We Hear the Dead - 9781402230929

It started out as a harmless prank. But soon enough, spiritualism was the fastest growing movement of the nineteenth century, and Maggie Fox was trapped in a life of deceit.

Meticulously researched by the author, We Hear the Dead reveals the secret of how the Fox sisters faked their rapping sounds and their motives for inventing the séance and founding spiritualism.

Maggie:
I began the deception when I was too young to know right from wrong. No one suspected us of any trick, because we were such young children. We were led on by my sister purposely and by my mother unintentionally. Only with the passing of time did I come to understand the consequences of my actions. As Doctor wrote to me: "Weary, weary is the life by cold deceit oppressed."

Kate:
My sister has used the word "deception." I object to her use of that word, for I do not believe that I have ever intentionally deceived anyone. Maggie has a different understanding of all the events that have happened since that night in Hydesville forty years ago. To her the spirits were always a game. For my sister Leah, they were a means to an end. For my mother, a miracle. And for me, they were my life's calling. I have no regrets.

PRAISE FOR WE HEARD THE DEAD

"The story's lively pace and dialogue are rife with wit, and the Fox sisters are captivating. Insightful and a great deal of fun."
Kirkus Discoveries

"The look at the tabloid-driven celebrity culture as it existed in the 1850s is absolutely priceless."
Blogger News Network

[We Hear the Dead] has high drama, high suspense, high romance, and high praise! Salerni knows how to engage an audience so that they won't need a bookmark!
Wisteria Leigh, The Bookworm's Dinner

[We Hear the Dead] is a fascinating book, made even more interesting by the fact that the story of the Fox sisters is based on truth. I enjoyed every second of reading it, and I can't recommend it highly enough. Readers will be swept along with Maggie and Kate as they bamboozle an entire nation, and will feel for Maggie as she debates whether or not to leave the profession and then has to deal with the consequences of her decision.
TeenReadsToo