The Secret of Crickley Hall
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Trade In this Item for up to £0.25
Get an extra £5 when you trade in books worth £10 or more until June 30, 2012. Trade in The Secret of Crickley Hall for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £0.25, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Find more products eligible for trade-in.
|
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Guardian
'this is a powerfully disturbing read...Two pages in, the reader
is hooked, and Herbert has done his job' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
is hooked, and Herbert has done his job' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
The Glasgow Evening Times
'Herbert's well-honed skill with horror writing rears its head
when he throws his characters into confrontations with the ghostly
residents' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
when he throws his characters into confrontations with the ghostly
residents' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This latest novel is a very traditional ghost story that borders on being cliched, but is kept interesting by Herbert's fertile imagination, and captivating writing style.
I have always enjoyed reading Herbert's work since the mid 80s when I came across him as a teenager. He peaked during this period with classics like Shrine, The Magic Cottage and Haunted. But since then he seems to have got stuck on the famous writer treadmill, churning out much the same formula each time, but with different settings.
There have been a few exceptions - Ghosts of Sleath and Others were atmoshpheric and original, but with this latest it just felt as an old Herbert fan that we've been here just too many times before.
The themes of ghosts being 'trapped' moving over to the other side was one of the main themes of his last book Nobody True and the haunted house scenario he covered in The Magic Cottage and Haunted.
What saves the book is the relentless atmosphere and tension Herbert builds around the house - a former orphanage with a murky past, the creepy cellar with its disused well, old toys in the dormitory from the 1940s. But much of the writing here is repetitive and frankly rather dull. Too many of the earlier chapters end with just a creepy sound, footsteps, or a cellar door opening, but then nothing more. I was hoping some ghost would just jump out of a cupboard and throttle one of the family members just to get the plot moving!
The family are very two dimensional in the story, with little room for character development - and the back story of them moving to the house after a bereavement I found a bit depressing, perhaps it is hard to write about this subject unless you have experienced that kind of tragedy first hand. This applies to the main character of Gabe who is supposed to be American - Herbert just doesn't convince here.
The characters from the past are much more interesting, from the schoolmaster Cribben, to Stafford the sadistic schoolboy informer.
If you want to read a classic ghost story in a modern setting, then this is a good place to start, but many Herbert fans may feel he has done this kind of story much more effectively before...
I have always enjoyed reading Herbert's work since the mid 80s when I came across him as a teenager. He peaked during this period with classics like Shrine, The Magic Cottage and Haunted. But since then he seems to have got stuck on the famous writer treadmill, churning out much the same formula each time, but with different settings.
There have been a few exceptions - Ghosts of Sleath and Others were atmoshpheric and original, but with this latest it just felt as an old Herbert fan that we've been here just too many times before.
The themes of ghosts being 'trapped' moving over to the other side was one of the main themes of his last book Nobody True and the haunted house scenario he covered in The Magic Cottage and Haunted.
What saves the book is the relentless atmosphere and tension Herbert builds around the house - a former orphanage with a murky past, the creepy cellar with its disused well, old toys in the dormitory from the 1940s. But much of the writing here is repetitive and frankly rather dull. Too many of the earlier chapters end with just a creepy sound, footsteps, or a cellar door opening, but then nothing more. I was hoping some ghost would just jump out of a cupboard and throttle one of the family members just to get the plot moving!
The family are very two dimensional in the story, with little room for character development - and the back story of them moving to the house after a bereavement I found a bit depressing, perhaps it is hard to write about this subject unless you have experienced that kind of tragedy first hand. This applies to the main character of Gabe who is supposed to be American - Herbert just doesn't convince here.
The characters from the past are much more interesting, from the schoolmaster Cribben, to Stafford the sadistic schoolboy informer.
If you want to read a classic ghost story in a modern setting, then this is a good place to start, but many Herbert fans may feel he has done this kind of story much more effectively before...
48 of 54 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
It's only because James Herbert is such a competent writer that he has been able to make this weary plot readable. The main question is, why pick this plot in the first place? He's an imaginative guy. "The Secret Of Crickley Hall" crumbles beside some of his other gems like "The Magic Cottage"; its characters come across as lame (particularly the father)despite their backgrounds, as they plod through a story that should be scarier, but for some reason, isn't.
The story follows the Caleigh family as they take up residence in a spooky old manor house in Devonshire which was a former home for orphan evacuees during World War II. As the family meet the locals and tell them where they are living, there are a lot of changes-of-subject and umms-and-ahhs and muttering. It isn't long before there are strange noises and bangs and tappings and all the usual haunted-house phenomena.
Frustratingly, every few pages it seems that one of the main characters thinks; "it's a bit creepy in here, maybe we should move out". Despite the hauntings becoming increasingly agressive and terrifying until even the family dog does a runner, the Dumb Family Caleigh still persist in saying things like "hmmm ... there's something not quite right here". I only wish I had their staying power.
One of Secret Of Crickley Hall's problems is its length; the story is probably drawn out longer than it needs to be. By the time I reached the end it felt as if the family had been there for months, and I got confused when characters mentioned "last night" when they were speaking of an incident that happened 300 pages ago.
There are of course a number of redeeming qualities - Herbert is after all a top notch writer, and he can conjure up images and tell a story well, even if the tightness or inginuity of plot isn't there on this occasion. The story of the evacuated orphans is a cruel and interesting one, and it does build up nicely throughout as more information about them is revealed. Despite being long-dead, their characterisation is more readily imagined than that of the Caleigh family themselves, who are a bit of a nondescript bunch really.
All in all a pretty run-of-the-mill horror, with a few interesting hooks only just making it sufficiently different from another "Amityville" or "Poltergeist" type affair.
The story follows the Caleigh family as they take up residence in a spooky old manor house in Devonshire which was a former home for orphan evacuees during World War II. As the family meet the locals and tell them where they are living, there are a lot of changes-of-subject and umms-and-ahhs and muttering. It isn't long before there are strange noises and bangs and tappings and all the usual haunted-house phenomena.
Frustratingly, every few pages it seems that one of the main characters thinks; "it's a bit creepy in here, maybe we should move out". Despite the hauntings becoming increasingly agressive and terrifying until even the family dog does a runner, the Dumb Family Caleigh still persist in saying things like "hmmm ... there's something not quite right here". I only wish I had their staying power.
One of Secret Of Crickley Hall's problems is its length; the story is probably drawn out longer than it needs to be. By the time I reached the end it felt as if the family had been there for months, and I got confused when characters mentioned "last night" when they were speaking of an incident that happened 300 pages ago.
There are of course a number of redeeming qualities - Herbert is after all a top notch writer, and he can conjure up images and tell a story well, even if the tightness or inginuity of plot isn't there on this occasion. The story of the evacuated orphans is a cruel and interesting one, and it does build up nicely throughout as more information about them is revealed. Despite being long-dead, their characterisation is more readily imagined than that of the Caleigh family themselves, who are a bit of a nondescript bunch really.
All in all a pretty run-of-the-mill horror, with a few interesting hooks only just making it sufficiently different from another "Amityville" or "Poltergeist" type affair.
98 of 114 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
At last Herbert is back at doing what he does best - a horror story. Nobody True and to a degree Once... didn't really hit the spot, for me, but The Secret of Crickley Hall is a marvel and really shows why James Herbert is such a respected writer. There are ghosts in Crickley Hall, there are personal - real life - horrors for the family who move into the hall too.
This is James Herbert's longest and most complete work and as the story slowly unfolds to the reader, the depth and intricate emotions of the characters really come to life in a way no other Herbert novel has ever done before.
When the secrets of Crickley Hall are finally explained there is a further chill to set the imagination rocking and that is typical of Herbert's very best fiction. My only criticism however: there should be a chapter before 6: Chester, to give more suspense to the disappearance of one of the characters; but that is only a small niggle in a very entertaining and totally gripping novel. Vintage Herbert, and that is something I haven't been able to say for some time.
This is James Herbert's longest and most complete work and as the story slowly unfolds to the reader, the depth and intricate emotions of the characters really come to life in a way no other Herbert novel has ever done before.
When the secrets of Crickley Hall are finally explained there is a further chill to set the imagination rocking and that is typical of Herbert's very best fiction. My only criticism however: there should be a chapter before 6: Chester, to give more suspense to the disappearance of one of the characters; but that is only a small niggle in a very entertaining and totally gripping novel. Vintage Herbert, and that is something I haven't been able to say for some time.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Macabe and gripping!
Three pages into this book and I loved it! It is some years since I have read a James Herbert novel and this just looked a good, chilling ghost story. How right I was. Read more
Published 15 days ago by Gella
The Secret of Crickley Hall
I have read many of James Herberts books, and now am excited to find one i havnt read yet. I am just into the first pages and am gripped already, slight fear, but cant put it... Read more
Published 1 month ago by carol g
Gripping
Having been a huge Herbert fan since my teens, I haven't hadn't had the chance to read novels since having my first child 17 years ago, after treating myself to a kindle I wasted... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Rachel
Disappointing
What a load of utter tosh. This book is the worst written, most cliche-riddled pile of rubbish I have read in a long time. Right from the start I found the writing awful. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Fiver
E-book version riddled with typo's
I purchased this e-book for my Kindle through whispernet. The story itself doesn't really bring anything new to the Haunted - Forbidding dark country house - genre. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Mr. G. Brammah
Kindle Edition
Not finished the book yet but wanted to warn other potential purchasers of the Kindle Edition that the formatting is awful. Read more
Published 10 months ago by DamBuilder
Fantastic spooky read
This a fantastic book. Sit on the edge of your seat stuff. I would definately recommend this book. Everything in the book is so discriptive that I felt like I was there. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Julsmg
Herbert is the master
Absolutely superb. I loved this book and read it in three days. It starts off a bit slowly but the action and supernatural suspense soon grips you. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Mr. Craig Henderson
Getting round to it!
I meant to order this book years ago when it first came out as I have been a fan of James Herbert for some time. Read more
Published 20 months ago by LostPlot72
Disappointed
This is the first Herbert book I have read. I chose it because ever since I was a little girl, I have liked ghost stories - reading so many haunted house novels when I was younger... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Brida
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
![[Start the discussion]](http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/02/x-locale/communities/discussion_boards/start-new-discussion-sec._V192198663_.gif){kind=small}
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
