The Silent Companions

I came across this via a “customers who bought...” suggestion on Amazon while looking at another Essex-based author's horror-ish novel and decided to give it a try. I am not normally one for ‘period' content and was willing to suspend my usual scepticism about Victorian-era “Gothic” horror to see what was the deal with these wooden companions in the spooky, tumble-down mansion in the countryside.

I binge-read it in a few evenings over the course of 4 days and was hooked. I wanted to know more about the characters and the story behind them and the creepy companions they found in the old country house. The writing and dialogue, while dated appropriately, wasn't overwhelmingly obscure and remained accessible (which is what usually puts be off period pieces).

Purcell leaves plenty to the reader to make their own conclusions and if you get to the end and have some of the same questions I did, you'll be pleased that she's answered here on GoodReads!

It is well paced and suitably tense/suspenseful; it is focussed more on the psychological elements of terror as opposed to going after you with jump-scares or gorey descriptions. There's just enough to set your imagination running off with a thread and building the tension further.

To me, the book has some very cinematic elements and I could certainly see the story being picked up and adapted for the silver screen. I would love to see how it could be interpreted for cinema.

As a final note, if you have a house that ‘breathes' at night and value your sleep, I'd advise not reading in bed late at night.