Of all of the horror sub-genres, I’ve always had a real fondness for the gothic, particularly that strain that comes infused with a flair for the historical. So when Lily Childs asked for reviewers of her new offering, Within Wet Walls, I was there like a shot.
In this short, Lily has woven a dark, ethereal tale of things that creep and drift through the forgotten spaces of this bloodsoaked old island. Set in and inspired by the darkness of the Sussex woodland, Within Wet Walls tells the story of an archetypal old house, Wealdstone House, and its spectral inhabitants who derive sustenance from the skin of the living.
The story is mostly told by Eliza, the lingering spirit of a Victorian servant who is as enthralled by her ghostly companions as her audience become, and we learn about ” beings as old as the land itself” that “swirl translucent in the damp mists” (from the blurb). It’s a story soaked in rain, mist and twilight, that never frightens, but instead creeps and sinks its teeth into your unconscious. The set dressing is as sumptuous as you’d expect from a story that claims a lineage from MR James, and the story captures the dark fairytale feel that underpins the early Gothic classics.
It’s a masterfully written story, which I read in one go, and I’ve been thinking about it ever since – is it wrong that I’d love to visit Wealdstone House myself?
You can buy Within Wet Walls for Kindle UK or Kindle US, as well as in paperback (UK and US).
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