Darker
Still: A Novel of Magic Most Foul,
is a perfect macabre read for this time of year. I know this book pays homage
to Dracula,
The
Picture of Dorian Gray, Dr.
Jekyll, and some of Poe’s writings, but I’m not that familiar with those so
I’m just going to base this review on Darker
Still and leave out the comparisons.
Natalie Stewart has been unable to speak since the death of
her mother when Natalie was four. Her father is a curator at the Met in New
York, and Natalie enjoys drawing and is interested in art. When she sees a
painting of Lord Denbury, a young English gentleman presumed to have committed
suicide, she is inexplicably drawn to the man in the painting.
Mrs. Northe, a friend of her father, is purchasing the
painting but is going to leave it at the Met. Natalie also becomes very close
to Mrs. Northe. Natalie discovers that the painting is CHANGING, and she is
afraid that she’s losing her mind. But Denbury is definitely calling to
Natalie. Fortunately Mrs. Northe, a spiritualist, becomes a confidante and
helps Natalie sort out what is going on.
I won’t go into details, but Natalie ends up entering the
painting and Denbury has been split into two personalities – the one in the
painting and a very sinister one who is wreaking havoc in New York. Natalie,
who quickly falls in love with the Denbury in the painting, is determined to
find a way to release him.
The story takes place in 1882, and Hieber writes in a more
formal language, as would Poe or Wilde. This technique was very well done, but
I wouldn’t recommend this one for reluctant readers. I found I had to read a
bit slower and that, coupled with a fairly intricate plot, would make this one
for more advanced readers. There’s a bit of blood and gore, but I didn’t find
it at all off-putting.
The story kept my interest, and the plot moved along
steadily. There is a wonderful puzzle to solve and I thought the way the two
women worked it out was clever. They had to work for the solution—it didn’t
just happen. I really didn’t feel a heart-pounding terror during the climax,
but I did enjoy the resolution of the story.
I believe these characters will continue their adventure in
another story, and I will certainly welcome the opportunity to read more about
them. I really became attached to Natalie. The only other comment I would add is that I can't remember the name of this book. Every time I would try to remember it while I was reading, I just couldn't. It just doesn't mean much to me, I guess.
Published by Sourcebooks Fire, Nov. 1, 2011
eBook obtained from NetGalley. (I read part of this on my new iPad, and part on my Kindle)
336 pages
Rating: 3.5/5
This sounds very interesting but the cover doesn't seem to match the content of the book at all.
ReplyDeleteI loved the classics that you mentioned in the beginning of your post (I'm actually starting Dracula for this Halloween for the first time!) and I'm very curious as how the author uses those elements from the other books into the story. It sounds very interesting and I'm definitely intrigued. I'll request it from Netgalley. Thanks for your review, Annette!
ReplyDeleteWow, I also gave this book exactly 3.5 stars! Haha, we must have very similar tastes :)
ReplyDeleteI also thought that the plot got to be a little **too** intricate, there was just so much going on! I liked the writing style, but there were other aspects of the story that I didn't like all that much-- you can see my review on Goodreads, and I'll be posting it on my blog later in the week :)
Lea @ LC's Adventures in Libraryland