The Ghost Writer (2004)

SPIRITED MYSTERY Harwood's first novel breathes new life into the Victorian ghost story

With The Ghost Writer, his intricate and engrossing first novel, John Harwood raises the ghost of the Victorian ghost story, goosing the action with a modern spin. Gerard Freeman, growing up in Australia with his secretive British-born mother, stumbles across a puzzling photograph and later an eerie short story written by his great-grandmother. Given Mom's violent response to his first discovery -- ''Tufts of hair stuck out from her head; the whites of her eyes seemed to be spilling out of their sockets'' -- Gerard senses that herein lies a clue to her mysterious past. Meanwhile, he acquires a seductive British pen pal named Alice who, over the years, is strangely unavailable whenever Gerard visits England. Add to that a creaky old house, a long-ago love triangle, and some antique radiation instruments, and you've got one ghoulishly absorbing read.