What do you think?
Rate this book
Signs of the South
Ella Giancetti thought certain things had ended in the South, like segregation and signs announcing 'Whites Only'. When she moves to Paterson, Virginia, though, she quickly discovers that, though the signs might be gone, some of the attitudes remain...
Accepting her first job as a college professor in a different state is supposed to be the start of a new life as Ella heals from the death of her mother. Trying to balance preparations for the new semester with incessant phone calls from her abrasive sister Lisa is difficult enough before complications appear. Someone already hates her enough to vandalize her house, and there's a constant supply of unannounced visitors, like her enigmatic landlord, her eccentric older neighbor, a handsome police officer, and a ghost.
Of the three, the ghost is the real problem. It appears in her dreams, it appears in person. It makes a mess.
Ella needs to know how this young Black woman became a ghost if she ever wants to have a peaceful night in her new home. Working to find out who is threatening her and why, she can't help wondering about the irony of seeing other people's ghosts - but not her own mother, whom she desperately misses. As the history of the town of Paterson and the house she lives in is uncovered, Ella wonders if the past is truly the past and questions what will happen once she finds the truth about the events of 1960.
Accepting her first job as a college professor in a different state is supposed to be the start of a new life as Ella heals from the death of her mother. Trying to balance preparations for the new semester with incessant phone calls from her abrasive sister Lisa is difficult enough before complications appear. Someone already hates her enough to vandalize her house, and there's a constant supply of unannounced visitors, like her enigmatic landlord, her eccentric older neighbor, a handsome police officer, and a ghost.
Of the three, the ghost is the real problem. It appears in her dreams, it appears in person. It makes a mess.
Ella needs to know how this young Black woman became a ghost if she ever wants to have a peaceful night in her new home. Working to find out who is threatening her and why, she can't help wondering about the irony of seeing other people's ghosts - but not her own mother, whom she desperately misses. As the history of the town of Paterson and the house she lives in is uncovered, Ella wonders if the past is truly the past and questions what will happen once she finds the truth about the events of 1960.
- GenresMystery
216 pages, Paperback
First published November 28, 2011
132 people want to read
About the author
Narielle Living
20 books20 followersI’m fortunate to be able to follow my lifelong dream and write all the stories that are in my head. I’ve always loved reading, and am a big fan of mystery, suspense and thriller novels. As a kid, I couldn't get through breakfast without reading the back of the cereal box.
When I was nine years old I borrowed (read: took) my brother’s typewriter to create my first short story, an apocalyptic zombie tale that will lie forever hidden in a box in the attic. It was not my finest work, but I sure had fun creating it.
I believe the most important thing in life is to be kind to each other, remembering we’re all connected. My stories illuminate both the connections as well as the disconnections that create the fabric of our world.
When I was nine years old I borrowed (read: took) my brother’s typewriter to create my first short story, an apocalyptic zombie tale that will lie forever hidden in a box in the attic. It was not my finest work, but I sure had fun creating it.
I believe the most important thing in life is to be kind to each other, remembering we’re all connected. My stories illuminate both the connections as well as the disconnections that create the fabric of our world.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
October 4, 2021
This book I couldn't put down.... and I'm glad to see there is another book with Katie, Ella and I hope Roland on the way. I love these characters.
A ghost blended in with a non-preachy stance on racism brings Signs of the South to the top of my list. Ella takes a teaching position in Patterson, Virginia, a new start after her mothers death. She soon discovers that a past resident has never left the house. Having angered a prejudiced person, she also has to deal with threats from the outside.
This book was fun, even though lightlytouching on such a sensative subject. The characters were great and make you want to visit then again in Patterson, Virginia.
A ghost blended in with a non-preachy stance on racism brings Signs of the South to the top of my list. Ella takes a teaching position in Patterson, Virginia, a new start after her mothers death. She soon discovers that a past resident has never left the house. Having angered a prejudiced person, she also has to deal with threats from the outside.
This book was fun, even though lightlytouching on such a sensative subject. The characters were great and make you want to visit then again in Patterson, Virginia.
April 12, 2021
A friend of mine's niece wrote this book. She asked if I would read it and let her know what I thought. It was awhile ago but I liked it very much and I saved it on my Kindle which I don't if I don't like the book!
February 5, 2012
Sometimes we create our own ghosts. Some ghosts are the result of the “what ifs?” in our lives, often the product of regret. But then there are the ghosts of strangers that come unbidden into our lives—a specter unable to rest due to some injustice done it at a time before we came to exist. Signs of the South is a story about such a ghost.
Ella Giancetti leaves Connecticut in the aftermath of her mother’s death, as much to escape her overbearing and overprotective sister as to accept a job as a college professor in Paterson, Virginia. She rents a house, sight unseen, and soon after moving in, strange happenings begin to occur—late at night she hears screams, her pots and pans in the kitchen are thrown about, and Ella sees the figure of a young black woman.
Throw into the mix the strange dreams that haunt Ella’s sleep—dreams in which she seems to witness events of fifty years ago—and you have the makings of quite a ghost story. But Signs is more.
Ella discovers that prejudice exists, even in the twenty-first century. Soon after arriving in Paterson, she learns the locals view her as an outsider—a damn Yankee; a Yankee who doesn’t go home.
We like to think that we, as a species, are above prejudice, that we’ve outgrown it; but the truth is we still judge others on race, gender, religion and caste. All prejudice is based on fear, the result of the pay it forward mentality taught us by previous generations. When will we grow up, learn to see each other as men and women, with no care to color, belief and class? Signs subtly puts forth these questions.
Ella makes two good friends, colleagues with whom she’ll work once the new semester commences, and she manages to befriend an elderly neighbor who maintains a dialogue with her deceased husband, and Signs suddenly becomes a mystery, a whodunit as Ella and company strive to uncover the truth behind the mysterious disappearance of a young black woman in a segregated south of fifty years ago who dared to love a white man.
A fine debut novel from Narielle Living.
Ella Giancetti leaves Connecticut in the aftermath of her mother’s death, as much to escape her overbearing and overprotective sister as to accept a job as a college professor in Paterson, Virginia. She rents a house, sight unseen, and soon after moving in, strange happenings begin to occur—late at night she hears screams, her pots and pans in the kitchen are thrown about, and Ella sees the figure of a young black woman.
Throw into the mix the strange dreams that haunt Ella’s sleep—dreams in which she seems to witness events of fifty years ago—and you have the makings of quite a ghost story. But Signs is more.
Ella discovers that prejudice exists, even in the twenty-first century. Soon after arriving in Paterson, she learns the locals view her as an outsider—a damn Yankee; a Yankee who doesn’t go home.
We like to think that we, as a species, are above prejudice, that we’ve outgrown it; but the truth is we still judge others on race, gender, religion and caste. All prejudice is based on fear, the result of the pay it forward mentality taught us by previous generations. When will we grow up, learn to see each other as men and women, with no care to color, belief and class? Signs subtly puts forth these questions.
Ella makes two good friends, colleagues with whom she’ll work once the new semester commences, and she manages to befriend an elderly neighbor who maintains a dialogue with her deceased husband, and Signs suddenly becomes a mystery, a whodunit as Ella and company strive to uncover the truth behind the mysterious disappearance of a young black woman in a segregated south of fifty years ago who dared to love a white man.
A fine debut novel from Narielle Living.
November 9, 2022
I quite enjoyed this book. For one thing it was set in the location I live in so I could relate to many of the settings. And it included a hurricane - something we generally have to deal with every other year. It was a great little mystery with a ghost! What's not to like? I'm just about to start the sequel. Recommended!
May 12, 2014
What a fantastic read! Thought-provoking, witty, and bloody scary - everything I look for in a novel. Pacing, writing-style, tension, all top notch!
A must for all (not just horror fans!)
A must for all (not just horror fans!)
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews