The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts

A grieving woman loses her tether to reality in the alluring if uneven latest from Fu (Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century). Therapist Eleanor impulsively buys her first house as a kind of homage to her mother, Lele, who has recently died. Before long, the rashness of the purchase, which Eleanor could barely afford after exhausting her modest inheritance, becomes apparent. She struggles to maintain the house and keep up her obligations to clients, and a return visit to the apartment she gave up only increases her buyer’s remorse. Fu explores her protagonist’s difficulties in coping with grief via the tropes of psychological thrillers and horror novels. The narrative keeps a tight and sometimes claustrophobic focus on the increasingly disassociated Eleanor, who perceives the rain that floods her home as endless, while servicemen arrive like invaders to repair the damage. The significance of Eleanor’s devotion to her mother’s memory remains hazy, though Fu sketches a vivid portrait of mental fragility in the face of such an overwhelming situation, one that will resonate with any new homeowner. This offbeat tale has its moments. Agent: Jackie Kaiser, Westwood Creative Artists. (Mar.)