A Stir of Echoes by Richard Matheson

 

I listened to the unabridged audio version of A Stir of Echoes by Richard Matheson and narrated by Scott Brick. 

Listening time for A Stir of Echoes by Richard Matheson is 6 hours, 44 minutes.

A Stir of Echoes is the 3rd book I've read written by Richard Matheson. I can officially say I am now a HUGE fan of Matheson's writing and look forward to reading more of his books in the future. A Stir of Echoes is very well narrated by Scott Brick.

What did I love about A Stir of Echoes? Just about everything! There were only a couple of minor issues, which didn't deter from my overall rating. 

Richard Matheson is a masterful writer. He really knows how to pace his novels and build intrigue and suspense. With each passing chapter, I found myself wanting to keep listening to see what transpire with the characters, the plot, and storyline. 

A Stir of Echoes was published in 1958 and is set in the 1950s in Hawthorne, California. The main characters are Tom and Ann Wallace. They are a young couple with a young son and Ann is pregnant with their second child. 

At the start of A Stir of Echoes, Ann's brother, Philip, is visiting Tom and Ann. Tom, Ann, and Philip go to a neighbor's dinner party early on in the novel. After dinner, Philip hypnotizes Tom as a party trick as a way to entertain the dinner guests. 

After everyone goes home for the night, Tom begins to experiences strange things throughout the rest of the novel... Like reoccurring ghost sightings of the same woman in their home, premonitions, nightmares, the ability to sense what other people are thinking and feeling, automatic writing, and so on.

Initially, both Tom and Ann don't understand what's going on with Tom since the hypnosis session. Ann is concerned and scared that Tom's losing his mind, which causes stress and tension in their marriage. 

As Tom and Ann both try and figure out what's going on with Tom and why he's experiencing what he is, there's also the mystery of the ghostly apparition that keeps reaching out to Tom and who she is. Come to find, the ghost is a woman who was murdered in the very home in which they live. Tom and Ann eventually figure out who the murdered woman was and who murdered her.

There's so much more to A Stir of Echoes. I simply gave broad brushstrokes to the storyline to prevent giving away too much of the plot twists and finer details for those that may want to read this novel for themselves.

Below is the plot summary for A Stir of Echoes by Richard Matheson discovered on Amazon's website:

This eerie ghost story, from Richard Matheson, the award-winning author of Hell House and I Am Legend, inspired the acclaimed 1999 film starring Kevin Bacon.

Tom Wallace lived an ordinary life, until a chance event awakened psychic abilities he never knew he possessed. Now he's hearing the private thoughts of the people around him-and learning shocking secrets he never wanted to know. But as Tom's existence becomes a waking nightmare, even greater jolts are in store as he becomes the unwilling recipient of a compelling message from beyond the grave!

I am giving A Stir of Echoes by Richard Matheson a rating of 5 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!