The Woman in Black

I have not seen the new film of "The Woman in Black" starring Harry Potter (I mean Daniel Ratcliffe) but I have just read the original novel by Susan Hill. Though it was only written in 1982 it could have dated from a century earlier.

After reading the novel, and finding it rather disappointing I looked at a website to read about the 2012 film and saw that it has been likened to a visit to haunted house ghost train at Disneyland in terms of shocks and scares. This a strong contrast with this slow, atmospheric, haunting novel. This is a proper old fashioned ghost story. In a lonely gothic setting a tormented protagonist becomes aware of an old a curse in the presence of a malevolent ghost! The slow and gradual build in tension works, building to an unexpected climax.

But it was not really scary unless you are the sort of person who is scared of walking around an old house in the dark and listening to the unidentified creaks and groans that old buildings make naturally. It contained some strange ideas and improbable happenings but the frights were in the experience of the main protagonist to the events he believed he witnessed. In many ways it is a formulaic Gothic novel rather than a horror novel.

The writing supurbly builds atmosphere using vivid descriptions. The musty air of the old house was brought to life in the strong prose and likewise the detailed descriptions of the countryside and marshland. The precise prose style is probably why the novel has become part of the syllabus for school students English courses.

The best part of the novel for me was Spider - the feisty wee dog that plays an important part in retaining Kipp's sanity in the long, dark, lonely nights he spent in the haunted house. The dog made the story for me! I recommend "The Woman in Black" for a quick Gothic read - it took me less than two hours.

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