The Ghost Network is a fascinating blend of research and investigative reporting. The Situationists referred to throughout the piece are compelling and make for an intriguing read. Catie Disabato integrates the history of this movement with a number of Chicago disappearances in order to create a tense voyage of the seedy underbelly of both the city and of a pop-star’s sudden vanishing act. Fiction and fact are blended seamlessly in this book and Disabato regularly reminds us of the many connections between present and past. While the narrative can sometimes be difficult to follow because of the footnotes contributed by both the fictional author, Cyrus Archer, and Disabato herself, the confusion does not pull the reader away from the story. I would recommend this story to anyone who wanted more from a research paper or who is interested in the conjunction of non-fiction and fiction.       

Disabato’s characters are not forthcoming, which certainly adds to the tension and the drama of the book. They are real and flawed. Their loyalties shift along with their emotions. What stands out most of all about the characters, however, are their strong relationships with each other. Even when old ties are cut, or friendships fade, secrets are never shared. The novel is as much a story of a budding lesbian relationship as much as it is an investigation into Chicago’s mysterious disappearances. Pop star Molly Metropolis is a passionate and quirky character with ties to real-world pop star Janelle Monáe. Sometimes Disabato’s book reads as a tribute to celebrity and drops various cultural references that would be difficult to grasp outside of a certain generation, however, there’s nothing mentioned that a little research wouldn’t reveal. While I was disappointed by the fact that none of the links mentioned in the footnotes worked for me when I tried them on my computer, I did enjoy the way Disabato tied all of the pieces of a messy story together. While I found this a slow read, I was eventually pulled into the world of these characters and found myself following along with their same emotions as they discovered and were disappointed again and again. 

© 2015 Catia Cunha

Catia Cunha has a BA in Theater Arts and English from Mount Holyokc College. She won Young Playwrights Inc.’s 2013 National Playwriting Competition where her short play “Legs” was presented as a staged reading at the Lucille Lortel Theatre at the culmination of the Conference. In the spring of 2013 she produced and acted in her first full-length play, ____space, which was presented at Mount Holyoke. Catia’s senior project, Disinsemination, a play about feminist lesbians and aliens, was presented as a staged reading at Smith College and Mount Holyoke in Fall 2013. Mount Holyoke’s Rooke Theatre produced it in March 2014. In October 2014 Catia participated in the Grex Group’s Insomniacs 24-hour play festival. She is currently working on a play about sea monsters in the subway.