Week Two Work

“You can kill a person without touching them.”

 Cold Light by Jenn Ashworth is a darkly atmospheric novel set in London in the early 1990s.  The author’s description of frigid winter days, dysfunctional relationships, and deviancy, casts a spell of loneliness and isolation that permeates the story. The discovery of a body in a shallow grave during a ground breaking ceremony lead the main character Lola, and an old acquaintance to flashback to a winter years ago, and their mutual friend’s tragic death.  The pacing of the story is slow and methodical as the reader gradually discovers the truth behind those events.  This is a haunting story with effective characterization that leaves the reader just wanting to enfold Lola in your arms and give her a moment of peace.

 

A Good Old-fashioned Ghost Story

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill is a well written novel that’s creepy setting and old-fashioned use of language will send chills down your spine.  A solicitor must journey to a sparsely populated village in the English countryside to settle an estate.  Residents’ reactions to his destination allude to some past incident no one is willing to discuss with him.  Vivid imagery makes it easy for the reader to feel the ever increasing apprehension of the solicitor.  The sinister feeling of the old house, the apparition of a woman dressed in black, and screams in the night build to a climax that have the main character questioning his own sanity.  This is a ghost story at its best and will guarantee many sleepless nights!