INTO THE ATTIC

A novel that offers a multilayered exploration of the afterlife, grief, and moving on.

Sherman opens each chapter of this novel with a fortune-cookie message, and the first summarizes a major theme of the novel: “Sift through your past to get a better idea of the present.” The plot revolves around 59-year-old Caroline Gregorian, a writer unraveling the threads of her tragic history. Nineteen years ago, she lost her husband, Michael, and parents, Bernice and Norman, in a car accident. Since then, she seems to have moved on, having found a different and possibly better partner in her current husband, Philip, and successfully raised her children Julie and Mark with him while advancing her writing career. As she sorts through her attic at Thanksgiving, she’s stunned to encounter her lost family members as ghosts. As they speak of a mysterious afterlife, they seem to be exactly how she remembers them—at least at first. However, she’s soon forced to rethink her family history and marriage, as each loved one reveals a different secret that involves a misunderstanding that they now endeavor to reconcile. Meanwhile, Caroline and Philip must address issues involving money and their own relationship. Over the course of this novel, Sherman brings the past into contact with the present to illustrate what it means to come to terms with one history and truly let go of the past. Supernatural elements, introduced early on, create a sense of mystery and suspense, while a poignant, deeply emotional tone is established well through Caroline’s perspective. Although some of the characters’ secrets feel clichéd, others make for intriguing plot twists. The book’s interest in showing parents and children exploring gender identity is admirable, but the execution feels trite and unrealistic; in particular, Caroline’s struggle with a nonbinary character’s pronouns feels overdone. Overall, though, Sherman’s prose style shows appealing moments of wit, and she successfully conveys a key message: “Everyone has a different version of the past, even if you were in the same room.”

An often haunting story about memory and loss.