... There was no mistake. My eyes were not deceiving me. It was she, the woman in black."
After writing a review yesterday for Susan Hill's 'The Mist in the Mirror', I realised that for some reason I have never written a review on her better known, and in my opinion, far superior book 'The ... Read review
Postage & Packaging: refer to website Availability: Temporarily out of stock. Order now and we'll deliver when available. We'll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon...
Advantages: A true ghost story, pure magic Disadvantages: BOO!!
== THE WOMAN IN BLACK ==
=== SUSAN HILL ===
"I looked directly at her and she at me. There was no mistake. My eyes were not deceiving me. It was she, the woman in black."
After writing a review yesterday for Susan Hill's 'The Mist in the Mirror', I realised that for some reason I have never written a review on her better known, and in my opinion, far superior book 'The ... ...emerge in skimpy shorts from the sea, and I would be able to refresh my memories of a book I have read on many occasions. (Oh and yes I did rewind my Sky Plus this morning to check out those shorts - as you must!!)
Written in 1983, by Susan Hill, 'The Woman in Black' is a short ghost story about a menacing ghost that haunts a small English town.
Although only about twenty five years old, the book is now something of ... more
THE WOMAN IN BLACK
SUSAN HILL
"I looked directly at her and she at me. There was no mistake. My eyes were not deceiving me. It was she, the woman in black."
After writing a review yesterday for Susan Hill's 'The Mist in the Mirror', I realised that for some reason I have never written a review on her better known, and in my opinion, far superior book 'The Woman in Black'.
As the male contingency Chez Oldchem insisted on watching 'Casino Royale' (I refuse to watch any James Bond without Sean Connery in!!) I dug out my little copy of this wonderful book - at only 160 pages, I knew that I would read it while they watch Daniel Craig emerge in skimpy shorts from the sea, and I would be able to refresh my memories of a book I have read on many occasions. (Oh and yes I did rewind my Sky Plus this morning to check out those shorts - as you must!!)
Written in 1983, by Susan Hill, 'The Woman in Black' is a short ghost story about a menacing ghost that haunts a small English town.
Although only about twenty five years old, the book is now something of a classic in its genre.It has been adapted into a stage play, been broadcast as a radio play and was also made into a TV movie in 1989. It is one of those books that you can read again and again, and you still look under the bed and in the wardrobe before you go to bed!!
Do you like a ghost story? Do you like a GOOD ghost story? Then this book is a definite one for you.
This is the sort of ghost story that makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. I've read books that have been described as a' spine chiller', that have done nothing for me; but this tiny 160 page book grips you slowly, gradually, cleverly and in beautifully written words as you read in suspense and anticipation, with quick glances around the room, for fear you are not wholly alone.
This reads like a true Victorian gothic tale, and starts on Christmas Eve.
It was a Victorian tradition to tell ghost stories at night in the winter, and especially on Christmas Eve. This was what was happening in the Kipps' home, Arthur Kipps is sat with his stepchildren as they tell spooky ghost stories. When he is urged to tell one he quickly replies that he does not know any. In fact though he does, but his is no story, his is a true tale; a tale that is far too appalling to recount around the Yuletide fireside.
Kipps decides to write his story down, in the hope that by doing so he will be able to rid himself of the dreadful memories of that time decades before.
And so dear reader, the true story begins - a beautifully told story full of dark gothic atmosphere, wonderful descriptions and one that will haunt you forever.
Alice Drablow spent the last years of her life living as a recluse at Eel Marsh House she had no friends and no family, so that when she died there were no grieving relatives to mourn her.
Eel March House is the very essence of any house you would want in a ghost story of this type. Positioned on an island accessible only by a narrow and treacherous path called Nine Lives Causeway, a causeway that is covered for all but a few hours a day by water and surrounded by desolate, eerie marshlands.
Arthur Kipps was a young and ambitious London solicitor, and he was sent by his firm of solicitors, of whom Mrs Drablow was a former client, to the village of Crythin Gifford, where she had lived, to be their representative at her funeral and to sort out any paperwork at Eel Marsh House.
Arthur soon realises that whenever he mentions the name of Alice, the local people respond with strange looks and silences; it doesn't take him long to realise that realizes that there is some sort of superstition that surrounds Alice and her home.
When Arthur asks the local lawyer who the mourner he had seen at the funeral was, a woman who seemed to be suffering from a wasting disease and who was dressed in an old-fashioned black dress and bonnet, he cannot understand the panic that this question instils in the lawyer.
And so our young and imprudently persistent protagonist sets off to spend a few days (and worst still nights) sorting out Alice's documents by himself in the isolated house in the dark, eerie, foggy and damp setting.
Come on, would you? I'd have run a mile, but then we wouldn't have this remarkable little book. So back to the story, switch on the lights and lock the door - you may not be alone!!!
There was a huge amount of papers for Arthur to sort through, and as he does so he also discovers a family tragedy; and worse, he begins to come across it in a supernatural form.
Arthur runs, but in the clear light of day he brushes away his fears and puts it down to the mist covered darkness, he had a job to do and so he returned to the house with the determination to stay until that job was finished.
Arthur took supplies, he took a dog and he also took a lack of knowledge of the evil of the woman in black.
Arthur though does see the woman in black again, this time she is standing in the decaying family graveyard alongside the house. Arthur can now actually sense the evil that radiates from her.
Just who is the woman in black? What was the accident on the causeway, the accident that he can hear being eerily re-enacted in the dark fog that swirls terrifyingly around the house? Just what is it that is making those noises in the locked room at the end of one of the corridors?
When Arthur finds the truth of what has only formerly been implied, will he be able to take the consequences, the consequences that change his life forever?
The only way that you will find out these answers is by reading this wonderful little book!!
My opinion is that the 'The Woman in Black' is an wonderful and chilling , quick read. On top of this it really is a beautiful and well-written story . It contains such incredible descriptions - descriptions of the countryside, the house and the marshes that surround it and the weather. In fact the house and the weather are both rather like two extra characters in the book. At times as I read this book I felt as if I were actually inside the house - vigilantly entering the eerie rooms a candle in hand. I could hear the noises that Arthur could hear, I could feel his fear.
Hill has set the story in a non-specific past, there are motorcars and telephones but the feel is certainly more Victorian in feel, it is a gothic, creepy, atmospheric thriller.
A good old-fashioned ghost story, no blood and guts, no psychopathic serial killer - but oh so much more!!
DETAILS
· Paperback: 160 pages · Publisher: Vintage; New edition (6 Aug 1998) · Language English · ISBN-10: 0099288478 · ISBN-13: 978-0099288473 · Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 12.8 x 1.2 cm
Available both new and used on Amazon from around £3.00.
Advantages: Excellent gothic novel, the woman in black is genuinely scary. Disadvantages: Short book, and at times the main character can be a little unbelievable.
The story begins with the main character, Arthur Kipps, struggling over the choice whether to tell his family his story. After agonising over the decision to write it down or not, he decides he will.
And it's a ghost story.
Mrs. Drablow is dead, and the young upcoming solicitor has been sent to sort out her affairs and documents (quite similar to the main character from Dracula in this respect). When Arthur arrives at the town of Crythin Gifford ... ...the towns inhabitants. However, after describing his business at the Inn he is staying in, the locals begin to avoid him and warn him against going to the remote homeplace of the deceased Mrs. Drablow... Eel Marsh House.
Kipps, being a rational man committed to becoming a partner in the law firm, goes anyway. Once there, he finds that the house is only accessible through a lengthy causeway in the marshes, which is completely underwater in some parts ...
Sam_Garland 31.05.2006 (01.06.2006)
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The Woman In Black - Susan Hill
Advantages: Can finish at one sitting Disadvantages: Can finish at one sitting!
...of us who thought that the glory days of M.R. James were over then take fresh hope with Susan Hill's Woman in Black. In an age where horror seems to have taken over from ghost stories, this is a welcome re-affirmation that fear does not come in blood and gore but in dread. The story is a simple one. A young solicitor is asked to clear the estate of a recently deceased client, but he becomes embroiled in the ghostly going on at the lonely house. Landscape ... ...of the house, surrounded by mist, and often cut off from the village by the rising tide is masterfull. Frankly I don't think Susan Hill has reached these heights before or since. Save it for winter, for Christmas, for Halloween and read at one sitting alone and you will see what I mean! ...
Veranilda 10.04.2006
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of The Woman In Black - Susan Hill
...wasn't disappointed at all. The book is very short, but I think this adds to its appeal- it can easily be read in one or two sittings. It has all the core components of a good ghost story (I have read a few negative reviews saying that it's too cliched and formulaic, but hey, if the formula works!)- it has a cynical narrator, a big deserted spooky house, extremely atmospheric weather (lots of misty fog, storms in the night etc)- and an excellent ...
magicmonkey28 07.07.2009
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of The Woman In Black - Susan Hill
Advantages: Grabs your attention Disadvantages: If you want something long to read this isn't for you
...exam and as one of the novels I had to study, this was one of them. Normally I have found that books we have to read, are boring, hard to read and generally unninteresting.
For me, this book was such an attention grabber. I couldn't take my eyes off the book, and wasn't willing to put it down for a moment. From beginnning to end I was completely absorbed with the contents. However, i would recomend that if you are a person easily frightened by bumps ... ...I strongly recomend this book as a great read. This novel does not take very long to read, as it is shorter than most, but I can assure you, that if you are interested in storylines with twisted moments, gothic elements, the supernatural and love then this is your style. ...
review_master534 29.06.2005
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of The Woman In Black - Susan Hill
Advantages: Easy to follow Disadvantages: May scare you.
I saw the play on Wednesday the 28th September 2005, at the Lowry in Manchester. The play was adapted from a book by Susan Hill, written by Stephen Mallatratt, and directed by Robin Herford.
The play is set in a Victorian theatre. The theatre was an end stage layout. A minimalist set was used with basic props used throughout the play, like the wicker basket, which was used for the pony and track, the bed and many more. Also a clothes rail was used ... ...narration to explain parts of the play that could not otherwise be shown.
Lighting was used to create atmosphere and tension, because this can be used to scare the audience, and make the play as realistic as possible. Special lighting was used for the staircase, this created atmosphere, as the audience has no idea what is going to happen next. The locked room scared the audience as it was only partially lit at the door, until the character entered ...
benzin2005 20.10.2005
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: not helpful Review of The Woman In Black - Susan Hill
Would you read it again?
Story
Characters
Readability
How does it compare to ...
Similar reviews »
Reviews which might be of interest for "The Woman In Black - Susan Hill"
Advantages: Atmospheric, gothic ghost story that is very well written Disadvantages: The ending left me rather flat
THE MIST IN THE MIRROR
SUSANHILL
If you like true gothic ghost stories you could do a lot worse than trying one of SusanHill's novels. She is probably wider known for her novel 'The WomaninBlack', which was turned into a play and also made into a TV movie.
I loved, The WomaninBlack, and like a good ghost story, it did haunt me. So when I saw 'The Mist in the Mirror' I was quite excited at the thought of reading it, and I wasn't wholly disappointed. It doesn't reach the same giddy heights of The WomaninBlack I am afraid, but is still well worth a read. Mainly for the great skill that Ms Hill has for imitating perfectly the gothic style of Victorian ghost stories. She writes incredibly well and creates a wonderful atmosphere; she knows exactly how to stimulate the reader's fears.
'The Mist in ...
When Arthur Kipps attends the funeral of Alice Drablow he is unaware of the tragic secrets which lie hidden behind her house. It is not until he glimpses a woman dressed all in black at the funeral that a creeping sense of unease begins to take hold. About the AuthorSusan Hill is an award-winning novelist. She wrote Mrs de Winter, the bestselling sequel to Rebecca, and the ghost story The Woman in Black, which was adapted for the stage and became a great success in the West End. Her books include a collection of exquisite short stories, The Boy Who Taught the Beekeeper to Read, and the highly successful crime novel series about the detective Simon Serrailler.
Compare The Woman In Black - Susan Hill to other similar Thriller Books »
Similar products and search queries by other users »
The Hill, The Woman Hill, The In Hill, The Black Hill, The Susan Hill, The Woman In Hill, The Woman Black Hill, The Woman Susan Hill, The In Black Hill, The In Susan Hill, The Black Susan Hill, The Woman In Black Hill, The Woman In Susan Hill, The Woman Black Susan Hill, The In Black Susan Hill
Are you the manufacturer / provider of The Woman In Black - Susan Hill? Click here
