They're Only Dolls. Truly. We Mean It.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: One little question: A haunted doll? I know some of you Reds and Readers are late night/early morning readers, and we love that, and I certainly don’t want to introduce any unseemly thoughts into your impending dreams. In fact, you miiiight want to look at the photos, um, in the light of day.

If you are still with me, to you, I’ll just say: Aren’t dolls adorable?

I was not big on dolls growing up—in fact, proof positive, here’s a hilarious photo of me, at age about three? two?, trying to CRAM a dress onto a doll that apparently wouldn’t behave.

And now, reading this by the oh-so-intriguing Susan Furlong, I wonder if there was something about that doll I didn’t know. Hmmm…


Haunted Dolls, Hexes, and Holy Water
   by Susan Furlong

"Write what you know" is misleading. If you don’t think so, let me ask you as a reader: Do you want to read about someone doing laundry, running kids around town, or maybe searching supermarket aisles for the cheapest can of tuna? Because that’s mostly what this mom and writer knows. I think we can all agree, it’s best for me to write what I don’t know.

For example, in my latest story What They Don’t Know (do you detect a theme here?) my main character, Mona Ellison, collects dolls. Something I’ve personally never done. Mona, however, is an avid collector and she doesn’t just collect dolls, she painstakingly tends to each one of them by mending their clothing and their broken parts, even talking to them. The kicker— sometimes they talk back. Well, at least Mona believes her dolls talk to her. As Mona confronts the lies of the real people around her, she hears the whispered counsel of her beloved dolls … and she does what they tell her.

Do guardian spirits or malicious miscreants embody her dolls? Or are the dolls haunted at all? You, the reader, will have to decide.

While it’s unknown if Mona’s dolls are haunted, or if her mind has fabricated it all, the idea of the possibility of dolls possessed by spirits intrigued me. During research, I happened upon a series of podcasts and books written by paranormal investigator Kevin Cain who collects dolls that have been involved in ghostly and sometimes criminal activities. He considers these dolls to be haunted and who's to say he's wrong? So, when my publicist presented an opportunity to write an article for CrimeReads Magazine, we decided that a lot of folks might be intrigued by both Kevin’s paranormal collection and his related investigations.

Mind you, I’ve been on many research trips, all in the name of getting the facts right. Some have turned out to be wonderful, like tasting my way through the mid-Georgia back country for recipes to include in my culinary cozies, the Georgia Peach series. Other trips have been a little more adventurous, like meeting up with some unsavory types on a remote stretch of the Appalachian Trail while researching The Bone Gap Travellers series. But this would be the first time I’ve faced down anything paranormal.

Ready to learn more about something I didn't yet understand, I hit the road to Birmingham and the home of paranormal enthusiast and author, Kevin Cain, and his collection of over two hundred haunted dolls. 

Dolls from all walks of life: porcelains and vinyls, Madame Alexanders and Amelias, Chatty Kathys, too. And all, according to Kevin, have one thing in common; they each come with a spirit attached.

Mostly good spirits, he assured me.

Ah, mostly?

Yes, Kevin confirmed. A couple of dolls in his collection proved to have malicious spirits attached to them, but not to worry, the bad spirits have been contained.

This is where I hesitated, with visions of Chucky and Annabelle zipping through my brain. And one question lingered in my mind: Do I really believe in hauntings?

Well, I do believe in spirits, like the Holy Spirit and prowling diabolical spirits seeking the ruination of souls. But do I believe in hauntings, where a person or object is inhabited by a specter of sorts? Specifically, is there such a thing as a haunted doll?

I still don’t have the answer to that. But that day as I knocked on Kevin’s door for an interview, I was prepared not only with a slew of questions and a camera for photos, but I also had a vial of holy water tucked in my pocket. I mean, why take chances? We’ve all heard the term, stranger than fiction, right?

As it turned out, I had nothing to worry about. Kevin Cain is a delightful gentleman, and he was gracious enough to share his experiences with me, like a paranormal investigation of a crime scene and the doll attached to its owner’s mysterious death. Are his items haunted? Some would say so. As for those malicious dolls he had in his collection … well … that’s a story for another day. But if you’d like to know how my research plays out in What They Don’t Know, please purchase a copy to learn more about Mona, her dolls, and the mysterious (dare I say murderous?) happenings that plague her once peaceful suburban life.

Before clicking over to your favorite book purchasing venue, comment below and let me know: Do you believe in hauntings? And if so, have you experienced one yourself?

HANK: Okay, Reds and Readers. This I GOTTA hear! Or--what was your favorite doll growing up? Or...was she a lot like mine? (And I must say, I hesitated before posting a couple of Susan's doll photos. Ahhh...)

And any questions for Susan? Or are you...hiding now?

Susan Furlong is the author of several mysteries including the acclaimed Bone Gap Travellers series, and Shattered Justice, a New York Times Best Crime Novel of the Year. She also contributes, under a penname, to the New York Times bestselling Novel Idea series. Her eleventh novel, What They Don't Know, will release in May 2022. She resides in Illinois with her husband and children.

WHAT THEY DON’T KNOW
A picture-perfect suburban life fractures . . . and a darker reality bubbles beneath the surface.

Mona Ellison's life is as perfect as the porcelain dolls lined up on her shelves. She has a successful husband, a loving son, a beautiful home, and a supportive group of girlfriends ever ready for their weekly wine night.

But when Mona’s son gets entangled with the wrong crowd and runs away from home, her blissful suburban world begins to unravel. She tells her friends that boys will be boys, that he’ll be back as soon as his money runs dry . . . but deep down she knows there’s something else going on.

Then the police show up at Mona’s door. A young girl has turned up dead in their quiet town, and her missing son is the prime suspect.

Determined to reunite with her son and prove his innocence, Mona follows an increasingly cryptic trail of clues on social media, uncovering a sinister side of suburbia and unveiling lies and betrayal from those she trusted most. And as Mona spirals further from her once cozy reality, a devastating revelation shatters everything she thought she knew. Now the only thing she’s sure of is that she can’t trust anyone . . . not even herself.

With unrelenting psychological suspense and a wicked twist, What They Don’t Know marries small-town thriller and domestic mystery—suburban paranoia at its best.

Purchase What They Don’t Know: https://tinyurl.com/4bw5uszk

Connect with Susan: 

Website: www.susanfurlong.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SusanFurlongAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Furlong_Sue

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susanfurlong/

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/susan-furlong