Christopher Caudwell (1907–1937)

The six queer things refers to six peculiar items found in a desk drawer of a murdered psychic medium. The story begins with an orphaned young woman in the care of a creepy uncle. Seemingly by chance, she meets a couple, brother and sister, who encourage her to seek employment with them. Doing what? Well, that's all rather vague, but the pay is enticing and what's better, they want her to live on the premises. What luck! Financial freedom and an escape from the awful uncle! When her first day on the job comes along, she finds that her duties are to be secretary for a psychic medium, documenting the events of seances as part of a study. She sits in on sessions and is amazed at how accurate the psychic is, especially when her own mother is channeled with specific messages for her. But soon she has trouble sleeping and worse, blackouts. She grows anxious and moody. What's going on?
I had hoped there would be more of a supernatural element, but this well-plotted story moves along quickly and has some interesting twists. I'm a sucker for a psychic medium/seance-based story. This was the kind of book that grabbed me, pushing aside those pesky tasks like cooking dinner. Enjoyed it much.
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