Tuesday, 29 October 2013

Read in 2013 - 41: The Uninhabited House

Yet another author I'd not heard about previously, and yet another one who, according to wikipedia, was very popular and well known in their time.
"The Uninhabited House" is a Victorian ghost story (published in 1875), but there is nothing scary about it. The narrator is a young man who works at an attorney's office. One of their clients owns a large, beautiful house, but is travelling across Europe most of the time and therefore seeking tenants for the place.
The attorney keeps finding tenants, and these in turn keep leaving the house within months or even just weeks of moving in, claiming that the house is uninhabitable, without ever giving a proper reason.

 Finally (one wonders why this has not happened before), the young man is sent to interview the latest of the unhappy tenants, and is told that there have been strange goings-on and supernatural apparitions in the house.

 Our young man does not believe in ghosts, and is determined to solve the mystery of the uninhabited house by moving in for a while himself. He is also interested in finding out who or what is behind it all because the promised reward would enable him to propose marriage to the young lady he has fallen in love with.

 What he learns, and whether he and his sweetheart get married, I won't tell you here; the free kindle book is short and readable enough for you to find out for yourselves, if you like. I enjoyed it, although it held no surprises.

 A few words about the author: Charlotte Riddell lived from 1832 to 1906, and wikipedia calls her "one of the most popular and influential writers of the Victorian period. The author of 56 books, novels and short stories, she was also part owner and editor of the St. James's Magazine, one of the most prestigious literary magazines of the 1860s."


With this review, I have cut down my current backlog from five books to three. There is now one non-fiction, one Edith Nesbit and one modern novel waiting to be reviewed.
Posted by at
Labels:

12 comments:

  1. Anonymous29 October 2013 at 11:22

    I liked the sound of this story very much, so went to add it to my Kindle. I was then delighted to find it is free!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Librarian29 October 2013 at 18:21

      My copy was free, too; it will be interesting to know how you liked it.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous7 November 2013 at 20:36

      I have just finished reading it. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

      Delete
    3. Librarian8 November 2013 at 07:22

      Thanks for letting me know! Glad you liked it.

      Delete
  2. DawnTreader29 October 2013 at 17:58

    You seem to have a knack for finding those books by the Great Unknowns :) I've now downloaded it too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Librarian29 October 2013 at 18:22

      I hope you'll let me know how you liked it!
      As for finding books by the Great Unknowns, I guess that's what you get when you, like me, go for the free ebooks most of the time :-)

      Delete
  3. Saucy Siciliana29 October 2013 at 19:09

    I have not heard of Mary Marston or this author ever. You are really good at finding these little "treasures". They're not so known but they are worth reading. I'm not much of a searcher when it comes to books. I love classics and I just keep reading them over and over. My favorite is Jane Eyre, and I think I have read it at least 10 times, and seen the movies more times than that...the best one is with Orson Welles, for me. Of the modern ones, I'm ashamed to say, I like Shopaholic...:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Librarian30 October 2013 at 07:19

      Strange but true; I, as a trained librarian, have read very few classics. But I guess all my kindle finds are broadening my literary horizon quite a bit!

      Delete
  4. Jenny Woolf29 October 2013 at 19:40

    I hadn't heard of the author but I must confess I am a bit put off any book that doesn't have any surprises. Although this one does sound as if it has period charm!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Librarian30 October 2013 at 07:20

      It is short and sweet, Jenny, and oozes period charm, I think!

      Delete
  5. messymimi29 October 2013 at 19:50

    So many good books, so little time.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)