Whoa. I loved this - except for one thing: I figured out the end (definitively) 2/3 of the way through, and then I was just impatient for the end.
Ann Whoa. I loved this - except for one thing: I figured out the end (definitively) 2/3 of the way through, and then I was just impatient for the end.
Ann is a recent art history grad from Washington State who hasn’t managed to land a coveted position in a PhD program. Instead, she’ll be a summer intern at the Met. However, after she arrives, she’s told that her internship position is gone - the person who was supposed to mentor her for the summer is now abroad instead. Moments from being fired, she’s seemingly rescued by Patrick, curator at The Cloisters, who needs help over the summer with an upcoming exhibition on the occult. (If you aren’t familiar with The Cloisters, look it up - it’s part of the Met, but in a totally different location, and really amazing.) Rachel, also working with Patrick, and Leo, gardener at The Cloisters, round out the main characters. It turns out they each have secrets and motives Ann doesn’t initially understand, but an unexpected historical discovery reveals the true natures of those she has become closest to over the summer - even though the evidence of their characters was present all along.
This is such a fantastic intellectual thriller. Hays, like other academics, can write in fabulous detail about her subject matter, lending a depth to the setting and details that would be unavailable to most authors. I loved the historical minutiae and details about the occult, and the descriptions of the museum were evocative and believable. The Cloisters ARE enchanting and amazing with their walled-off gardens and chapels and sarcophagi. If not for the other visitors (damn NY for always being crowded!) you could let your imagination run wild and really believe you were walking in the thirteenth century. Hays captured that sensation beautifully, both with the setting and with the art, and frankly with most of the other settings as well. The one place I felt she portrayed romantically rather than factually was the area around The Cloisters. The last time I was there, it was ok, but certainly not bucolic, and there are safety issues in that area of upper Manhattan. Characters are well developed and distinct, and though I didn’t really relate well to any of them, their actions and speech were true to character.
The story is a bit of a slow build. I know some have complained about pacing. I did not have that issue with the book but I do think that the end was a little more drawn out than necessary. I also would have introduced the key discovery differently. Regardless, I don’t think the book drags. It’s about the art of long-dead people, modern rediscovery of said art, decoding of language, and intellectual growth. There are no bombs that go off in academia. Someone has to notice the discovery and call it out.
Anyway. Took off a half star because of the drawn out ending, and the fact that I guessed what was going to happen by 70%. But still 4.5 stars. Enjoy it!!...more
I really really wanted to like this. I am not giving an official star rating but let’s just say I had high but unrealized hopes for this. Morton has bI really really wanted to like this. I am not giving an official star rating but let’s just say I had high but unrealized hopes for this. Morton has been recommended to me many times and I was prepared to love her work. This, however, was not that book. The story of a creepy castle, three aging spinster sisters haunted by the past, a mysterious connection, and long-kept secrets…The book has all the ingredients for a fabulous gothic novel. Just a hint of the supernatural, madness, creativity - what’s not to love? However, it is overwritten, swimming in excess detail likely meant to create atmosphere. Little is left to the reader’s imagination; suspenseful circumstances are broken up, interrupting the flow of curiosity; the secrets of the characters are withheld far too long. I could have slashed 30% of the book and it would have lost nothing PLUS it would have been more compelling. I think the core problem is that in providing too much detail and withholding too much critical information, the pacing was off and the reader is lost. My understanding is that there are better Morton books so I will try another, but this was not my favorite....more
Celia Sands, a young actress, is asked to star in a play that was written for her namesake... the first Celia Sands, who disappeared mysteriously at tCelia Sands, a young actress, is asked to star in a play that was written for her namesake... the first Celia Sands, who disappeared mysteriously at the height of her career. The play was written by the first Celia's lover, playwright Galeazzo d'Ascanio. It is Galeazzo's grandson, Alessandro, who is producing the play, and Celia's father-figure, Rupert, who is directing. Although this initially seems to be a career opportunity and a chance to spend time with a loved one for Celia, she rapidly becomes entangled with mysteries old and new at the remote Italian villa where the play will be staged.
This book is one of Kearsley's earlier novels, and it's not quite as gracefully executed as her later books. Like her later books, she has rather gracefully intertwined fantasy, historical fiction, the supernatural, and a modern story. Unlike later books, the past is neither as vivid nor as intertwined in the present. The book is a little long for what it is and it took time to really get started, but it was enjoyable once I got into it. ...more
My Cousin Rachel is an exquisitely concocted gothic novel. Information is revealed in little drips and some critical questions go unanswered. Like RebMy Cousin Rachel is an exquisitely concocted gothic novel. Information is revealed in little drips and some critical questions go unanswered. Like Rebecca, things are not as they seem, although I found this novel somewhat less dramatic.
Ambrose, Philip’s guardian, prefers to spend his winters abroad, and during a trip to Italy, he meets and marries Rachel. He sends letters Philip suggesting that Rachel may be something of a Black Widow, but dies before Philip can investigate further. It is thought that Ambrose may have died from a brain tumor, so his musings are dismissed as delirious hallucinations. Rachel travels to England, ostensibly to bring Ambrose’s things home, and this is where the story really takes off. I cannot say more without revealing too much but let’s just say there is graceful misdirection and a few cringeworthy moments. And, as I mentioned at the beginning, not all of the burning questions are answered.
There are some interesting themes and character elements that stood out to me as a modern-day reader. First, the kind of soft misogyny of Ambrose and Philip - two men living in a male-only home - is evident throughout. They don’t view women with desire or fascination but more with a sort of detached curiosity and impatience. Rachel, for her part, has worked through two husbands by the time she reaches England, and she uses subtlety to manipulate and dominate. She is an ambiguous character whose motives -even when explained - remain unclear. Others have pointed to Philip as unintelligent but I view him more as naive and unused to womanly wiles. If he and Ambrose had spent more time with women, he would not be so. Louise, a secondary character, is able to truly see who Rachel is, and for all that she is younger than Philip, she has a far clearer view of true character. My only complaint is the foreshadowing towards the end of the book; it felt clunky to me.
This is a slower burn than Rebecca. It is also somewhat less dramatic (less sinister) but has significantly better character development. Philip and Rachel are complex and unknowable. The question of what really happened is never truly answered. Worth reading!...more
I wish I could say that I liked this but... Once Upon a River is an odd, character-driven story. It is a slow build from the winter solstice, when a haI wish I could say that I liked this but... Once Upon a River is an odd, character-driven story. It is a slow build from the winter solstice, when a half-drowned man and a seemingly dead child appear at the door of the Swan, a village pub somewhere in not-quite-England. When the child turns out not to be dead, a number of parties seek to claim her for their own: the Vaughans, whose child was kidnapped two years prior; the Armstrongs, whose daughter/granddaughter was supposedly drowned by her mother; and Lily White, who is certain she is her long-deceased sister. Each family has a story, and each story has extra limbs with extra characters, and we discover as we go that many of those limbs intertwine.
The prose was pretty, and I understand why this appealed to many. I really wanted to like it - it’s a slightly fantastical tale that is a mix of historical fiction, magical realism and the gothic, but ultimately, I didn’t connect with the story or its characters, and the pace was too slow for me...more
This short, classic novel is a story-within-a-story: a gentleman reads aloud the account of a governess to a group of vacationers enjoying themselves This short, classic novel is a story-within-a-story: a gentleman reads aloud the account of a governess to a group of vacationers enjoying themselves with ghost stories. Once he begins to read, the listeners fall away and the story is told entirely by a nameless governess. At its core, the tale pits two potential realities against each other: either the governess is mad a and hysterical or there are real, malignant spirits haunting the country estate where she works. Using flowery, dramatic language apropos for the time at which the book was published (1898), Henry James teeters between the two alternatives, never making it entirely clear which reality is true.
The book pits classic tropes against each other: hysterical young woman vs malevolent ghosts? Innocent or devious children? We are told that the boy in her charge was expelled from school for some behavioral indiscretion but we are never told what it was; and we are alternately told that the children were beautiful and good OR manipulative and dishonest. One never truly knows. Balancing on the knife-edge of uncertainty, the must make judgements about the veracity of the governess’s account - and we are told at the beginning of the book that she is deceased, so she can no longer be questioned. Her words must speak for themselves.
This is a good example of late-nineteenth century gothic writing and a classic, albeit long and wordy, ghost story. It’s not a hard read, although the prose is quite dense and I found that made it difficult for me to get lost in the story. ...more
Perhaps the single best way to describe Mexican Gothic is to say that things aren’t what they seem. It’s not quite gothic, horror or fantasy... it’s aPerhaps the single best way to describe Mexican Gothic is to say that things aren’t what they seem. It’s not quite gothic, horror or fantasy... it’s a strange combination of all three.
Noemi is a socialite sent to a remote Mexican town to check on her cousin Catalina, who appears to be unwell following her hasty marriage. Upon her arrival at High Place, Noemi becomes aware that there is a sinister element at play: the family, the house, and all the people connected with them are frightening, controlling and not quite normal. As Noemi delves deeper into her cousin’s situation, she finds only one ally: Francis, a young man who has never had the opportunity to leave High Place and the surrounding town. Catalina’s new husband resists Noemi’s efforts to help her cousin, and flatly refuses to let her leave High Place. Eventually the reader is left to wonder: will Noemi be entrapped at High Place too?
This was delightfully creepy and a very unique intertwining of fact and fiction. Really enjoyed this. ...more
Part ghost story, part love story, part historical fiction... and yet neither romantic nor creepy but somewhere in between.
Alva is a notorious widow,Part ghost story, part love story, part historical fiction... and yet neither romantic nor creepy but somewhere in between.
Alva is a notorious widow, a social pariah in late nineteenth century NY when she decides to buy an ostensibly haunted house in upstate New York, restore it, and publish a book on her project. Along the way we meet some evil characters and some lovely characters, and Alva falls in love.
I tend to like gothic novels, but this wasn’t quite creepy enough to qualify. The handling of the ghost was creative and yet not fully realized, and the haunting scenes lacked suspense- or perhaps it’s better to say that the author stopped short of really amping things up enough to be spine-tingling. I also tend to like a little romance, and Sam was a nice character, but he lacked depth. He just wasn’t bad enough. The book was also long for the story it told. It wasn’t a bad first novel, and I enjoyed it, but I would like to see greater depth in future characters and more realized evil. A writing teacher told me long ago that in order to really make things exciting, the author needs to take the next step.. kill someone. Burn something. Bring in the Really Bad Guy. In other words... you can’t be timid ...more
Picnic at Hanging Rock - quite a popular Australian novel when first published - tells of the mysterious disappearances of four women while at a picniPicnic at Hanging Rock - quite a popular Australian novel when first published - tells of the mysterious disappearances of four women while at a picnic at Hanging Rock. Only one of the four is ever seen again, and after her rescue, she is unable to recall any events leading to the disappearance of the other three women. The event is damaging to those left behind, and the mystery of the disappearance is never solved.
This was made into an extremely successful movie.
One of the most alluring elements of the story is the associated uncertainty. Many have speculated on whether or not the story was true or based on true events. Lindsay refused to confirm or deny this during her lifetime, although an earlier draft of the novel includes a chapter that hints towards her thought process. Trust me, don't look for that extra chapter - or info about it until you've read the book. Enjoy the mystery and suspense.
Was i surprised by the ending? Yes, but I am not good at guessing. However, I found the book otherwise a little too slow. I enjoyed it but didn't love it....more
I realized after I added a shelf for "gothic" books that I had never written a review of this.
The story is well-reviewed elsewhere.
I first read this bI realized after I added a shelf for "gothic" books that I had never written a review of this.
The story is well-reviewed elsewhere.
I first read this book in fifth grade, when I was ten. It was on the shelf in our elementary school library - nothing wrong with that, but I wonder if books like this are still shelved in elementary school libraries today? It was recommended because I had already read a vast amount of kid lit and had moved onto adult novels. At the time, I found the book creepy and scary and was convinced it was a ghost story.
Years later, in 2012, I read it again. Through adult eyes, I saw a completely different novel: Young, naive wife newly married to a widower competes with the specter of a departed wife. Her new life of wealth and privilege, which had seemed so desirable at the onset, exists under a shadow of evil. I never truly got the sense that this second marriage was a love match of equals, but certainly they've chosen each other. At any rate, the pervasive sense of malevolence was more frightening than the ghost story had been. The sense that there is something "other" and a narrative that can no longer be disproven lends tension to the story.
Excellent classic novel. Now I want to read it again!
I really wanted to like this. Really, really wanted to like this.
Melmoth is a gothic horror/magical realism/literary fiction novel about Melmoth the WaI really wanted to like this. Really, really wanted to like this.
Melmoth is a gothic horror/magical realism/literary fiction novel about Melmoth the Wanderer, who is condemned to wander the Earth until the return of Christ. In Perry's story, Melmoth was one of the women who found Jesus' tomb empty, but refused to testify to her findings. As such, she is condemned to be a witness and wander the earth until the second coming. Melmoth is the shadow that seems to be watching - the spooky person you can't ever quite see - the one who seems to bear witness to your sins.
Sounds delightfully creepy, right?
Enter a cast of odd characters: Helen, serving out a self-imposed sentence of permanent penance; Thea, a one-time judge who is a shadow of herself after a stroke; Karel, an academic unable to cope with changes in his life - and then all the people to whom Melmoth bore witness: a pair of Turkish brothers complicit in the Armenian massacres; a German boy whose words condemned a Jewish family to death; a heretic who refused to recant. As readers, I suppose we are supposed to see in these people terrible sin that left them with no choice but to join Melmoth in her wanderings.
Unfortunately, the characters are less than compelling. They are ordinary, and in many cases dull. Their stories don't evoke a sense that they should be punished forever and some of their crimes are mundane. Certainly, they all lack the level of evil I would think is implicit in being followed by a biblical, immortal witness.
I wanted to be scared. I wanted to be entranced. In the end, I was neither....more
WOW, that was deliciously creepy. Was it horror / fiction / gothic / suspense...or perhaps all of the above?
Of course, the book isn't new. Published oWOW, that was deliciously creepy. Was it horror / fiction / gothic / suspense...or perhaps all of the above?
Of course, the book isn't new. Published originally in 1962, the story is narrated by Merricat (Mary Katherine), an 18yo with the voice and thoughts of a much younger child. Merricat lives with her sister, Constance, and Uncle Julian in an old family house, six years after the rest of the family died abruptly after being poisoned with arsenic. In classic Jackson style, the story builds gradually with careful revelations that truly twist things for the reader. There is heavy focus on character development, and it is clear from early on that things aren't as they seem and that Merricat is an unreliable narrator.
I won't say anything else, and you shouldn't read any more reviews. The book is short, gripping, twisty and delightful. Once things get going, you won't want to put the book down. Loved it Enjoy!
Note Nov 2020: just reread this, and my original review was so cryptic I couldn’t remember what happened! But I stand by the original comments and will add this: Jackson had an incredible ability to capture the simple evil of everyday people. There are no ghosts here, or supernatural elements, or even particularly extreme characters. There are simply flawed people whose wrongness seems perfectly believable. Raises more questions about the characters and humanity in general than it answers. Definitely recommend. ...more
Hawthorne's story about a haunted family - more so than a haunted house - is wordy and long. After I finished it, I looked upLiked it, didn't love it.
Hawthorne's story about a haunted family - more so than a haunted house - is wordy and long. After I finished it, I looked up reviews to see what others have said - and yes, I agree that he explores the themes of "guilt, retribution and atonement" with elements of the supernatural and romance. A gloom pervades the whole tale - consistent with its gothic genre - with consistent hints of rot underlying the foundation of the House of Seven Gables and the cursed Pyncheon family that lives within it. My understanding is that Hawthorne billed this as a romance, but I think it is more a dense gothic novel with one romantic storyline: that of Phoebe Pyncheon, the young cousin who revitalizes the house and her elderly cousins Hepzibah and Clifford, and Holgrave, a daguerrotypist residing in the house. The larger story is about the Pyncheons, whose New England branch originated with a Colonel Jaffrey Pyncheon in the 17thc. Pyncheon built the House of Seven Gables on land owned originally by Matthew Maule. In order to gain the land, Pyncheon accused Maule of witchcraft. Maule was executed, but not before cursing Pyncheon and his descendants. Although the story largely takes place in the 19th century, there's a lot of backstory, and some earlier segments of the Pyncheon tale are told as well.
As I said, liked it but didn't love it. Am glad I read it because I do like gothic novels, and Hawthorne certainly has left his mark on the American literary scene. Compared to some of the other gothic novels I've read set in eerie homes (We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Rebecca), I found the house itself to be less creepy and more decayed; it was less sinister as a place and more sinister as the root of a family's evil. ...more
Some time ago, I was reading an article that referred to this book as a classic, perfect haunted house tale. It has been on my to-read list ever sinceSome time ago, I was reading an article that referred to this book as a classic, perfect haunted house tale. It has been on my to-read list ever since, but now, having read it...I am not sure what to write in my review.
I recently re-read Jackson's short story "The Lottery",' another shining example of her style, which I would describe as quiet, stealthy, and horrifying not in its individual moments but in its overall concepts. There is a remarkable lack of the gruesome in both The Lottery and The Haunting of Hill House. Instead, the reader watches with amazement as the story progresses towards its inevitable end. For that reason, her stories are conducive to re-reading: this time, the reader knows what's coming, and knows it is impossible to stop.
As others have said, Jackson sets a perfectly eerie scene for a place no one should want to stay. Sensory details abound but I feel certain the Hill House of my imagination is unlike anyone else's...Jackson has left just enough detail to the reader's imagination.
This is a quick read. It's also not too scary in the moment. Rather, its effects linger. It's not new, but it is timeless. Worth the read!...more
I'm not sure I picked the right bookshelves for this - some have called it magical realism, and I suppose that's the best description.
Where do I beginI'm not sure I picked the right bookshelves for this - some have called it magical realism, and I suppose that's the best description.
Where do I begin? I've written several updates that provide my early opinion. I wasn't initially enchanted; I found the main character unlikable and the female protagonist bizarre, and as a physician I've spent enough time in hospitals that I was less than enchanted with the description of the narrator's life there. For me - the book really picked up after his hospital discharge. I read the entire post-discharge section in 2 days; it took me two weeks for the first 200 pages. I LOVED the back end of the book. I loved the questions it raises: is Marianne mad, or can she be believed? (I'm not giving anything away with that, really.) It is the question of faith versus concrete and provable facts - a battle that we have been waging for millennia and will continue to wage into the future. Are her stories fact or fiction?
Davidson has done a beautiful job crafting a story that is, at times, exceedingly painful to read. There were scenes that were truly cringe-worthy. Although there were some elements of his descriptions of the past that I wondered at and found difficult to believe, the towns and people and eras of his story are fascinating snapshots of different times in history. By far the best historical scenes are the medieval German ones. I found myself captivated by these stories. He has created believable, fallible characters and though I am not sure I was rooting for them at the end, I felt their pain and their losses, and ached over their tragedies. I was sad to see The Gargoyle end but this is one book that truly ends when the story is over - you aren't left hanging, except to wonder how we can possibly know what is true.
Initially I would have given this three stars but it finished at five stars - so I'll cut the difference and give it four. There was more action in the latter half of the book, and that's what upped the ante for me.
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