David Mitchell’s latest novel Slade House is a spooky bedtime story for adults. Being Christmas time and all, I realize a spooky story is not exactly what the season calls for, but honestly I am always in the mood for something creepy and dark. I’ll admit that I have never read David Mitchell, and I feel like this was a good start for me. Slade House is still in keeping with his well-crafted, literary quality while not being quite so ambitious in scope. The prospect of Cloud Atlas has terrified me at times but after reading Slade House, I do believe that the lonely Cloud Atlas sitting on my shelf will get read now.
So on to the matter at hand: Slade House serves as the backdrop for our story and is the base of operations for the twins Jonah and Norah Grayer; who for over a century have lured gifted people into this seeming paradise slap in the middle of London for one tempting reason or another. However, this grand estate with a vast garden is merely a nightmare masquerading as a paradise. The twins’ chosen victims always enter through a black iron door in a back alley that enters into the back of the gardens. Their goal is to ultimately lead their victims into a certain room of the house, where they then feed on the soul of the wanderer. The reader is on the edge of their seat hoping for a last minute rescue. Will it come?
The twins have lived for a century by these methods in this house that was actually demolished in The Blitz; Slade House is a mirage of sorts that appears every few years when it is time for the twins to feed again. The story starts off in 1979 and goes all the way to 2015, and we get to know several different unsuspecting people and their individual stories. I, for one, became a silent cheerleader for all these poor bastards who had no idea what was waiting for them.
A paranormal group becomes involved, as does a divorced cop investing the disappearance of the first victim we get to know. Although this book was dark and not exactly cheery, I had the best time reading it. I couldn’t wait to get in bed every night and see what Jonah and Norah were going to do next. This novel is a very attractive book that any die-hard Mitchell fan would love to have on their shelf, and is the perfect read for anyone just starting out on his books. Christmas gift, anyone?
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