#BookADayUK; A Reader Event For October. Last Day

Odd Thomas (novel) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Well, it's been a bit of a marathon, but hopefully has made some readers consider using their local independent bookshop (if you're lucky enough to have one!) to purchase their books. The Books Are My Bag.com promotion has lasted the entire month of October, and I've tried to post on each theme as it's occurred.

Todays, more or less inevitably, I suppose, is 'Spookiest read'. Spookiest? Well, I've read a lot of books that have set my nerves jangling, made me look over my shoulder for that vague sound behind me, got me twitching the curtains to see who is lurking in the back garden. Can I recall the title of a single one? Not today (but it has been a rather peculiar day with an early morning journey to rescue my daughter after she crashed her car - no injury, but a bit of a bent car. Didn't get to bed until 03:15 and then up at 08:00 to get the car recovered and into the garage for repairs!).

So, it looks as though I've had to call on Goodreads to remind me. And I've come up with Dean Koontz and Odd Thomas. Let's face it, a book about a guy who sees dead people is pretty spooky. It's a good read and I'd recommend you try it.

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The Turn of the Screw, by Henry James, Reviewed

Not the cover of the edition I read, but the same publisher.

A classic, of course, and, for the story, deservedly so. But this is one of those books, from the literary past, which might actually benefit from an update, a rewrite in the modern style. In many works of literature, the language, style of writing, method of expression all contribute to the overall effect of the story. This is not one of those works. This is a ghost story, an attempt to frighten and disturb the reader. But its effect is diminished by convoluted language, by unnecessarily complex sentence structure and by authorial intrusion. The pace is slowed and barriers are placed in the way of progress through the story without adding anything of value to the tale itself. Written for a different age, when time was of little consequence to those who had the means to read, it is a short novel that could easily have been told in half the words employed. In fact, such shortening would undoubtedly have improved the book.

The emotional impact of the story, once filtered from the excess, is potentially profound. Who could fail to be moved by the malign influence of the jealous spirits of the wicked dead on the innocence of children? Of course, the nature of the wickedness of those dead who provide the ghosts isn’t detailed, merely hinted at in that infuriating fashion employed by Victorian authors writing about sexual matters. We guess, but are never made certain, that the individuals whose spirits cause such consternation, are those of improper lovers. But the modern reader doesn’t harbour such restricted views of relationships, class barriers no longer exist, and the outrage felt by the governess and the housekeeper is therefore made ludicrous. If the language allowed the reader to accept the strictures of the day, it would have been easier to understand and even empathise with the emotions of the narrator and her friend. But I found the very language prevented my sympathies aligning with the social mores so that I frequently questioned exactly what was the evil these two dead people actually presented.

On the back of the edition I read, the blurb describes this book as ‘Widely recognised as one of literature’s most gripping ghost stories…’ I did not find it so. I found it tedious for much of the narrative, self-congratulatory throughout, and more concerned with a demonstration of the author’s cleverness than with any attempt to engage the reader with the emotions of the protagonists. Much repetition and a deal of extraneous information detract from the story itself. And the story is an excellent conceit. I think it could have been written so much better by employing much more discipline and far fewer words.

But, then, what do I know? The book has gained the status of a classic. I read the story, by the way, in the unabridged version of 1898, as published in 1991 by Dover Publications Inc. Would it encourage me to read more of James? I think not; I don’t have that much time to spare.

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A Pleasure to Burn, by David Bain, Reviewed.

I read this short on my Kindle. It has references to Ray Bradbury, which I didn’t fully get until I discovered Ray wrote a story with the same title (one I haven’t read). I felt the style was closer to some of the US detective stories I read in Ellory Queen, when I was younger, than to the sublime style of Bradbury.

The tale is told from two points of view; the ‘hero’, a celebrity returning to his home town, scene of a family tragedy, and the young female reporter following him and intent on getting a unique story. The writing is tight and moves the action along well. I felt the ending was predictable but that didn’t spoil my enjoyment of the story.

This was one of those books that held my attention whilst I was reading but left me with no after-impression. So, an entertainment rather than a deep piece of work. Nevertheless, I enjoyed this work of horror/ghost story and would recommend it as a way to spend a short spell of time alone in an old house, especially if you’re of a suggestible nature.

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Contribution to Mankind, by Linda Acaster, Reviewed

Here we have a collection of short stories by an author who knows her craft. The tales are all dark but, as with all good tales of the sort, carry patches of light. Linda Acaster has an uncanny knack of undermining assumptions so that the reader finds her stories end rather differently from what might have been expected. Nevertheless, the endings are all apt; there is nothing either false or contrived about them, it's merely that they lead to places not ordinarily considered.

The author employs her considerable imagination to take the reader into unfamiliar worlds where all is not as it seems on the surface. Although ghosts and spirits populate some of these stories, they don't arise from the regular menu of ghost stories. Each has its own take on experiences that take us out of our normal, cosy world and plunge us into possibilities we might otherwise not encounter.

As always in this writer's fiction, the language employed is both apt and accessible without being either patronising or too clever. She uses a down to earth tone to set the scene and to portray her characters. And the characters are beings we might all have met, even those populating the other worlds she sometimes takes us into.

There is irony, some just desserts, and a glance into our possible distant future within the tales in this collection. I enjoyed all the stories and commend them to you.

As a bonus, the book also contains the opening chapters of Linda Acaster's 'Torc of Moonlight', a superb paranormal romance novel that stands out as more than just a great example of the form but as a demonstration that such works can truly transcend the narrow definition of the genre and appeal to the widest readership.

Author, Steven Jensen, Interviewed.

 Steven Jensen is an author from South Wales, UK. His first book, The Poison of a Smile, will be published by Night Publishing, late 2010.

SA:  Tell us about The Poison of a Smile.

SJ: For many years, I was intrigued by what I view as the ambiguous mindset of male artists, particularly those within the Pre-Raphaelite circle of the Nineteenth Century. I was struck at how idealistic, yet callous, some of these men were in their attitudes towards women. An example: the artist Dante Gabriel Rosssetti buried his finest poems with the wife who killed herself because of his infidelities. Some time later, in need of money, he had her body exhumed and then published the poems to great fanfare and commercial success. This disconnect between Rossetti's supposedly broken heart and the 'desecration' of his wife's tomb for personal gain is as incredible to me as I'm sure it would be to most people. But then, artists are rarely 'most people'. Not surprisingly, Rossetti suffered a mental breakdown before too long – he even claimed that  Elizabeth haunted him. Rossetti, poet and painter (as is my character Daniele Navarro), slowly fell apart.

Initially, I planned to write a nonfiction title but finally decided to pour heart and soul into a fictional treatment of that decadent world. As it stands, this is a story of revenge, but an ambiguous vengeance which is devoid of basic human instincts - when a dead soul takes revenge, it is both dispassionate and intellectualised; such malice is a mere entertainment to them. The Poison of a Smile is effectively a ghost story in which the living haunt themselves...

Many of Poison's chapter titles were inspired by the work of the surrealist René Magritte. I love the chosen titles of his paintings...I find them enigmatic and interesting. Sometimes I've used these titles directly – The Scars of Memory, The Enchanted Domain, The Treachery of Images, for example – and, on occasion, I've invented my own or combined Magritte's titles: The Poison of a Smile is one such combination. The book's title suggests deception, a lure to snare the unwary, a contradiction and a fractured persona; all these things are the very essence of The Poison of a Smile.

SA:  What qualities do you need to be a successful writer?

SJ: Patience, perseverance and determination. This is an industry unlike any other and, as such, patience is not merely a virtue but a vital component of a writer's psychological make-up. James Levine said: "I thought I'd write one book and the world would change overnight," but such instant success is rare indeed and often brings its own problems; better to hone your craft in the time spent waiting for 'overnight success' to arrive.

SA:  What is the single biggest mistake made by beginners to writing?

SJ: Confusing brutal but supposedly 'honest' criticism with objective truth and good advice; technical excellence is all very well but a singular writing style is of more importance. Story is all.

SA:  How did you come to write this particular book?

SJ: In addition to my other source of inspiration - the Pre-Raphelite Brotherhood - I was inspired by the legendary life of the Surrealist artist Salvador Dali. Half-genius, half-madman, Dali was the quintessential charlatan, particularly towards the end of his career. Although not as malicious as my character Cristian Salazar, Dali nonetheless possessed many strange and dubious traits. He expected his followers and patrons to treat him as a king, and his whims became identical to royal commands, at least in the mind of the self-named 'Great Dali'. Along with his wife Gala - who behaved more like his muse or familiar - the man had a definite penchant for malice, and an affinity with madness.

SA:  What are your writing habits?

SJ: I'm very much a 'mood' writer - I have to feel it. The creation of atmosphere plays a major part in the quality of my writing, so I obey the whims of inspiration and never treat writing as a mere occupation.

SA:  Do you have support, either from family and friends or a writing group?

SJ: Practically everyone I know has been supportive, and the long but rewarding learning curve (thanks to guidance from new and established authors from My Writers Circle, Authonomy, and Inkpop) has really helped me.

SA:  Do you think writing is a natural gift or an acquired skill?

SJ: I can only speak from my own experience: one improves over time, and through the guidance and support of those one admires and respects.

SA:  What are you writing now?

SJ: My second book, titled The Passion Bearer, a project which is close to my heart. This is a more traditional Victorian-style ghost story:

'As a child, Daniel Grant stumbled across Kelreigh, an abandoned manor house, while lost in the woods near his grandmother’s home. For years afterwards, he was unable to find the house again. 

Now aged twenty-five, Daniel discovers the house anew, refurbished and occupied. Soon, he befriends the resident family, Joseph Fontaine and his daughter Celeste. The house is filled with memorabilia of Joseph’s youngest daughter Ariele; Celeste claims Ariele was murdered by a stranger who entered their home through the forest yet, curiously, 

Joseph believes she will return to Kelreigh one day. In time, Daniel finds himself in love with Ariele, or at least, the flawless Ariele of his imagination. But Celeste tells him a very different tale of her sister… 

Daniel discovers that the Fontaine family have never sought Ariele’s killer. But is she really dead? And if not, who is haunting Kelreigh?'

I also plan to write a prequel and sequel to The Poison of a Smile.

SA:  How can people buy your book?

SJ: The Poison of a Smile will be published around October/November this year, and will be available from Amazon, CreateSpace and other online outlets. Pre-order enquiries should be directed to:

stevejensen@hotmail.co.uk

timroux@nightpublishing.com

SA:  Do you have a website or a blog that readers can visit?

SJ: Shadows & Illusions: http://spauljensen.wordpress.com/

SA:  Given unlimited resources, what would be your ideal writing environment?

SJ: A quiet hotel in a coastal town. Or better still...a haunted house!

Word of the Day is divorced from the post that precedes it and produced in response to a request from a follower to provide just such a service.

Word of the Day; gothic – a word with many meanings, but, for writers – a style of writing which relies on complex plotting and supernatural or horrifying content. ‘Gerald tried to emulate the gothic style of “Dracula” only to produce a novel so derivative, inconsistent and overblown as to be risible.’