It is not only the characters in this chilling, disturbing story who feel haunted but, as the reader soon discovers, 'Hart House', now home to Alfie and his twin daughters but previously the family home of his late wife, Pippa and her twin sister Julia, has a dark history of its own. What this was, and the reverberating ramifications which have been felt by its various occupants over the years, are gradually revealed as Julia uses her psychotherapeutic skills to try to understand why Black Mamba is exerting such a powerful, and increasingly destructive hold over Cassie and Sylvie. As she works with them, memories of her own childhood experiences in the house, of her relationship with Pippa, of her mother’s religious fanaticism and strange beliefs combine to force her to confront her own fears and unresolved feelings, not only about the past but also about her feelings towards her own twin, as well as towards her brother-in-law, who has ‘demons’ of his own to face.
I appreciated how effectively the author used the alternating voices of Alfie and Julia to not only reflect their different perspectives on what was happening, but also to control the pacing of the story. I enjoyed how he used the special nature of ‘twinship’ to add an extra dimension to the complexity of the story as I think most people are fascinated by the symbiotic relationship between twins … and in this story he gives his readers two sets to observe!
William Friend’s debut novel offers an impressive ‘masterclass’ in how to ratchet-up a chilling sense of tension, fear and dread, that almost primitive, elemental terror of what may be lingering in the shadows, ready to threaten our physical, mental and emotional well-being. As I’m not a believer in supernatural forces I usually avoid the ‘horror’ genre, finding most storylines risible rather than menacing. However, as I was reading this book there were times when I found myself feeling caught up in the grip of something truly malevolent taking hold, moments when I hardly dared turn the page for fear of what might happen next. It’s all too easy to ridicule a belief in a malign, all-powerful presence so I think it’s a tribute to the quality of the author’s storytelling skills that he was able to make me begin to put aside my sceptical certainties! His highly evocative writing style added an almost cinematic quality to my reading experience so it’s easy to imagine this being made into a successful film … although I’m not sure I’d feel brave enough to watch it!
The changing nature of grief is central to the story’s development and his impressive psychological understanding of the different ways in which people react to loss and bereavement enabled him to create a cast of characters whose behaviour reflected this in such a convincing manner. So for me this is not a conventional horror story but is more an exploration of how people attempt to make sense of the dark places grief takes them to, of all those things which have changed the world as they once knew it and how they manage to achieve a new equilibrium. Although the final chapter shows how the characters are, albeit tentatively, moving on with their lives, I liked the fact that some loose threads remained, adding a degree of thought-provoking ambiguity! I found this a remarkably assured, multi-faceted story and will be looking out for the author’s next novel.
With thanks to Readers First and Atlantic Books for my ARC in exchange for an honest review. ( )