“THIS MAN...HE’S TAKING AWAY WHAT’S MOST SPECIAL, PIECE BY PIECE, MAKING US—” “NOBODY. HE’S MAKING US NOBODIES…NOTHING OF ANY USE TO ANYONE.” In this modern horror tale, a near-tragedy draws five childhood friends to their hometown of Mount Kisco, New York, twenty years since they last played together. There, they stop by an old, ramshackle house they often skipped around, uttering a chant learned from their parents. Circle the house three times, went the game, and listen for the knock. The knock from nobody. For old times’ sake, they walk around the place and stand before it. Empty for years, the house is slated for demolition. But the door cracks open. Curious, the friends climb the steps…and share an experience they cannot explain: the terror of being unseen. Over the weeks that follow, their lives shatter. Without our loved ones, our homes and our livelihoods, who are we, really? In writing The Knock from Nobody, Perratore set out to create a fresh take on a classic formula. "It's not a traditional horror book," the author says. "This is a very modern novel, especially when you think about the selfie generation. Everything is 'see me' as we participate in society. But what if something could take that away from us?" — The Mt. Kisco-Bedford Times, July 3-August 6, 2025