Open House by Craig N. Owens

John and Mary have moved from Chicago to a rural Iowa college town where John has secured an endowed professorship. They left Chicago not just for the attractive charms of small-town life, but also to leave behind some troubling history. On the morning of a neighborhood historic-home tour and open house, their college-aged son, Jesse, and his on-again-off-again girlfriend, Emily, arrive unexpectedly. This visit reveals that history has an uncanny way of following them and that their efforts to escape have only hastened its pursuit. John, Mary, Jesse and Emily find themselves faced with the sudden demand that they make decisions about life, love, and family, decisions that they are not fully prepared to make, though make them they must.