This House Is Haunted
2013 • 304 pages
Ratings11
Average rating3.7
15
Ratings11
Average rating3.7
1866, London. As Charles Dickens takes to a London stage on a foggy Autumn night to read from his ghost stories, Eliza Caine and her father settle into their seats. A huge admirer of the novelist, Mr Caine has insisted on attending, despite his worsening cold. Returning home, a fever hits him and within 24 hours he is dead, leaving Eliza alone in the world. A teacher by trade, Eliza notices an advertisement for a governess position at Gaudlin Hall in Norfolk. Deciding that she needs to start over, she applies for and is offered the job. Arriving at Thorpe station she is almost pushed beneath a train but is saved by two villagers who, although initially friendly, become quiet and uneasy when she mentions the position she has accepted. Arriving at Gaudlin, Eliza meets the two children in her care, Isabella and Eustace. To her surprise, they appear to live there alone. There are no parents, no adults at all, and no one to represent her employer. The children, however, seem to expect her and show her to her room. From the night she arrives a series of disturbing incidents take place, each one of which threatens her life, and slowly Eliza begins to believe that this house is haunted. A solicitor in the village reveals some of the secrets of Gaudlin to her, others she must discover for herself. The action takes us from a London classroom to a Norfolk grand estate, and from a small Spanish town to a graveyeard in Great Yarmouth. Eliza refuses to be frightened away from her position; if she is to survive Gaudlin and save the children, then she must take on the ghost herself.
Reviews with the most likes.
This book clearly wants to be The Turn of the Screw, but makes the mistake of imitating all the trappings without harnessing the ambiguity that is the essence of James's spooky atmosphere.
We have a naive governess in a creepy country manor, two children who evoke both protectiveness and uncertainty in her, and ghostly presences. Disturbing history is slowly revealed.
I'd say this book is at its best when it undermines convention - for instance, the exploration of a female figure that vanishes when pursued was a nice element. The motivation for the haunting is an interestingly novel, yet Gothic factor. The author clearly loves classic English weird fiction, giving a prominent shout-out to Dickens' “The Signalman” and obviously paying homage to Henry James, as noted. I felt kinship and affection for the author on this score.
What drags this story down is its impulse to explain, categorize, and tie up all plot points. After a fairly effective (if derivative) depiction of tight-lipped locals grudgingly revealing bits of background, the story eventually devolves into a tell-don't-show wrap up that dissolves any sense of mystery or dread, and results in a lackluster action-scene climax.
Pros: some chilling scenes
Cons: it takes Eliza a long time to figure out what's happening
After the sudden death of her father, Eliza Caine answers an ad to become governess at Gaudlin Hall. But something's not right in her new home and no one will answer her questions about the parents of her charges, the tragedies that have taken place at Gaudlin Hall, or the ghost that's trying to kill her.
I'd say this book is a cross between The Haunting of Hill House, for the atmospherics and period, and The Shining, for the constant anticipation of something bad happening. Boyne does an excellent job of putting you in Eliza's place, feeling her terror, and trying to survive what's to come.
While I really liked Eliza I did feel it took longer than it should have for her to figure out what was going on. Having said that, I enjoyed seeing regular life at the Hall interspersed with her learning more about the place's history.
If you like ghost stories, this is a winner.
Recensie van audioboek (via Storytel)
Het ideale nostalgische spookverhaal, met tal van knipogen naar klassiekers (denk aan Dickens en Jane Eyre) en een serieuze snuif aan zelfspot.
