Review: HORROR AT ITS ROOTS.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 8, 2012
I received this book as an evaluation copy from a review group.This is the first book I've read from Ruth Barrett ... and what a surprise!Finally found a matching author who loves classic literary horror above the unending slaughterfest of these days! Ruth has style, knows how to create tension, and never resorts to the cheap effects of blood and gore. More, her love for history and details clearly shows in this frightening tale, with her perfect use of language in Elizabethan England and precise descriptions of the age.The story revolves around Clara Ravenscroft, a flawed heroine, not your usual run-of-the-mill horror victim, who accompanies her husband on a business trip to England expecting to find the correct inspiration and tranquillity to write a play. She soon gets taken by the mysterious tragedy of a woman, Phillipa Calverley, who was forced into an arranged marriage with a revolting abusive man in the early 1600's...The story is actually two stories, which soon intertwine in a supernatural way. How? Well, I leave that to discover by you, but I must warn you'll find yourself turning the lights on after finishing reading this jewel of Gothic fiction.If you love Peter Straub, James Herbert, and Shirley Jackson, this could be the right book for you. If you are looking for zombie apocalypses, sparkling vampires, or perfect billionaires with a dark sex life ... well, by all means stay away from this gemstone of `real' literary fiction.Something rare these days ...