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the_weirdling 's review for:
Craven Manor
by Darcy Coates
There is just something special about reading a book by Darcy Coates for me. Her writing doesn’t stand out above her peers in style or clever self expression. Neither the stories as a whole nor the separate pieces which make up those stories are groundbreaking. She writes good, classical ghost stories. Any experienced horror reader will see every twist and turn coming from a mile away. And yet... they are so thoroughly enjoyable each and every time. Picking one up is like seeing an old friend after a few years absence.
The protagonist of the story, Daniel, is down on his luck. He’s a young man, living in his cousins apartment, and jobless. He was recently homeless and is fearful of returning to that situation. Daniel gets an odd job offer to be the caretaker of Craven Manor. When he shows up, all the normal triggers and troupes occur for a classical haunted house story.
Like I said, it’s very hard to figure out exactly why Darcy Coates’ books are so enjoyable. In a way, they shouldn’t be. And yet, they are.
I especially enjoyed her protagonist, Daniel, and the arc his character takes as he settles into becoming the caretaker of the proverbial haunted mansion. It seems like every haunted mansion has a caretaker, and Ms Coates’ story goes a way into describe how they might get those intrepid caretakers.
This is also the first time I have ever seen Ms Coates write a male protagonist. Women often have trouble writing believable male characters, as men have trouble writing women. But, Ms Coates is clearly talented enough where this is not a problem for her in the least.
I took a star off for two reasons. Firstly, Coates, possibly trying to break her own mold a bit, added some fantasy elements to this haunted house tale. At times, I felt like I might be reading a pitch she had for a comic book or graphical novel, rather than a straight prose work. At times, I thought it worked great. However, other times it came off as slightly cartoon-ish. It didn’t always seem to work.
Secondly, Coates spent a lot less time on building the atmosphere of her haunted abode. She usually does that well, but it can be tedious if you read a lot of these. (“Yes, yes. We get it. It looks haunted because it is haunted!”) Personally, I enjoy a slow burn and the build up. I thought, by getting into the action of the ghosts so early, she took away some of the creepy factor. Again, at times it read like the pitch for a graphic novel, where a lot of the atmosphere would be handled by the art. However, in prose form, it just made the book less scary.
All in all though, this was yet another enjoyable read from Darcy Coates. I speak of her books often with people who enjoy scary books. She knows what she’s doing. I can’t wait for her next!
The protagonist of the story, Daniel, is down on his luck. He’s a young man, living in his cousins apartment, and jobless. He was recently homeless and is fearful of returning to that situation. Daniel gets an odd job offer to be the caretaker of Craven Manor. When he shows up, all the normal triggers and troupes occur for a classical haunted house story.
Like I said, it’s very hard to figure out exactly why Darcy Coates’ books are so enjoyable. In a way, they shouldn’t be. And yet, they are.
I especially enjoyed her protagonist, Daniel, and the arc his character takes as he settles into becoming the caretaker of the proverbial haunted mansion. It seems like every haunted mansion has a caretaker, and Ms Coates’ story goes a way into describe how they might get those intrepid caretakers.
This is also the first time I have ever seen Ms Coates write a male protagonist. Women often have trouble writing believable male characters, as men have trouble writing women. But, Ms Coates is clearly talented enough where this is not a problem for her in the least.
I took a star off for two reasons. Firstly, Coates, possibly trying to break her own mold a bit, added some fantasy elements to this haunted house tale. At times, I felt like I might be reading a pitch she had for a comic book or graphical novel, rather than a straight prose work. At times, I thought it worked great. However, other times it came off as slightly cartoon-ish. It didn’t always seem to work.
Secondly, Coates spent a lot less time on building the atmosphere of her haunted abode. She usually does that well, but it can be tedious if you read a lot of these. (“Yes, yes. We get it. It looks haunted because it is haunted!”) Personally, I enjoy a slow burn and the build up. I thought, by getting into the action of the ghosts so early, she took away some of the creepy factor. Again, at times it read like the pitch for a graphic novel, where a lot of the atmosphere would be handled by the art. However, in prose form, it just made the book less scary.
All in all though, this was yet another enjoyable read from Darcy Coates. I speak of her books often with people who enjoy scary books. She knows what she’s doing. I can’t wait for her next!