Inamorata

For a debut novel, the writing style is well-honed, with a polished investigative style to it, even if the plot has its odd hiccups. This story has a lot of the journalistic flavour and the wonderful team dynamics of Caleb Carr's [The Alienist], the differences being that instead of tracking a serial killer in cosmopolitan New York City in a race against time, the investigative team in this story is trying to debunk a possible society psychic fraud in Quaker-based Philadelphia, all in the interests of science and ensuring that the prize money goes to an actual psychic. For me, this story has pluses that made it an enjoyable read. For starters, Martin isn't as naive as he comes across. Hapless when it comes to love, but he still retains show more a good scientific mind that just keeps analyzing and paying attention to the little details, even when his heart is trying to get him to stop thinking. The clues and insights are doled out in a slow, steady fashion in pace with the plot, so I was able to settle in, enjoy the story and not feel rushed by events or a sudden landslide of information to digest. The historical elements of the time period are captured well here giving the story an interesting balance of history and science that seems to work well. You don't have to be a believer in Spiritualism to enjoy this one... if anything, Gangemi may slightly tug at your shirt sleeve to lead you into wondering what is real and what is all a charade. The following quote from the master of illusion himself, Harry Houdini, brings it all home:

"I have read with keen curiosity the articles by leading scientists on the subject of psychic phenomena... The fact that they are scientists does not endow them with an especial gift for detecting the particular sort of fraud used by mediums, nor does it bar them from being deceived."

show less

Inamorata is an intriguing glimpse into the 1920’s infatuation with spiritualism and séances. Gangemi provides a detailed backdrop of the Roaring Twenties in this intellectual and sometimes eerie portrayal of medium Mina Crawley. Although this novel is mysterious in tone, do not expect that all clues will be tied up in the end like a proper cozy mystery. Some readers might feel disappointment that the end does not provide neat and logical explanations – but this is the crux of the matter when it comes to the story of Mina – no simple explanations were ever satisfactory. Gangemi has based his character on a real-life medium, Mina Crandon, who was investigated by the Scientific American in the 20’s. Houdini believed she was a show more fraud, but some of the explanations (see Polidoro’s “Final Séance” for some grotesque examples) were so far-fetched that it is almost easier to believe in the spooks! Thus, Gangemi has taken the right path in allowing the readers glimpses of variously colored and textured threads (the window ledge, the ex-husband, the cigarette burns, the “Twilight” drug) without ever revealing the entire tapestry of Mina’s mediumship. The novel Inamorata and the fictional Mina are as complex and perplexing as the historical events which inspired them. show less

There is another book, Gabriel Brownstein's "The Man From Beyond", which also looks at Margery, a medium discovered by Arthur Conan Doyle. Margery was actually one Mina Crandon in real life, and Conan-Doyle would sing her praises to anyone who would listen. Also in real life, a team of investigators from Scientific American (which had offered a $5000 prize to anyone who could produce some psychic phenonmena "$2,500 to the first person who produces a psychic photograph under its test conditions" and "$2,500 to the first person who produces a visible psychic manifestation of other character . . . to the full satisfaction of these judges."

In Inamorata, Gangemi's Mina is Mina Crawley, and he offers the reader a different look at her than show more did Brownstein in his novel -- going into her story a bit more in-depth, using the character Martin Finch as his narrator. Finch's mentor, who is on the Scientific American investigative committee, has a fall which leads to broken bones, not allowing him to attend the committee's meeting with Margery, and sends Finch instead. Finch is to keep in contact with the professor each day and let him know what's going on. Normally, Finch is the first on the scene to be able to figure out what mechanism spiritualists use to make their phenomena appear, but this time things are a bit different. Finch falls for Mina, and this leads to all kinds of trouble that I won't go into here; suffice it to say this one is a page turner to the end.

The book itself is also a good look at the Boston and Philadelphia of the day. Period details are quite fun in the right hands, and I'd say that Gangemi has captured another day in his writing. Overall, this was a fine novel, and I definitely HIGHLY recommend it. show less