The Dornstein Icon - an Avon Gothic original

I have to make a confession about this book before I even start this blog post.  The sole reason I bought this book is because a friend of mine had shown me the cover to the book, and we laughed about the comparisons it has to the second cover art to the Nancy Drew mystery, The Hidden Window Mystery.  Yes, the similarities are slight, but there are enough common elements that when I happened across the book in my local used bookstore, I went ahead and picked it up.  It has been sitting on my shelf for several years now, and I finally decided it was about time I read it.  

 

The Dornstein Icon provides that tagline that "[a] young American becomes a terrified prisoner and an unwilling bride in a castle in Austria" on its cover.  It tells the story of Caroline Dudley, who work for an American art dealer, Greg Alpert.  She was a student of art in college, and she has just started in her career with Greg.  The two are in Vienna, where Greg is hoping to return some very valuable art objects to their rightful owners, including an extremely old "icon" to a prominent Austrian family.  Now, I'll admit, I wasn't sure what an "icon" was in art world terms, so I had to look it up.  It turns out an icon is a religious work of art, usually a painting of a sacred image - in this instance, it is a small painting of the Holy Mother, Mary.  Caroline is excited about being in Vienna, and she is anxious to meet the Graf Rudolf von Dornstein, whose home they will be visiting so Greg can show him the numerous items in the hopes of returning some of the lost items to their rightful owner.

The mystery that presents itself as soon as Caroline and Greg arrive at the Dornstein manor is actually pretty dark.  There's a strange old man who seems to dance erratically in the garden and around the grounds' fountain.  Soon enough, he attacks Caroline, nearly choking the life from her.  He is revealed to be Rudolf's uncle, who became mentally unstable after the war with the Turks.  Then there's Rudolf's mother, the Countess von Dornstein.  She is friendly enough, yet when shown the Dornstein Icon, it is clear that she recognizes it immediately - so why does she deny its authenticity after her son sternly tells her to reconsider?  And then there is Rudolf von Dornstein himself.  Like hot and cold running water, he switches from the kind and considerate lord of the manor to the brash and domineering despot who demands obedience from those around him.  Caroline is not sure what to think, but she and Greg begin to realize something is wrong when Rudolf sends Greg's car down into the village to be "repaired," leaving them stuck at the castle.  Are they truly guests, or have they become captives with something much more sinister in mind?

 

I recently read some commentary about the author, Janet Louise Roberts, who was dubbed "The Mistress of Romantic Mystery," and who wrote quite a number of gothic and romance novels under her own name, as well as under pseudonyms such as Louisa Bronte, Rebecca Danton, and Janette Radcliffe.  According to an interview she gave to Publishers Weekly, Roberts used pseudonyms "to avoid embarrassing her father, a missionary in a rather conservative church."  Another blog I discovered gives some background information on Roberts (The Compleat Janet Louise Roberts), including a quote from essayist Barbara E. Kemp from the book, Twentieth-Century Romance and Historical Writers, in which Kemp opines that Roberts portrays women in her novels "as ineffectual beings, subject to much degradation," and that the men are"rough and overbearing..."  I have to say, that is a pretty apt description of the characters in this book.  

The manner in which Roberts writes poor Caroline is extremely submissive.  In the beginning, I thought Caroline was going to be a strong character, who would prove herself by overcoming and solving whatever mystery lie ahead at the Dornstein's estate.  Instead, she gets drugged repeatedly, to the point where she willingly subjects herself to a very unusual wedding in the family's crypt under the house.  And yet, despite Rudolf von Dornstein's actions, she still wavers back and forth between loving him and distrusting his action!  I mean, c'mon, seriously?  What woman is going to be knowingly poisoned by a man who is holding her captive and still believe he is a good person?  I think that takes the whole "suspension of disbelief" way too far.  And the overbearing, controlling manner in which Rudolf treats poor Caroline, I just can't imagine any woman falling for that kind of man (or, at least, if she does fall for him, why would she continue to accept such treatment?).  Thus, based on this story, I'd have to say Kemp gives an accurate description of Roberts' portrayal of women and men in her novels.

Regardless of the characterizations, however, I will say the mystery does resolve nicely.  Are the treasures truly the Dornstein's missing heirlooms, or are they fakes?  How does Rudolf's actions tie into the answer to that question?  And what is Greg's part in this whole drama?  The final revelation results in a rather tense cliff-side battle where two of the characters meet their untimely demise!

The cover art is beautifully rendered, with Caroline running through the Dornstein's manor, the only lights streaming through a stained-glass window behind her.  The emptiness and gloom of the manor, with its rock floor and walls, the empty dining room in the background, and the look of desperation on Caroline's face give the reader a clue as to the intensity of the story that is held behind the cover.  I'm not really sure the import of the stained glass, though, as the only mention of stained glass in the story is the fact that one of Caroline's artist friends actually did work with such glass. It does not really play into the mystery at all, particularly since the "icon" in question is a painting of the Virgin Mary.  I guess it was simply used to make a beautiful cover.

RATING:  6 pairs of sapphire drop earrings out of 10 for creating a dark and sinister mood of fear, dark motives, and desperation - all necessary elements of a good gothic tale!