The Lost History of Dreams by Kris Waldherr has a Gothic ambiance.
from description: A post-mortem photographer unearths dark secrets of the past that may hold the key to his future, in this captivating debut novel in the gothic tradition of Wuthering Heights and The Thirteenth Tale.
The book has elements from some of the best Gothic tales and a vibe of Poe's The Fall of the House of Usher.
Waldherr skillfully develops a wonderfully creepy atmosphere. The author is certainly familiar with the plots and styles of the best known Gothic novels, but the characters don't feel as authentic. Read in January; blog review scheduled for 3/27/19. NetGalley/Atria Books Historical Fiction/Gothic. April 9, 2019. Print length: 320 pages.
Perfect Crime by Helen Fields is #5 in the DI Luc Callenach series. I'd read the first two before reading this one, but not books 3 and 4, so there have been advances that I wasn't aware of concerning DCI Ava Turner and Luc's relationship. When a young man is talked out of suicide, but a week later is body is found and the initial reaction is that he finally succeeded Ava has some questions. As other strange (and grotesque) deaths occur, the connection between them appears to be that at some point they considered or attempted suicide. There is also a storyline connected to Luc's past. What I like: the characters--Ava is my favorite. I also like the development of secondary characters throughout the series and the original premises and investigative process in the books I've read. Dislike: I'm not really fond of the bizarre and/or freakish murders, but I will still try to catch up with books 3 and 4. Read in January; blog review scheduled 3/27/19.
The Dead House by Billy O'Callaghan is rather spooky ghost story that has its roots in the Irish potato famine. When Maggie, an English artist, seeks sanctuary after a brutal attack, she discovers a place in Ireland that seems made to order. A ramshackle cottage that needs a complete overhaul in a setting that speaks to every fiber of her artistic center...and perhaps, to something else. You can read the description elsewhere, but the main characters are Mike, an art dealer in London; Maggie, an artist; and Alison, who has a gallery in Ireland. The three are tied together through friendship, and in the case of Mike and Ali, something developing into love. The frame of the novel is similar to that of Henry James' Turn of the Screw and the book seems to be heavily influenced by James' work--in both content and style. The pervasive sense of the sinister which James achieved is lacking, however, because O'Callaghan breaks it up with Mike's relationship with Ali, lighter episodes that relieve some of the tension. The writing is often lyrical, but something about the logic goes awry. Turn of the Screw is ambiguous--is it a ghost story or a psychological deterioration? The first time I read it in high school, I thought it the most chilling ghost story ever. On subsequent reads over the years, I recognized the other possibility, which is equally as chilling, perhaps even more so.The sense of unease remains, the ambiguity remains, and whichever way you read it, Turn of the Screw is a frightening tale. The Dead House is a ghost story that draws on James' work, but lacks the layers, the Freudian aura, the question of whether or not the young children, Miles and Flora, have been corrupted by evil, and the story's refusal to take a side, to guide you to one conclusion or another. Henry James left the interpretation up to the reader, but regardless of how one reads it, the experience is harrowing. O'Callaghan leaves you with a ghost story that doesn't quite end, almost as if a sequel could be possible. The Dead House has garnered many positive reviews, but it lacked some mysterious quality that allowed me to "suspend my disbelief." For me, The Turn of the Screw remains the epitome of an excellent ghost story regardless of how you interpret it. My second favorite is The Broken Girls by Simone St. James which combines a genuine ghost story and a mystery. NetGalley/Skyhorse Publishing Paranormal/Ghost Story. first published 2017; May 2018. Print length: 224 pages.
After reading Simone St. James' The Broken Girls, I decided to try another of St. James' paranormal mysteries. In the aftermath of WWI, many in a nation grieving the loss of a generation of men and boys turned to seances, psychics, and mediums who promised communication with the dead. The Other Side of Midnight, set in 1925 London during this resurgence of spiritualism, involves psychics and a handsome debunker of psychics in a paranormal mystery/romance. When Ellie Winter's former friend and rival Gloria is murdered, Gloria's brother engages Ellie to find out who killed her and why. Ellie teams up with James Hawley, war veteran and debunker, and the two begin investigating--discovering secrets and courting danger along the way. The Other Side of Midnight is a pretty light read. There were elements I liked well enough, but I wasn't bowled over by any means. I do like that St. James wants to write books like the ones she enjoyed by Victoria Holt and Mary Stewart:
"It wasn’t until my mid-20s that I discovered the old Gothics that were popular from the 1950s to about the 1970s – those musty old books you can find by the dozens, each one featuring a variation on the cover of the girl with flowing hair and nightgown fleeing a dark, foreboding house. These books are, shall we say, of varying quality (my personal favorite from my own shelf: “Lois Chalfont must choose between the devil and death!”) But several of the authors of old Gothics were truly talented, Mary Stewart and Victoria Holt being the top names of the genre.
I read – and still read – those books like crazy, and as I did I asked myself, “Why doesn’t anyone write these anymore?” So I write them, but I add my own sensibility to them. I make my heroines strong and independent. I set them in the 1920s. And I add ghosts." (source)
The Other Side of Midnight was a bit of a disappointment after reading The Broken Girls, St. James' latest book. (I wrote a little about The Broken Girlshere when talking about books out next year.) It was a modern ghost story with roots in the past that kept me enthralled and uneasy the entire time. My full review is scheduled for Feb. 28, and the book will be published in March. So...while The Other Side of Midnight was not exactly what I was hoping for, I want to try Lost Among the Living, which returns to the post WWI setting. And if you love a good ghost story, pre-order The Broken Girls!
Grief Cottage is a remarkable novel that combines a ghost story and a coming of age story with skillful plotting and impressive prose. It is so easy to fall in love with eleven-year-old Marcus, to feel his sense of loss after his mother's death and his apprehension at being sent to live with his reclusive great aunt on South Carolina island. He worries about being a burden to his reclusive Aunt Charlotte, about being sent away. Grief Cottage, so named after a hurricane swept away a family 50 years ago, lies at one end of the island and Aunt Charlotte's paintings of the ruin are her most popular. To fill his hours while Charlotte paints in seclusion, Marcus visits Grief Cottage daily. When the ghost of a fourteen-year-old boy reveals himself, Marcus is unsure if the boy is friend or foe, but his fascination grows. The characters are all rich and unique, and the story unwinds slowly with beautiful details of the island and its inhabitants, Marcus' fascination with the sea turtle nest and the anticipation of the "boil"--when the eggs hatch and exit the sand to make their run for the ocean, and the ghost boy in Grief Cottage.
His attempts to court the ghost boy are not always successful, but his curiosity increases:
"I wished I knew if he could think about me when I was not there, as I was thinking about him. I didn't know whether ghosts could keep track of what was going on in the living world, imagine what could be happening, or be likely to happen, by comparing with what had gone before. Or were they like animals in not being able to project or imagine the future?
It struck me that he might need me to keep faith that he was still there."
I imagine that this novel will be one of my year's favorites. Highly recommended!
From Description: Grief Cottage is the best sort of ghost story, but it is far more than that--an investigation of grief, remorse, and the memories that haunt us. The power and beauty of this artful novel wash over the reader like the waves on a South Carolina beach.
Read in January; blog post scheduled for May 15 NetGalley/Bloomsbury Literary Fiction/Ghost Story. June 6, 2017. Print length: 336 pages.
The Winter People is a ghost story that takes place in two centuries. The story's origin takes place in the early 1900's when a series of tragedies shake a family and a small town. In the present day, Ruthie and her younger sister live with their unconventional mother in an old farmhouse in West Hall, Vermont. Of course, Ruthie's family lives in the same house that Sara Harrison Shea's family occupied when the first series of tragedies occurred. A number of strange disappearances have occurred over the years in this small township, but there is no real sense that the population is unduly concerned. The disappearances could be explainable by boredom with small town life...or connected to legends that the inhabitants only half believe and find a little titillating. There are parts of the book that are pretty creepy, and the details of Shea family life in the past are a strong point, but ultimately this is a book that left me feeling manipulated, not satisfied. I've only read one other book by McMahon, and I wasn't impressed with that one, either. I realize that she is a well-loved icon of her genre and that she has many devoted fans, but for some reason, her books don't work for me. Read in Dec. of 2013. NetGalley/Doubleday Supernatural. Feb. 11, 2014. Print version: 336 pages.
