Diane realizes she and her daughter must escape — if Ford and the house will let her.