Dan
Michelle Paver’s previous ghost stores have relied on empty and barren landscapes to heighten the spookiness, but here she takes completely the opposite approach, opting for the maximalist sensory overload of a Central American rainforest. It’s a move that pays off, and the evocation of dripping humidity, tangled vegetation and ever-present life is probably the strongest thing here. Conversely the handling of the protagonist / narrator undermined the book a bit for me. He is not in any way a sympathetic or likeable character, which to her credit Paver does not shy away from, but this also meant that the final parts of the book where the horror builds to a climax feel more like watching a bad guy get his comeuppance than any kind of empathetic horror. Bluntly, I didn’t much care what happpened to him. It’s a very well written book, but somehow while it immerses you in it’s landscape it pushes you away from the narrative voice.
Michelle Paver’s previous ghost stores have relied on empty and barren landscapes to heighten the spookiness, but here she takes completely the opposite approach, opting for the maximalist sensory overload of a Central American rainforest. It’s a move that pays off, and the evocation of dripping humidity, tangled vegetation and ever-present life is probably the strongest thing here. Conversely the handling of the protagonist / narrator undermined the book a bit for me. He is not in any way a sympathetic or likeable character, which to her credit Paver does not shy away from, but this also meant that the final parts of the book where the horror builds to a climax feel more like watching a bad guy get his comeuppance than any kind of empathetic horror. Bluntly, I didn’t much care what happpened to him. It’s a very well written book, but somehow while it immerses you in it’s landscape it pushes you away from the narrative voice.