This Cursed House By Del Sandeen

In this haunting Southern gothic debut, set in the fall of 1962, The Curse of the Duchons follows twenty-seven-year-old Jemma Barker, a young Black woman struggling to escape her life in Chicago, where she’s haunted by the spirits only she can see. Desperate for a fresh start, she accepts a mysterious job offer from the wealthy Duchon family in New Orleans. However, upon her arrival, Jemma quickly realizes that this family is not what they seem.

The Duchons are a Black family who pass for white, yet their disdain for Jemma’s brown skin is palpable. Their eccentric behavior and their crumbling mansion are shrouded in mystery. Haughty grandmother Honorine and alluring cousin Fosette are just two of the figures that perplex Jemma. But the most shocking revelation comes when Jemma learns the truth: the Duchon family is cursed. Generations of them have suffered under this dark spell, and they believe Jemma is the key to breaking it.

As Jemma grapples with her unwanted gift of seeing spirits, she uncovers the Duchons' deep and disturbing family secrets—secrets that reach back over a century, revealing connections between her own fate and theirs. With the curse looming and her own powers emerging, Jemma must decide whether to embrace the ability she’s long feared or let the Duchons—and herself—succumb to the dark forces that bind them. 📚❤️