{"id":653,"date":"2018-09-10T08:36:07","date_gmt":"2018-09-10T07:36:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hebulstrode.co.uk\/?p=653"},"modified":"2018-09-10T08:36:07","modified_gmt":"2018-09-10T07:36:07","slug":"review-of-the-unquiet-house-by-alison-littlewood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.hebulstrode.co.uk\/?p=653","title":{"rendered":"Review of ‘The Unquiet House’ by Alison Littlewood"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Does she own the house, or does the house own her?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

This is the second of Alison Littlewood\u2019s books that I\u2019ve read, and whereas I wasn\u2019t as taken with it as with The Hidden People<\/em><\/a>, I still found it a solid read. The novel opens with a theme of loss and acquisition, with its protagonist \u2013 Emma Dean \u2013 having lately lost both of her parents, as well as a distant elderly relative who has bequeathed her Mire House. However, it soon becomes apparent that the house as much owns Emma, as she owns it. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The story weaves in a little folklore here and there, and is firmly grounded in its rural Yorkshire setting with a good sprinkling of Yorkshire accent and dialect lending it an engaging warmth and authenticity. However, this is a ghost story, so the few moments of warmth that are encountered are greatly outnumbered by the reader\u2019s chills. Littlewood is particularly good at portraying childhood group dynamics and bravado, showing how a simple dare can descend into cruelty and lead to the direst of consequences. For me, this was the greatest horror in the book, and made me cringe, but in the manner that the author intended rather than in a bad way, for it was extremely well written. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The novel has an interesting non-linear narrative structure which works well, and the period aspects of the story are deftly handled. However, I did guess the twist some way in advance, and the ending seemed to stutter and fade, being somewhat drawn out. As for the protagonist, I felt less sympathy for her than for many of the other characters, but this may well have been the author\u2019s intention. For all that, this was an enjoyable read that I\u2019d recommend to those who possess a taste for ghost stories. <\/span><\/p>\n

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