The Spirit Phone by Arthur Shattuck O'Keefe

​Some of the best books out there originate from the wildest yet not entirely implausible or at least somewhat fact-based What If premises. What IF Edison really did invent a phone to communicate with the dead?  Well, then, perhaps it would be up to one of the greatest inventors of the time and one of the greatest mages of the time to investigate the possibility. Between the two of them, they got magick and science on their side. They’ll astral project, evoke demon familiars, and have all sorts of adventures along the way making for a charmingly entertaining read. Through teleportation and conventional forms of travel, they’ll go wherever it takes to make sure the dead don’t talk back to much. Because you know how it is, once you give someone your phone number…
This is one of those debut novels that went firmly with maximalism and it’s easy to appreciate it, although it does get quite busy. The author throws in so many elements into this literary soup (real life historical figures and events, occult notions, wild speculations, etc.) that it, at times, turns into a stew, but overall, it’s got plenty of flavor and seasonings to delight. Ok, end of the culinary metaphor.
But basically, if you follow the plot, confusing and convoluted as it gets at times, it’s pretty fun. A pretty fun tale of historical speculative fiction. Thanks Netgalley.