Lodi’s tale of overgrown gardens, old maids and creepy statuary is a ghost story classic: it addresses the common theme of sexual frustration in the most elegant and subtle of ways. Take the sibilance, for example. When read aloud, there’s a consistent hiss we associate with serpents—a keen allusion to Eve’s tempting in the Garden. Makes sense: this Massachusetts manor’s garden is a twisted Eden. A stroke of genius. Don’t miss this one.

“The Face on the Garden Wall” can be found in Till Human Voices Wake Us…The Lost Ghost Stories of Edward Lodi, which was published in 2009 in a limited run of 400 copies. It’s a beautiful volume, and should be on every ghost story lover’s shelf. The original price was $27.50, and there are a couple near that in stock through Amazon Marketplace here: http://amzn.com/1934400157