Winter

Tenney’s genre-blending novel combines a haunted-house mystery with artificial intelligence SF.

On the heels of a broken engagement, medical caseworker Charlie Braedon decides to buy an old, decrepit house at the top of a winding hill. It’s not an ideal situation, but it’s close to her clients, there’s plenty of space, and, to be honest, it’s the best place that she can afford. However, it’s not long before she starts hearing and seeing things there that just don’t make sense: Pictures on the wall apparently change on their own, furniture refuses to be moved, and, unnervingly, sudden ice storms blow into her kitchen. Also, everyone in the community seems to believe that the old monastery next door is haunted. If that wasn’t unsettling enough, she has to find time to check in with her AI medical agents every few days to avoid being dropped by her health insurance. Enter Aidric, an AI agent who’s earned himself the nickname “death-bot” for accurately predicting when people will meet their demise—and lately, his visions have become even harder to explain: “What he came to understand was that there was a presence in the building. A mind. Maybe it was his mind, but it did not feel like his mind.” For a story in which much of the plot centers around AI bots, Tenney’s tale has a lot of heart; the characters feel real and have a sense of humor about their situation: “She took more footage of the still frosted surfaces and thought, What next, fire?” The plot they inhabit features many twists and turns, and, as such, feels consistently fresh and fast-paced. Although haunted house stories are a well-worn genre, this novel offers an offbeat take, weaving elements of fantasy, mystery, SF, and detective fiction into something completely original.

A delightfully weird and surprising tale of the paranormal.