It is not until he glimpses a young woman with a wasted face, dressed all in black, at the funeral, that a sense of profound unease begins to creep over him and take hold, a feeling deepened by the reluctance of the locals to talk about the woman in black or what happens whenever she is seen.
And Kipps has to stay on in the lonely house, sorting out Mrs. Drablow's papers, when the mist begins to enshroud both it and its surrounding graveyard and the high tide cuts it off from the world beyond.
©Susan Hill; (P)2005 Long Barn Books
"Enjoy!"
Spooky, atmospheric book. A real treat for a winter's evening! Suasan Hill always writes good books and it is read convincingly too.
"As scary as M R JAMES"
One of the most spine chilling ghost stories ever written. Atmospheric, absorbing, utterly spooky. Be warned, if you are of gentle spirit, this story is not for you. It certainly kept me awake a good few nights and I do not consider myself to be an overly sensitive soul. It will play havoc with your nervous system! Susan Hill is a wonderful novelist and her love of classic ghost stories has clearly driven her to write her own. Master of the ghost story M.R.JAMES would have been proud to have called this story his.
"A Great Listen."
Great story, reads like a diary account. The narrator is fluent and expressive. Recommended.
"Spooky"
I really loved this, so atmospheric and the narrator was great, he really captured the panic of the main character. I really loved to the language in this, so descriptive. You could nearly see everything happening in front of you as you listened. I would definitely recommend this, a great homage to the classic ghost story.
"Brilliant"
I have seen the theatre production of this book about three times now and I loved every one. The book was just as good if not better.
I love descriptive books and this one was very much one of those.
The narrator was good too. Even though I knew what was coming I couldnt put my ipod down and got quite cross when it run out of power! This is one of those books that i could listen to year after year. Marvelous!
"A classic, spine chilling story"
This is a dark, chilling and wonderfully mystical tale, brilliantly narrated by Paul Ansdell. Set in, or around, the Victorian era, the story superbly envelops and entwines its characters, ghostly atmospheres and settings. At times, one almost gets the feeling of being there, and more than once did I find the hairs prickle at the back of my neck! I am not surprised this book has now been adapted to the screen -it definitely deserves the attention!
"Terrifyingly unnerving - well recommended"
Susan Hill has a talent for writing stories that unnerve by creating an atmosphere of creeping terror, rather than in-your-face horror. I have seen The Woman in Black at the theatre, and didn't think it could be improved on, but Paul Ansdell's utterly convincing narration took the story to a whole new level for me. I will be looking for other books narrated by him.
If I may offer one piece of advice thought.... please do not do as I did and listen to it as you drive on your own down dark country lanes in the November fog!!
"Classic ghost story"
I finally got around to listening to the unabridged reading having first heard the radio dramatisation and then seen the stage play and now feel that is not the best order. Having been scared out of my wits by the stage version, I found the book much less frightening as the play heightens the shocks in the story.
It is a good ghost story and is well narrated. It has the classic style of the narrator reliving the events long afterwards around the fire on a dark winter night. The climax is very chilling and the theme of grief and loss pervades the whole story with the narrator forever haunted by his experiences.
It's a good listen.
"Nice story"
First 40 min was dreadful but it gets really good afterwards. The narrator adds suspense by acting up bits of the story. Wish it had some sound effect to increase the fear effect. After all that is the reason for getting an audiobook, for those extra features. ;-)
"Spooky and engaging"
This book was brilliantly narrated, and the story and characters are well put together and described. A great book.