Sour Cherry

Theodoridou debuts with a scorching ghost story derived from the French folktale “Bluebeard.” The unnamed narrator, a single mother, tries to explain to her young daughter why their apartment is occupied by the bloodied ghosts of women. Attempting a child-friendly version of the truth, she offers a riff on “Bluebeard,” telling her daughter about the ghosts’ origin stories. Among them are wet nurse Agnes, who ventures to the remote manor of Lord Malcolm and his wife to tend to their unnamed infant son, where she discovers the child has sharp teeth, foreboding eyes, an “earthy smell,” and long fingernails. The boy grows up with a cursed and destructive nature; every woman he marries is horrifically abused and murdered before she returns as a vengeful ghost. The women’s accounts start to feel repetitive, and the conclusion is a bit rushed, but Theodoridou grimly explores themes of gender oppression and domestic violence as the evil man’s wives vanish and are replaced one by one. This dark allegory will linger in readers’ minds. Agent: Danya Kukafka, Trellis Literary. (Apr.)