|
|
Mind_Magic Inner circle The Sunshine State USA 1252 Posts |
If you are looking for a good spooky dark side reading, I high recommend you the novel "The Séance" by John Harwood; he also wrote the novel "The Ghost Writer" and won an International Horror award in 2004.
Editors Review: The Séance: the dark woods of the English countryside, the ruined mansion with secret passages and hidden chambers and fog on the moors. There's even a sarcophagus in a dead fireplace, a tricked-out suit of armor and some apparatus for collecting electricity when lightning strikes. Drafts blow out candles at the most inopportune times. The strongest characters in The Séance are two women of action. Constance Langton, the narrator of the story, has known little but grief in her young life. Her younger sister dies of scarlatina at the age of 2, and her mother goes into perpetual mourning. Poor Constance is ignored and abandoned by her distant father, and her only succor becomes the chance that a medium at a séance might provide a way for her mother to contact the dead child. But the dead rarely answer our calls, and when Constance pretends that they do, she brings down even greater sorrow. Her salvation seems to come from a sudden bequest by a distant relative. She inherits the foreboding Wraxford Hall and with it a packet of papers that reveals some of the reasons behind the disappearance, 25 years earlier, of Eleanor Unwin, her infant daughter and her mesmerizing and villainous husband. Eleanor's secret journal hints at the truth, and the two stories - Constance's and Eleanor's - mesh in the thrilling conclusion, the result of happy coincidences that devotees of Victorian novels may relish. Indeed, the ways in which Harwood plays with the conventions of the form provide the main source of delight. Enjoy It! |
Vic Nadata Special user Charlotte, NC 935 Posts |
Sounds cool. I will check it out. Thanks.
|
Brane Loyal user Virginia, USA 272 Posts |
Yes, I got this a couple weeks ago. Interesting premise, certainly, but I found it to be a rather 'easy' book to read. Predictable plot, for the most part, strictly by-the-numbers characters; familiar settings of big, old house with a formulaic mysterious history. No hard mental effort required.
It's sophistication level reminded me vaguely of an old Hardy Boy Mystery, in a sense, although a bit more adult in some subject matters. It would make a good 90 minute movie, I think. Magicians would like it. Not a bad read, but not one that requires much hard thought, as might a Sherlock Holmes mystery. A 'light' read. brane |
Chris H Inner circle Melbourne, Australia 1364 Posts |
Have added this to my long list of books to purchase when I'm in the UK at the end of the year. £5 at Waterstones, or $35 AU here. Only problem is my girlfriend gets a bit grouchy at all the extra weight we have to carry home after I've finished shopping.
Thanks for the tip Mind_Magic. Cheers, Chris |
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » The spooky, the mysterious...the bizarre! » » The Séance by John Harwood – A Victorian Novel (0 Likes) |
[ Top of Page ] |
All content & postings Copyright © 2001-2024 Steve Brooks. All Rights Reserved. This page was created in 0.01 seconds requiring 5 database queries. |
The views and comments expressed on The Magic Café are not necessarily those of The Magic Café, Steve Brooks, or Steve Brooks Magic. > Privacy Statement < |