The Tulip Tree

the long version

From the first, the old Hudson Valley house with a mysterious and violent history had a haunting impact on young Josephine Watts. Her premonitions of evil began with finding a dead starling in the fireplace. Then Benjy, a menacing and grotesque native, appeared and her dread increased. Soon the exotic and malevolent Clarissa, who lived just down the road, made her sinister influence felt at the house. Slowly the dark spirits of the mansion worked their strange powers on Josephine, and bit by bit the horror, tragedy and mysterious secret of its accursed history began enveloping her in a grip of shattering terror....that threatened her sanity and her life. from Goodreads