THE VANISHING

A séance gone horribly wrong, an old mansion in the middle of wilderness, an ancient library containing strange and exotic writings, paintings that seem to tremble with lives of their own, and one woman trying to navigate safely through it all—this is the story of The Vanishing. Julia Bishop has literally nothing after her husband's death. A supposed investment banker, her husband bilked hundreds of people out of their life savings in a Ponzi scheme, including Julia's closest friends and family. Now Julia is bankrupt and receiving daily death threats from those who think she was involved. So when Adrian Sinclair offers her a new life caring for his mother at Havenwood—a chance to drop out of sight and simply disappear—she doesn't have to think long before accepting. The catch is that Sinclair's mother is a famous writer, the “female Edgar Allen Poe,” who was thought to have been dead, and when Julia arrives, Amaris Sinclair doesn't seem to need caring for at all. Why did Amaris fake her death? Why was Julia really asked to come to Havenwood? With the help of the mysterious but delightful Drew McCullough, a descendant of the man who built Havenwood, Julia begins to investigate the house's secrets and the strange ties that seem to bind her to the house's history. Wendy Webb's second novel, The Fate of Mercy Alban (Hyperion, February 2013), hit the Heartland Indie bestseller list (where it spent five weeks) and the Michigan bookstores bestseller list. It was an Indie Next Pick, a Best Book featured pick on iTunes, and a Great Lake, Great Reads pick. Her first novel, The Tale of Halcyon Crane (Henry Holt, 2010), won the Minnesota Book Award and also hit two bestseller lists: the Michigan bookstores bestseller list and the Chicagoland independent bookstores bestseller list. It was a finalist for Michigan Notable Books and was named a top summer read by Traverse Magazine, an Indie Next Pick, and a Great, Lakes, Great Reads pick. It also sold in six countries. “[Webb] gives both Bram Stoker and Stephen King a run for their travel budget....Ghosts, violent death, witches—none of these terrible presences on the island hold a frightful candle to the psychological devastation at the outset of the novel....This internal horror outdistances the merely external threats imposed by Stoker and King....Like those journalistic masters Dickens and Twain before her, [Webb] knows [how] to write good travel prose.” –BookPage, on The Tale of Halcyon Crane "The eternal theme of the haunted house is appropriately modernized without losing any of its charm." --Le Monde (France), on The Tale of Halcyon Crane “Webb includes all the classic ghostly elements in her novel, but she gives the book a contemporary spin with a strong female protagonist.” — St. Paul Pioneer Press, on The Tale of Halcyon Crane “With intriguing characters, a vivid setting and gripping storytelling, this novel contains the ideal blend of sinister and charm.” — CityView, Iowa's ndependent Weekly, on The Tale of Halcyon Crane “This is what reading is supposed to be like: A story that comes across so well, so seamlessly that it is like a brain movie, that reminds you of the first books that kidnapped your attention....This is one of my favorites this year.” —Minnesota Reads, on The Tale of Halcyon Crane “Webb hits every note just right. It's hard to read a story like this and not compare the author to Stephen King, so I'm not going to do much of that, other than to say Webb carries a lot of the same power in her words.” — BlogCritic; Seattle Post Intelligencer, on The Tale of Halcyon Crane “Webb plots a tale rife with dark family secrets, hidden passageways, love, intrigue, and witchcraft.”—Kirkus, on The Fate of Mercy Alb “If you're craving a good old-fashioned ghost story to scare you on these cold nights, this is it.” --St. Paul Pioneer Press, on The Fate of Mercy Alban “All the elements of a downright haunting story - and it is. But there's also romance along the way to provide relief...Be prepared to be scared - and entertained.” --Star Tribune, on The Fate of Mercy Alban “After reading this book, I plan to keep Wendy on my radar... The Fate of Mercy Alban is a chilling, good read!” --Cheryl's Book Nook, on The Fate of Mercy Alban “Webb's novel had me hooked from the get go and I would not put it down until I had finished the last page...I got goosebumps a number of times whilst reading this book...I would definitely recommend The Fate of Mercy Alban to anyone and everyone who loves to read spooky novels.” --A Bookish Way of Life, on The Fate of Mercy Alban