The Cliffs: Reese’s Book Club : A Novel – J. Courtney Sullivan

The Cliffs follows Jane Flanagan, a Harvard archivist grappling with personal and professional turmoil, as she returns to her coastal Maine hometown. The story centers on a mysterious lavender Victorian house perched on seaside cliffs—a place Jane once used as a teenage refuge from her unstable mother. Now gutted and renovated by a wealthy newcomer, Genevieve, the house becomes a catalyst for uncovering centuries of secrets. Jane is hired to research its history, revealing tales of lost lovers, colonial exploitation, and Indigenous resilience. Sullivan weaves together past and present, exploring themes of motherhood, addiction, and the ghosts that linger in both families and landscapes.

The novel delves into the lives of women across generations, from 19th-century settlers to Shaker communities and the Indigenous tribes displaced by colonialism. Jane’s journey intertwines with Genevieve’s unsettling belief that the house is haunted, prompting questions about guilt, legacy, and the stories we bury. Sullivan’s prose balances eerie atmospherics with heartfelt character studies, creating a narrative that feels both intimate and expansive. The cliffs themselves emerge as a symbol of permanence amid shifting lives, while the house’s transformation mirrors the characters’ struggles to reconcile past and present.

Rich in historical detail, the book critiques colonialism’s lasting impact and the erasure of marginalized voices. Mediums, past-life regressions, and spiritualism thread through the plot, blurring lines between the living and the dead. Jane’s battle with her family’s alcoholism and her fractured marriage add emotional depth, grounding the supernatural elements in raw human experience. Sullivan’s layered storytelling invites readers to reflect on how history shapes identity—and how the past is never truly gone.