A review by ocelotdoll
The Woman in Black by Susan Hill

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

There is a simplicity in The Woman in Black's writing of horror. The cover proudly touting it the "classic English ghost story" initially led me to expect a tame and slightly cliché story and for the majority of the book this holds true. A main protagonist who does not believe in ghosts goes to an isolated place where the inhabitants all behave suspiciously, he is to visit a supposedly haunted house but and when he is left to his down devices paranormal events take place. Those events are also perfectly classic and cliché, the black woman standing and watching the protagonist but disappearing every time he tries to approach her, strange sounds being heard across the house, unnerving fog preventing communication with the outside, everything is almost boringly expected. Yet, there is something in Susan Hill's writing that makes it all dreadfully efficient, The Woman in Black whilst never reaching the peak of bodily horror that the Exorcit managed to keep me more consistently on edge.
However, whereby naming it a classic the cover also brought me to believe that when things seemed to head towards a happy end, the book in a very quick yet not at all rushed way hit me with its true horror, leaving it as the abrupt and final note of the story.
It's a very efficient horror story and when things got going, it was an easy read, I would however fault the start for being a bit too slow by my tastes.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings