The Gist: Susan Hill's "The Woman in Black" is a ghost story styled after all the classic Victorian thrillers (See Wilkie Collins, "The Woman in White") but in a short story format. At around 100 pages, it packs a lot of wallop for such a small amount of text.
Layout: The book uses a flashback narrative to introduce the main character first, set up his relationships and life at "current" time, and institute him as the narrator. The narrative takes the reader on the emotional ups and downs and then... well, I wouldn't want to ruin the ending!
Thoughts: I am a sucker for a Victorian story, and even though Susan Hill wrote this story in 1983 I wouldn't have known if I hadn't looked it up (which I did just now). I assumed from its presence in the e-book section of the library it was actually newer, but that could be attributed to the movie based on the book that just came out. Her writing is evocative of Dickens in its style and heavy imagery, and her plot lines are very Wilkie Collins-esque. She does not, however, depend on a big bad villain such as Count Fosco to intimidate the reader. Instead, an insidious character and frightening context weave a wonderfully suspenseful story!
Overall Impression: A must read for the thriller/Victorian lit/Brit lit/horror addict like myself! I ended up reading until 2a because I was honestly freaked out... if the movie is half as creepy as the book, I'm going to have to watch it mid-day on a Saturday and follow it up with "Old School" to shake the unnerved feeling I had at the end!
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