THE WITCH

An unemployed 20-something probes her family’s dark history.

After losing her job and exhausting her savings, Julia Barlow decamps from her Manhattan apartment to her grandmother’s northern Massachusetts estate. Barlow family forefather Archibald Eldridge built Pemberton in 1660, and the Woodhaven Museum wants desperately to buy the property and open it to the public. Though Julia’s dad supports this plan, as he suspects Gram belongs in assisted living, Gram’s sister and roommate, Ethel, swears Gram is fine and opposes the deal. Julia promises to assess both Gram’s safety and handsome museum curator Henry Ziegler’s intentions, but she gets distracted from her mission by the vengeful spirit terrorizing Pemberton. According to Ethel, the ghost is that of Archibald’s first wife, Caroline, who was burned in the town square for witchcraft and then replaced as “Goodwife Eldridge” by her own servant, Barlow ancestor Molly. Before she can even contemplate convincing Gram to sell, Julia feels a duty to help Caroline find rest. And to do that, she must uncover the truth surrounding Caroline’s unjust conviction and execution. Julia’s and Caroline’s storylines unfold in tandem via alternating first-person present-tense chapters. Caroline’s tale is riveting thanks to high stakes and gratifying twists, but Julia’s account disappoints, with anemic plotting and insipid characters. While fear and paranoia suffuse Caroline’s narrative, creating tension and drive, McFadden’s modern-day frame offers little more than Scooby-Doo villains, chemistry-free romance, and lukewarm chills.

A diverting if largely forgettable trifle.