Author: Diane Setterfield
Publisher: Atria
416 pages
ISBN: 978-0743298020
Source: Personal Copy
Grade: B-
A Reader's Respite has been saving this novel by Diane Setterfield for this Halloween season and we weren't disappointed. A tad creepy, gothic mystery all wrapped up with literary references, it's a good choice for a Halloween read.
Famed and uber-mysterious author Vida Winter is dying. After years of whimsically making up stories about her virtually unknown past, she's decided to set the record straight and recruits a very reluctant biographer, Margaret Lea, to take down the story. Margaret begins to uncover all sorts of creepy things in Vida's past and a story within a story soon unfolds.
And what exactly is Vida Winter's story?
Abandoned English estates, obsession, madness, lost fortunes and lost loves is all we're going to tell you. Those who don't take well to wind-swept moors may find the melodrama a bit over the top but if you're a fan of creepy settings this one's for you. While it may not be the best literary fiction to hit the stands in decades, it's certainly a worthwhile get-in-the-mood-for-Halloween story.
Think gothic Rebecca with a bit of Flowers in the Attic creepiness and a dose of Jane Eyre thrown in for good measure and you'll have a pretty good feel for this novel.
How it fared on A Reader's Respite's CREEP O' METER
I enjoyed this one quite a bit when it came out but the author hasn't written any other books since. I keep checking but haven't heard of any.
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