The Curse of Collinwood - the 5th Paperback Library Gothic Novel based on ABC-TV's suspense drama (Dark Shadows)

And with this book, the tone and direction of the Dark Shadows series by W.E.D. Ross (writing under one of his many pseudonyms, Marilyn Ross) changes to include the supernatural.  By the time this book was published in May 1968, the television show had long been dealing with supernatural themes:  from the ghost of Josette, to the phoenix Laura Collins, to the ghost of Sarah, to the introduction of the vampire Barnabas Collins, to the trip in time back to 1795, to the witch Angelique, and was just reaching the point with the evil Dr. Lang and his Frankenstein-type creation, Adam.  Thus, it was only natural that the book series would begin to introduce supernatural elements, which would go beyond the standard Gothic tropes and enter the realm of full-on horror in its stories.  But the addition of the supernatural was not the only change Ross brought into the series, as we will quickly discover...

 

The Curse of Collinwood is the story of Derek Collins and his wife, Esther Collins, who died over a hundred years ago under strange circumstances. Derek had engaged in slave trade in order to make his fortune, and his wife was horrified to learn this about her own husband.  With the help of a voodoo / witch doctor, she had her husband killed and embalmed, as well as orchestrated her own death, with the idea that her husband could never be rid of her.  Their bodies were returned to Collinsport and locked away in the Collins' family masoleum, forever to remain sealed.  Only a shaft of moonlight could unlock the curse placed upon their dead bodies, giving them new life as part of the living dead!  For a century, their coffins remained in darkness inside the cold, cement crypt, never seeing daylight nor moonlight, trapped in an eternal sleep.  But events are about to transpire that will change all of that!

 

Just as Victoria's love interest in the television show, Burke Devlin, was killed (allegedly) in a plane crash while on a business trip to Brazil, suddenly in this book we learn that Victoria's love interest, Ernest Collins, has died in a plane crash en route to Rio de Janeiro (p. 7) for a concert he was to perform (and for those who do not know, Rio de Janeiro is located in Brazil - meaning Ernest was killed in identical fashion and in the same location as Burke!).  Readers also learn that Elizabeth is no longer locking herself away in Collinwood, as she has learned the husband she thought dead for so many years has actually been alive and is pursuing a career on the high seas (p. 6).  David, who had been sent away to a boarding school as revealed in the last book, is back home; and Carolyn, who had been attending school in nearby Ellsworth, had a nervous breakdown and has returned home to recuperate (p. 6).  It seems quite a bit has happened in the Collins' household between books 4 and 5, and readers are brought up to date within just a few pages in the first chapter.  Surprisingly, there is no mention of Victoria searching for the truth about her past and her own identity - Ross apparently dropped that entire plot thread, much as the television show did as it moved further and further into the realm of the supernatural.  (And this is a true shame, as I always hoped it would have been revealed that Victoria was really Elizabeth's daughter - although, Ross did have an outline planned for a book that would have revealed Victoria's parentage and reunite her with her love, Ernest; but, sadly, that book never got written, as Ross was required to write Victoria out of the books, just as she had been written out of the television show - a brief version of that unwritten novel can be found on Craig Hamrick's website: The Secret of Victoria Winters)

 

Ross manages to keep the reader guessing for a good portion of the book as to whether the "large man" and "young woman" who seem to be terrorizing Collinsport are the escaped criminal Big Tim Mooney and his girlfriend, Nora or whether they are Derek and Esther Collins, brought back from the dead to roam the area as zombies.  Victoria, who at first discounts the stories of "Mad Man" Martin, an elderly spiritualist who warns her and Burke about Derek and Esther, soon believes that she and Burke accidentally released  the Collins' ancestors when they went into the mausoleum to satisfy Burke's curiosity regarding the two long-dead members of the family.  When Victoria, Carolyn, and Elizabeth are all terrorized by the large man and the woman with him, Burke and Vicki go back to the crypt and find both coffins destroyed - and the bodies are gone!  Burke insists it was Mooney looking for the treasures supposedly buried with Derek Collins, but Victoria thinks the supernatural is at work and zombies are now walking in the night.  In true Gothic fashion, Ross builds the suspense with disembodied hands, shadowy figures attacking, chases up the steep cliffs in the middle of the night, and plenty of appearances of these two horrors of the night.  Even I was curious as to whether they were actually zombies, or would it all be explained away by the end (as had been done in the four previous books).

 

I enjoyed seeing David and Carolyn back in this book, and I rather liked the fact that Victoria was paired more with Burke Devlin in this story (as I always loved the two of them together in the television show).  Even Roger was back to his nearly-always drunk, belligerent self in this story.  Matthew Morgan is mentioned but never actually appears (and he is referred to as "Matt" Morgan, which I found weird).  And, I know I will probably get some flack for this, but I was actually happy Ross got rid of Ernest Collins.  I never liked the character, and I certainly did not like the romance between him and Victoria.  Yes, his abrupt death and the myriad of changes that took place "off screen" between books 4 and 5 definitely tells the reader that the series is headed in a completely different direction now.  At the time it was published, Alexandre Moltke was still playing Victoria Winters on the television show, so there was no reason for anyone to think Vicki would not continue to play a major role in the books; however, this was actually the last full-length novel written by Ross to feature Victoria Winters as a major protagonist.  Beginning with the next book, Victoria becomes a supporting character, with Barnabas Collins becoming the lead character (much as he did in the television show).

 

The family history truly deviates from that established in the show with this book, as Ross introduces Derek and Esther Collins, who are both said to have died in 1859, which would have made them both contemporaries of sorts with Daniel Collins, a cousin of the Collins family who inherited Collinwood after the events of 1795 (when most of the immediate family was killed).  There is no mention of Derek or Esther in the television show, making them both original creations of Ross.  I am aware that the books play very loose with the family lineage, and from what I can remember, the stories that are told in later books in various time periods do not match up between themselves as to the names of family members living at various points in time.  While I realize the television show played a bit loose with the family tree, particularly once Barnabas came into the picture, the books (from what I have been told) do not even bother with a coherent timeline (which, technically, could be explained by the fact that Barnabas' frequent trips through time messes with the timeline, creating multiple alternate realities with different family trees!).

 

This is the first book to feature only one cover, and it is a hodge-podge to say the least!  The background takes the same painted image of Victoria Winters that was used for the first book of this series, and superimposed over that is a very recognizable photo of Jonathan Frid as Barnabas Collins, baring his fans and holding that wolf's head cane of his.  Obviously, the use of Barnabas' image is to cash in on the success he was having in the television show, because his character does not yet appear in the books - although, the idea that his character was a vampire could hint at the supernatural part of the story within.  But the re-use of the first book cover art is questionable - perhaps it was done merely to save the expense of hiring an artist to paint an entirely new cover.  This is the last book to feature any painted artwork on the cover - all of the books hereafter feature photo covers, with images of the actors from the television show. 

 

Overall, I would say I liked this book far more than I did the previous one.  The story was refreshingly different from the previous four, and Victoria was a bit stronger of a character than Ross has portrayed her in the last couple of stories.  Plus, the actual supernatural elements were an added bonus!

 

RATING:   8 ornate silver snuffboxes from the 1800s out of 10 for increasing the Gothic terror with the reality of the walking dead!

Lucifer Cove, Book 6 - From Satan, With Love (Virginia Coffman's Thrilling Occult Gothic Series)

"Maeva Wells entered the Cove seeking help ... and found that the price was her soul!" (cover blurb)

 

And so we come to the sixth and final entry into the Lucifer Cove series, written by Virginia Coffman.  It is somewhat bittersweet, as I really hate it when a series that I enjoy reading comes to an end and I know I will no longer read about the characters I have grown to enjoy; but, at the same time, I believe it is better for a series to end while the stories are still well-written and fresh, rather than continue on and start telling stories that are stale and no longer readable.  The only drawback to this final visit to Lucifer Cove is that we do not get a final resolution as to Marc Meridon and Christine Deeth...

 

From Satan, With Love is clearly a title taken from the James Bond film of similar name (with "Satan" taking the place of "Russia"), and perhaps, in a way, it is used as a way to signify this book is a send-off to readers, an opportunity to say goodbye to the Cove forever.  While the previous books have provided a build up to the true nature of Marc Meridon, this book provides readers with definite confirmation as to Marc's evil nature and introduces an unexpected antithesis within the Cove that readers will not likely see coming (I certainly wasn't expecting it!).  It all stems from the arrival of Maeva Wells and her niece, Jenniver, who happen to be hiking up the Coast Range, when they stumble upon a break that reveals a hidden valley - the very valley where Lucifer Cover has made its home, hidden from the road and not appearing on any map.  Jenniver is only too excited to explore the quaint spa, but Maeva has her concerns.  The choice is taken out of her hands, though, when Jenniver slides down the inside slope, injuring her leg and ankle.  Fortunately, Marc Meridon is there to help!

 

With her typical flare for dramatics and building suspense, Coffman brings Maeva Wells into the world of temptation and desire, and while the Irish woman believes she is immune to such temptation, the sudden attraction she feels for Marc cannot be denied.  She soon finds herself doing things she would never imagine possible, such as attending a black mass in the Greek temple, overseen by Nadine Janos, self-proclaimed priestess of the devil himself.  She unwittingly makes a wish and signs a simple form to confirm that wish - not realizing that she has not only signed her life away, but her very soul as well!  The death of a young woman by apparent suicide (but which Maeva knows was not suicide) and a late night warning from one Christine Deeth (the woman who shares her niece's room at the Cove's medical facility) start to open Maeva's eyes as to what is really going on in the Cove.  But, as Marc so politely informs her as he leads her beneath the basement floors of the infirmary, to an area filled with intense heat and the horrific smell of sulfur (not to mention all of the cries and moans of those who sound like they are suffering beyond belief!), she did sign a contract, and once signed, there is no way to break it.  Or is there...

 

Those who have been reading all of the books in the series may recall Dr. Rossiter from prior books.  He is not the most cordial of men, nor is he very likable.  But, from the moment Maeve and Jenniver arrived in Lucifer Cove, he has tried to impress upon her the fact that she does not belong there, and that she and her niece must leave as soon as possible.  Well, appearances can be deceiving, and sometimes the truth we need is presented in the most unexpected ways.  It seems Dr. Rossiter is another character in Lucifer Cove who is much more than he seems, and his attempts to help Maeva escape the clutches of Marc Meridon goes beyond that of any other client at the posh spa - so far, in fact, as to jeopardize the life of the one woman Marc truly loves in exchange for Maeva's own freedom!  The book has quite the climatic confrontation in it, and it's thrilling to see the part that O'Flannery has to play in it all!   It's a race against time, and against the forces of the devil himself to escape this hidden den of vice and iniquity, and the question is - will all of them make it out alive?

 

While Coffman never comes out and says in uncertain terms that Marc Meridon is the personification of the devil, this book makes it unequivocally clear that he and his Cove are there to draw people into sign, sign their souls always, and ultimately make their way into the fiery depths of hell (the whole scene of Marc leading Maeva into the basement, with the description of the heat, the sulfer, and the cries of pain leave no doubt as to where he is leading her!).  He even admits to Maeva that her execution of that contract in Nadine's temple sealed her fate.  I rather liked the fact that Dr. Rossiter is revealed to be at the Cove to work against Marc's efforts to gain more soles; I just wish the series had had more books in which to develop his character, and perhaps even end with a battle between the two (the climax of this book certainly seemed to set up a potential battle between them).

 

Once again, this book offers three different cover choices.  My favorite version (top left) inverts the images from prior covers, with the water and mysterious fog-covered rock island on the right side rather than the left.  The woman on the cover, preparing to escape the Cove, is blond, while Maeva is described inside as having dark colored hair (which is properly represented on the other two covers).  It seems very few of the covers by this particular artist depicted the main character accurately on the cover.  Meanwhile, the Pinnacl Books edition (above right) is closer to how the author describes her.  This artist also offers up the wildcat heard, and ultimately seen, by Maeva in the book, as well as a man (assumed to be Marc Meridon) watching her from above/behind.   The third cover art, for the Lancer Gothic edition, is somewhat pain, compared to the others, with the dark-haried woman's face in the foreground, her hair windswept, and the tudor-style building from the Cove in the background, atop a not-so high cliff.  Again, these images of the Cove being near the water is inaccurate, as the book clearly describes the spa being located withing a mountainous region, completely surrounded by mountainside and no visible ocean anywhere (as that would obviously provide a means for the guests to escape!).  The only cover to feature a character that shows any fear whatsoever is the one I like best (top left).

 

With the series over, sadly, there are some answers that will forever remain unanswered.  What ultimately happened to Christine Deeth?  How much longer can Nadine Janos keep up the pretense of being an emissary of the devil, while unknowingly performing her cons on his very playground?  Exactly who is Dr. Rossiter, and what is his ultimately purpose / goal in Lucifer Cove?  Why did he really try and assist Maeva and Jenniver?  And will anyone every truly succeed in defeating Marc Meridon, or, if he truly is the devil himself, is Lucifer Cove simply an allegory for how the devil tempts us every day into giving in to our baser desires, while, at the same time, giving up our souls for eternity?  Alas, that is a question we each have to ask ourselves, and only we know the real answer...

 

RATING:  10 panels of old-fashioned wallpaper filled with green tendrils of ivy out of 10 for a suspenseful and nearly terrifying tale of what can happen if we allow our lustful desires get the better of us and how high the cost can be! 

House of Dark Laughter - an Avon Gothic Original

Any fan of the Gothic novels from the 1960s and '70s knows that the plots to these books all follow a similar formula - a young woman goes to a mansion/house/castle for whatever reason, and she faces multiple dangers from unknown sources, all while fending off two men, one of whom is good and one of whom is bad - but which is which?  Sure, the settings change, the characters change, and some plot elements same, but they all basically boil down to the same story when you get down to it.  This particular book, published by Avon Books in July 1972 under their "Avon Gothic Original" line, not only follows that pattern, but it shares a lot of story elements with other Gothic novels that I have read in recent years.  Two are The Dornstein Icon and The Ravens of Rockhurst (in which the main character goes to a house to evaluate antiques, like our young heroine in this book does); and the other is ... well, if I said which book it was, it would definitely spoil the big surprise in this one!

 

House of Dark Laughter was written by Melissa Napier.   I was unable to find any information about the author online, so it is uncertain whether "Melissa Napier" is the author's real name or simply another pseudonym.  The copyright page for this book does not offer any aid, as the copyright is to Script Associates, and not the author.  (And as a side note, the copyright page indicates this book was "Published by arrangement with Script Associates," which was a book packaging agency back in the day.)  This might tend one to believe the author's name is merely a house pseudonym for this agency.  In any event, the story itself is not half-bad, although the main character is certainly put through the wringer!  Betsy Vaughn is a young woman who is about to start a new job.  Hired by Carter Willard, Betsy heads off to a remote town in Pennsylvania where she will be cataloguing antiques in the stately Dalton Mansion.  Old Man Dalton has been ill for some time, and he wants all of his possessions catalogued and valued before he dies.  Carter, as the man's secretary, has brought Betsy to the great house, as she is an expert in her field.  The only problem is, the members of Dalton's family do not want her there (big shock)!

 

Dalton's wife, Alice, is a nasty piece of work who makes it clear from the moment Betsy arrives that she runs the household and Betsy had better not be snooping and better stay out of her way!  Dalton's nephew, Derek, and his niece, Lorna, are spoiled and want nothing more than to see their uncle die so they can get their hands on his money.  Even Edith Austin, the Daltons' housekeeper, runs hot and cold - one minute she is friendly, and the next she is spewing nothing but hatred.  Betsy quickly learns no one can be trusted in the house - not even Carter, for whom she is beginning to develop feelings.  Everyone seems to simply be biding their time until Mr. Dalton dies.  But the mystery lies in the question - why is everyone so dead set on getting rid of Betsy?  She is simply there to catalogue, evaluate, and value all of the contents of the house.  Wouldn't they want to know the value, so that when they do get their grubby little hands on the countless antiques, they will be able to sell them for what they are really worth?  What possible reason could they have for trying to get Betsy to leave?  And who is so dead-set against her being there that they would be willing to kill her?

 

Yes, poor Betsy suffers more in this book than even Nancy Drew did in any of her mysteries.  Betsy gets conked on the head not once, not twice, not even three times - but on four separate occasions over the span of just a week or so, the woman is knocked unconscious by the cruel culprit determined to rid the house of her presence!  She is also attacked in the basement, nearly electrocuted, and near the end, she is almost buried alive!  All of this because of a secret of which she has absolutely no knowledge.  Oh, the reader surely will begin to suspect about half-way through the story when there is a passing mention of a certain incident from the Dalton family's past; but Betsy does not make the connection, as it is so far-fetched and not within her realm of knowledge that she would never even suspect the key that she holds.  Overall, the mystery and suspense are built at a pretty rapid pace, which makes the story much more engaging than it might otherwise be.

 

The title is somewhat misleading, as there is only one very brief moment in the book where there is any "dark laughter."  With that title, I was expecting Betsy to hear laughter reverberating through the house and the hallways late at night or when no one else was around, but that is not the case.  Rather, the only time the laughter is heard is for a brief second before Betsy falls unconscious after being struck on the head (twice, to make sure she goes out!) when she is about to enter a dark room where she was lured by the villain.  The woman's laughter, combined with the smell of perfume that Betsy remembers lingering in the air just before she was knocked out, is what helps our young heroine figure out who is trying so desperately to get her out of there. 

 

As with so many of these books, there is no credit given for the cover art, and the art itself shows no signature.  However, a quick online research reveals the artist is Robert McGinnis (1926 - 2025), who only recently passed away last year.  McGinnis was quite the busy artist, painting covers for countless paperback novels - including men's adventure series, romance books, historicals, westerns, and Gothic novels - as well as a large number of movie posters and art for magazines.  You can check out his work at the official Robert McGinnis Artwork website.  The one thing I should note about the cover for this book is that the woman running away from the house is definitely NOT our heroine, Betsy Vaughn.  The cover depicts a young blonde beauty running fearfully from that mansion in the background; yet, in the story, Betsy is described as having hair that is "thick and as luxuriantly black as a raven's wing" (p. 6).  Thus, either the artist was not given any description of the characters from the book when commissioned to do the cover, or the publisher simply chose an already completed painting and slapped it on as the cover for the book without any regard as to whether it matched the story or not (which, as we all know, happened quite often during this period).  Despite this discrepancy, the cover art is beautiful in its own right and can be appreciated for the gorgeous work that it is.

 

While not necessarily one of the best written Gothics of the period, it is a fairly enjoyable read.

 

RATING:  7 original manuscripts of Samuel Clemens out of 10 for crafting a wickedly fun tale filled with absolutely vile people, a determined young heroine, and a house filled with more danger than you can shake a stick at! 

The Mystery of Collinwood - the 4th Paperback Library Gothic Novel based on ABC-TV's suspense drama (Dark Shadows)

We now come to the fourth novel in the Dark Shadows series by Marilyn Ross (a/k/a W.E.D. Ross) published by Paperback Library.  This particular novel was published in January 1968, which is when the television show was starting what I consider to be one of its best storylines (and by far my favorite one on the show) - when a seance was held at Collinwood ... a seance that transcended time and space and sent Victoria Winters on a journey back into the past ... back to the year 1795!  It was there that viewers learned the origin of how Barnabas Collins was cursed and became a vampire.  So, it seems rather odd that by this point in the novels, we have yet to see any sign of Barnabas Collins, and the stories continue to focus on Victoria Winters as the young Gothic heroine who constantly finds herself being threatened by some dark force (that, like in all the Scooby Doo mysteries, turns out to be a real person in disguise!).  Of course, I have no idea just how far in advance the stories were written, so there is the possibility that the book was written months before it was published...

 

The Mystery of Collinwood (and yes, they finally start calling it Collinwood at least, and have dropped the whole "Collins House" moniker) is more or less a repeat of the previous stories, which is a bit disappointing.  How many times can we have strangers / relatives show up at Collinwood, strange events start to happen that all seem to target Victoria, no one believes Victoria when she tells them what is happening, and Victoria is nearly killed before the villain is finally caught and unmasked?  Don't get me wrong - most of the Gothic novels from this period have many similar plot elements; but for a series of novels utilizing the same characters and setting to repeat the same basic story over and over again feels a bit redundant.  Now, I love Victoria Winters - always have since the very first episode of Dark Shadows that I ever watched - so I absolutely love reading more stories about her that take her beyond what we saw on the television show.  But after three books of her facing off against alleged ghosts/demons/phantoms and finding out they were actually one of the numerous strangers that were staying on the Collinwood estate, once would think that by this fourth book she would have wised up and not fallen from any more ghostly haunts.  I would like to think that at some point, her character would have grown, and she would not always play the helpless victim.  But, alas, Ross apparently did not see her that way.

 

With all that being said, the "mystery" of this book revolves around the rather odd Professor Mark Veno and his daughter, Linda, who have come to stay at Collinwood.  The Professor and his daughter travel the world, putting on show that highlight his mental abilities to supposedly read minds.  Roger Collins thinks it is a hoax, but Elizabeth Stoddard seems to think otherwise, so he is always welcome to stay at the great house when he is in the area.  Meanwhile, down at Ernest's cottage on the property, an ill woman, Margaret Lucas, and her deformed caretaker, Carlos, have been renting the cottage so she can be isolated in what Elizabeth and Victoria believe to be the final months of her life.  Margaret is a loner, but she does enjoy Victoria's company - in fact, Victoria is the only one she will allow to visit her.  Until she hears about Linda, at which point, she invites that girl to pay her visits as well.

 

Oh, did I mention that Linda bears a remarkable resemblance to Victoria?  And that Professor Mark Veno is actually Mark Collins, a previously never mentioned brother of Elizabeth and Roger (say what?!?!)?  And that Mark Collins was married before he met Linda's mother, but the first wife and her newborn baby both died?  Or did they?  Yes, it's another potential parentage for Victoria to fret about (she seems to have a new one in every book, doesn't she?).  While Victoria does not like the Professor - in fact, she can't stand him and is afraid of him! - she firmly believes his first child did not die, and she is that child.  Everyone she confides in tries to dissuade her of this theory, but she is persistent to the point of having Burke Devil hire a private detective to look into the matter.

 

And as far as the mystery - well, that involves the strange phantom mariner that the Professor tells the family about.  As the story goes, whenever the phantom mariner would appear to wives of sea-faring men back in the day, it meant the men would not be coming home, or that the women themselves would die!  To see the phantom mariner means death!  And, wouldn't you know it, the same night Victoria hears the story, she sees the phantom out on the grounds.  And again later in the house.  Again.  And again.  Poor Victoria is taken through the ringer in this story.  Knocked down the well outside (remember the one she almost fell into back in the first book, but Ernest saved her?).  Locked down in the dark cellar. Locked in an upper room with a bottle of gas thrown in for good measure.  Locked in the attic with something moving around.  Nearly hypnotized into jumping off Widow's Hill. Nearly hypnotized into jumping off the Captain's walk atop Collinwood.  And, finally, poor girl is nearly strangled to death before she gets the bead on that phantom mariner and shoots the villain with a gun provided her by Burke Devlin (good for you, Burke!).

 

One continuity error I caught while reading this book:  once again, David and Carolyn are out of the picture.  Even though summer is over (this book is explicitly said to take place in September), Ross writes off David by sending him to a boarding school, and he writes out Carolyn by having her return to Ellsworth to finish her final year of high school.  How convenient.  In any event, when Elizabeth plans a big party toward the end of the story, she mentions that Carolyn will be able to come home for that week to be there for the party.  Upon her return, she and Victoria and Linda go up into the attic to look for old dresses to wear for the costume party (p. 140), and Carolyn is the one who actually finds Victoria locked in the attic (p. 143).  That's all good and dandy.  But then the very next chapter begins by saying "Carolyn returned from school in Ellsworth on Friday evening and so was able to assist Linda with the last minute decorations (p. 147).  So, if Carolyn did not return until Friday, then how was she there earlier in the week to look for costumes for the party and to free Victoria from the attic?  Time travel, perhaps?  Parallel time?  Let's face it, stranger things than that have happened on the television show!

 

Just as the previous four books had two covers, so does this one.  The early printings had a painted cover that features Victoria in the forefront, looking over her shoulder (a very striking image of her, I must say!), with a mysterious man in the background - that could be Roger, Ernest, or even the Professor.  Collinwood looms in the background, menacing as ever.  The later printings feature yet another image of Alexandre Moltke and Jonathan Frid as Victoria and Barnabas, again working to cash in on the popularity of Barnabas Collins, even though he has not even been mentioned in the book series up to this point.

 

Read by itself, the story is a fairly well-written Gothic.  Read as a part of this series, however; well, it just feels like a repeat of the same plot with different characters.  

 

RATING:  6 new bottles of sherry out of 10 for keeping Victoria Winters alive and giving her considerably more spotlight than the TV show was doing at this time. 

Lucifer Cove, Book 5 - Chalet Diabolique (Virginia Coffman's Thrilling Occult Gothic Series)

"Kay Aronson sought a murderer at the Cove ... and was trapped in a terror greater than death!" (cover blurb)

 

This is the penultimate book in author Virginia Coffman's occult Gothic series, Lucifer Cove.  Published in 1971 (with my copy being a second edition, published in August 1973), this book continues the mystery of what is really going on in this posh, hidden California spa run by the enigmatic and devilishly handsome Marc Meridon.  As with each of the prior books, this fifth entry into the series introduces readers to another new main character; however, this book reveals more of the dark secrets surrounding the spa and Meridon himself, and sees more of the supporting cast meet their ultimate doom (which they have brought on themselves by the choices they made...).

 

Chalet Diabolique centers around the cottage in which Edna Schallert had been staying (those who have been reading this series might remember that dear Edna is the one who brought Christine Deeth to Lucifer's Cove in the first book, basically setting in motion all of the event that have led us to this point).  It turns out the chalet was actually owned by one Leo Aronson, a rather successful businessman who managed to leave Lucifer Cove some time ago.  But, as with everything connected to the place, evil manages to reach out beyond the borders of the spa, and Leo winds up dead after having made an unscheduled and unexpected visit to the Cover.  Now, his wife, Kay Aronson, and his secretary, Arthur Dugald, have come to Lucifer Cove to uncover the truth behind Leo's death.

 

As this series has progressed, Coffman has inserted Christine Deeth less and less into the stories. In this fifth installment, Christine shows up only twice - both times, to save Kay's life (quite convenient, plot-wise).  Nadine Janos, that conniving devil priestess, makes a brief appearance, as does her Irish boyfriend - who also manages to give aid to Kay by giving her directions on how to escape the Cove.  Caro Teague, who was on the fast-track to being eliminated, gets a new lease on life (literally!) when she is assigned to be Kay's personal maid and assistant during her stay at Lucifer Cove.  And Marc Meridon, as well as Kinkajou, make a number of appearances (although they are not quite as many as in previous books).

 

Coffman's focus for this story is Kay's investigation into her husband's death.  She at first suspects Meridon has something to do with it, but after meeting him, she finds herself uncontrollably attracted to the man (as does every woman he ever comes in contact with!).  She also has suspicions about Arthur, her husband's secretary and right-hand man, who seems to know quite a bit about the Cove and continually warns her not to confide in anyone who lives at the spa.  She even becomes concerned about Caro, wondering if she was placed in the chalet as a means for someone to keep tabs on Kay and her movements.

 

For those who have been reading the series, it is not much of a mystery, really.  It is obvious Leo Aronson made a deal at the Cove at some point in the past, and the time had come for him to pay the piper.  What is engaging about the tale is Kay's suspicions and investigations, and her growing fear as she begins to realize some of the truths about what is really going on at the aptly named Lucifer Cove.  When poor Edna Schallert's body is found in the tunnels under the chalet, and Kay is lied to about the woman's funeral and the disposal of her body, Kay begins to realize she could be in danger as well and must get out.  When Arthur disappears, Kay is left with the quandary - does she trust Arthur and try to rescue him, or is he a part of the plot and someone from whom she must escape?  The one thing I especially like about Kay is that despite the attraction she has for Meridon, she does not give in to those feelings, and she is smart enough to have brought a gun with her, which she keeps with her each time she goes off to investigate on her own (p. 121, for example).  This is probably one of the strongest female characters Coffman has offered up in the series to date,

 

Coffman provides some revelations and confirmations in this book that readers have likely begun to suspect by this point.  The major one, of course, is the direct connection between Marc Meridon and the cat, Kinkajou.  There is also confirmation about those strange index cards introduced in the previous book and the consequences to those whose names appear on those cards, as well as the "leases" (a/k/a "contracts") that the people who live at the spa have signed and how it affects their lives - quite literally!

 

This book, as with all the others, sports three different covers.  The cover to the edition I own (above, top) is by far my favorite - and FINALLY, it has a proper portrayal of the main character from the story.  Kay is described as having long, blond hair, as the woman painted on the cover has, although she never went outside in her nightgown as the cover artist has depicted her.  The cover to the Pinnacle Books edition (above, right) comes much closer to an accurate scene from the book, with Kay (blonde) being surprised by a man we can assume is Marc Meridon - which does happen once or twice in the story. The third cover art, on the later Lancer editions, seems to follow the tend of the Lancer cover for the fourth book, with the young woman out in front of the spa, the ocean off to the left with what appears to be an island in the water, and the ghostly image of Marc Meridon looking down over the building in the background.  Only, on this cover, Meridon looks closer to a vampire than just a devilish, evil man, what with the cloak and the slanted eyes.  (NOTE - I do not have a copy of this particular cover, and finding one online was not easy - thus, the copy you see to the left is somewhat off-center.)

 

Honestly, of all the books in the series thus far, I think this one is my favorite.  Not only do we get a strong, determined lead character that does not back down, but Coffman finally stops hinting around at what is really happening at the Cove and  let's readers see Meridon for who he truly is.  With these kind of revelations, I am hoping that the next book, which is also the last in the series, will tie up all the loose ends and give readers a very satisfying conclusion to the series!

 

RATING:  9 avocado-green enamel tea kettles out of 10 for giving faithful readers a bit of payoff for the building subplots in this series and introducing a character who could give the devil a run for his money! 

Cold Chill of Coptos - a Beagle Gothic

This is the first Gothic novel I've read by author Kay Ashby.  I could find next to nothing about this author online, other than the fact that she wrote what appears to be five Gothics between 1972 and 1976.  Of those books, this one and Climb a Dark Cliff seem to be her most popular ones.  I found one site that referenced Ashby as "one of my pseudonymous authors who wrote atmospheric Gothic paperbacks during the boom of the late 1960s and early 1970s," but there is nothing to verify this was a pseudonym.  In fact, the copyright page of this book would seem to indicate otherwise, as the copyright is 1974 by Kay Ashby, and further down that same page, it indicates this edition of the book was published "by arrangement with the author and the author's agent, Larry Sternig Literary Agency."  Surprisingly, the agency still exists today as Sternig & Byrne Literary Agency (Larry Sternig having taken on Jack Byrne as a full partner in 1995, just four years before Sternig's death).

 

Cold Chill of Coptos is not a historical Gothic, but is set in the current time period of when it was published (the mid-1970s).  Janelle ("Jan") Sheridan is summoned by her mother to the isolated house of her ex-fiance to celebrate her cousin Carla's birthday.  Jan is none-too-thrilled about the call, and although she has no desire to go, she cannot disobey her mother's command.  The question is, as the tagline on the cover reads, "[w]as her summons to the isolated house a sentence of death?"  It is obvious from the start there is tension in the family.  Jan's mother insists she refer to her by her given name of Hester and not by "Mom" or "Mother."  She also has always doted more on her cousin Carla than her own daughter since the avalanche that claimed the lives of Jan's father and Carla's parents all those years ago.  While not jealous, per se, Jan is obviously not happy that Carla always seems to get special treatment and gets whatever she wants - including Jan's fiance, who left her for her cousin.  So, with some trepidation, Jan heads for the desert home of Brian Ward, which can only be reached by private plane, as there are no roads that lead to the place.

 

In some ways, Ashby's writing reminds me much of the old Nancy Drew mysteries, where every chapter ends with either a physical danger as a cliffhanger or an emotional cliffhanger.  Jan, from the moment she arrives at Coptos, is plagued with dangers and suspicions.  From the shower filled with crawling, deadly scorpions (p. 23), to getting lost in the rock mazes out in the desert (p. 43), to being left alone in a ghost town with a fierce storm blowing through (p. 60), to having a large boulder nearly crush her, killing her horse (p. 72), to being tricked into a dark and dangerous cavern, where she is locked in (p. 109), Jan finds her life constantly being threatened.  While she knows someone is trying to kill her, everyone at Coptos discounts her concerns, Hester telling her she is being melodramatic.

 

Ashby provides the reader with plenty of suspects when it come to the question of who wants to do away with Jan Sheridan.  The obvious suspect is Hester, as she is the one who showed Jan to the bedroom with the deadly scorpions; she is the one who tells Jan it is safe to take a walk alone in the desert; she is the one who tells the others Jan is in the truck when they are leaving the ghost town due to the storm; and she is the one who suggests to Jan the missing young boy, Peter, could be down in the cavern.  But why would a mother want to kill her own daughter?  Hayden Hays is the designer who has come to Coptos to help Brian refurbish the great house and who is demanding Jan marry him.  Is he willing to kill her if he can't have her?  And why is Hester paying him large sums of money?  Philip John Wests a/k/a "Far" West is the pilot that takes Jan and Hayden out to Coptos and does errands for Hester and Brian.  Is his interest in Jan simply for her money, or does he have more sinister intentions?  There is also Carla, Jan's own cousin.  She knows Jan is going to inherit millions from her father's estate, and if Jan dies before the estate settles, the money will go to her and Hester.  Will she risk everything to get Jan out of the way so she can inherit the fortune?  And last, but not least, is Jan's ex-fiance, Brian.  Does he regret walking away from an heiress, and is he willing to kill so that his current fiance will get the money instead?

 

For those wondering, Coptos was a major ancient Egyptian city on the east bank of the Nile.  It was a primary cult center for the Egyptian fertility god, Min (who is mentioned a couple of times in this book), and later Isis, and it was also the capital of the fifth, or Coptite, nome of Upper Egypt.  The city was also a major trade center, since it was located at the crossroad between the Nile Valley and the Eastern Desert routes to the Red Sea.  Today, the archaeological remains of the city sit beneath the modern market town of Qift.  In addition to this Egyptian history used in the book, Ashby also includes some German history, with one of the rooms in Copots being painted to resemble the eastern hall of Schloss WeiBenstein in Pommersflden, Germany, in which the artist Giovanni Marchini painted an illusion that depicts painted columns flanking a collapsing entryway (p. 27).  Ashby also quotes the English poet, Andrew Marvell, using a stanza from one of his poems as an inscription on an antique lectern (p. 31).

 

The cover art is provided by Walter Popp (1920-2002), who started out as a freelance artist for pulp magazines, before moving on to painting covers for true crime magazines and men's adventure magazines.  It wasn't until later in his career that he collaborated with his wife, Marie, on book covers for Gothic romance novels.  This particular cover features a generic scene, of sorts, with a woman who I assuming is meant to be Jan in her nightown, running away from a house back in the distance (not at all the way Coptos is described in the book),  At least the land is depicted as a desert, with the obvious cacti and prickly bushes scattered about.  There is no scene in the book where Jan is running outside at night in her nightgown.  One has to wonder if the publisher gave the artists any specifics when commissioning cover art, or if the artists were just given very general facts and told to create an image with a woman running from a house.  Don't get me wrong, the art is gorgeous to look at, but it does not accurately depict anything from the story at all.

While the story is somewhat typical fare for a Gothic, I will admit to enjoying the Nancy Drew feel to the whole thing.  Jan has to be suspicious of everyone, and the final chase from the dark caverns, through the desert rocks, and ultimately up the precarious ledge that leads to the balcony outside Jan's room at the house is intense, with Ashby being very careful not to reveal the identity of her pursuer until the last possible moment - rocking Jan's world with some surprising revelations that change more than one relationship in the story. The ending alone makes the book worth reading. 

 

RATING:  8 leather-bound books next to candle stubs out of 10 for placing the story in a not-so-typical Gothic setting, which opens the door for all kinds of unique dangers to our young heroine.

Strangers at Collins House - the 3rd Paperback Library Gothic Novel based on ABC-TV's suspense drama (Dark Shadows)

This third novel in the series of Dark Shadows novels by Marilyn Ross (a/k/a W.E.D. Ross) takes the story even further away from the plots established in the television daytime drama and most firmly establishes this series as a completely alternate timeline.  While Ross maintains some elements (such as Victoria's search for her parentage, Elizabeth's self-imposed 18-year seclusion, Roger's drinking and sarcasm, and the animosity between Roger and Burke Devlin), Ross deviates in so many ways with the various cousins, uncles, and other family members that appear from book to book, as well as Victoria's romance with Ernest Collins and the lack of supporting cast (with very little mention or few appearances of Maggie Evans, Joe Haskell, and other various Collinsport denizens - even poor David and Carolyn are sent away and haven't appeared since the first book, I suppose to allow more of the focus to be on Victoria as the Gothic heroine).  It is like stepping into another parallel time, like those that appeared later in the television serial.

 

Strangers at Collins House (and I don't think I will ever get used to their constant reference to "Collins House" instead of "Collinwood" was first published in September 1967.  By this time in the TV show, Barnabas Collins had been introduced, the ghost of little Sarah had been appearing, Jason McGuire was on the scene and blackmailing Elizabeth, and Victoria was engaged to Burke Devlin.  Thus, it is surprising that the books continued to keep the focus solely on Victoria Winters, leading one to suspect that the books were actually written some time before they were published.  Not that I am complaining, as I loved the character of Victoria Winters, and I am overjoyed to be reading further adventures of the young ingenue among the dark and sometime dangers secrets surrounding the great house on Widow's Hill.  This book takes place during the same summer as the previous book, only Carolyn is now working in another town and David is at a boys' camp.  This leaves Victoria alone once again in the big house with only Elizabeth Collins Stoddard and her brother, Roger Collins, along with the gruff caretaker, Matthew Morgan.

 

In this book, Victoria believes she has finally found the answers she has been searching for with regard to her missing past when Elizabeth and Roger's uncle, Henry Collins, arrives at Collins House with his friend and confidante, Benjamin Willard, and Benjamin's son and daughter-in-law, Jack and Molly.  Before the elderly man even arrives, Elizabeth shows Victoria to the apartment in the closed off wing of the house where Henry stays whenever he visits - an apartment that has a secret room hidden away through the door in the back of a closet - a room that is quite literally a room from the Ritz Hampton hotel in New York City that was transported piece-by-piece and recreated in this closed off part of the house.  The room holds special meaning for Henry Collins, as it hearkens back to a time past, when he was young and in love with a woman - a woman who met a tragic end, and for whom Henry has been grieving every since.  In fact, he has returned to Collins House in very poor health and anticipates dying there.  And thus, the mystery and the terrors begin once again for poor Victoria Winters...

 

Ross does a bit of a repeat on this plots with this story - a family members comes to Collins House to stay ... a tragic story involving a past love ... a room in the closed off wing of the house is opened ... the "ghost" of a woman long-thought dead is seen by Victoria ... someone is stalking poor Victoria ... the climax reveals there was no ghost, and the real culprit is the one you would least expect.  It is almost as if there is a set pattern for his stories, and he just fills in the blanks with various new characters and situations.  Yet, despite the sameness of the plot, the story was still rather enjoyable.  I thoroughly enjoyed the possibility of Victoria being related to Henry Collins - Ross certainly established all of the right elements for that to have been revealed!  It would have made for a very nice twist to the television story (which was pretty much set up to reveal Victoria as Elizabeth's daughter), and it would have given Victoria's story some closure that fans never received from the TV show.  From my understanding, Ross had a definitely idea in mind for Victoria's parentage, that he would have eventually revealed had he been allowed to keep the character in the books; but, alas, once Victoria was gone from the show, Ross was told to remove her from the books.

 

The book does give some explanation about the current (for the time the book was published) Collins' family tree.  When Henry Collins is first introduced, Elizabeth informs Victoria that he is her "father's older brother and the only surviving member of all that family" (p. 9).  We know from the TV show that Jamison Collins was Elizabeth and Roger's father, and that he had one sister, Nora.  In the show, there was no brother named Henry, so this, in and of itself, sets this book series apart from the television drama.  He is referred to as the "older" brother, hinting that there were other aunts and uncles out there, which would account for Cousin Ernest, since Elizabeth plainly says Henry has no surviving members of his line of the family.  I do not recall the books ever mentioning the names of Ernest's parents, but since he bares the Collins' name, it would have to be a brother of Jamison's, other than Henry.  Thus, in this book parallel time world, Jamison Collins had at least two brothers - Henry was one, and Ernest's father was the other.  Whether there are other siblings, I suppose I will discover as I continue to read through the series.

 

This book also brings in (sort of) the famous artist Charles Dana Gibson, who is famous for his illustrations of tall, narrow waisted women who were independent and stylish.  Roger snidely refers to Victoria as a "Gibson Girl," an observation to which Uncle Henry wholeheartedly agrees (p. 24). Henry goes on to explain to Victoria that Gibson and his wife, Irene Langhorne (who was, indeed, the real-life wife of Charles Gibson).  While this book indicates Gibson and his wife met and fell in love in Bar Harbor, Maine (p. 24), there is no evidence of that being the case in the real world.

 

Another interesting tidbit in this book is the Collins' strawberry field.  Yes, you read that right.  Apparently, the Collins family has a field where they grow strawberries, located "about a mile from the estate grounds and off the road leading to the village" (p. 69).  It is here Victoria faces one of her many dangers, as Jack Willard nearly runs her over with his car, later apologizing, claiming the brakes did not work and he lost control.  Victoria, of course, has difficulty believing the man, who is known to drink quite a bit and who could, potentially, be involved in the plot to get rid of Victoria because of how close she is becoming to Henry Collins! 

 

Last, I would be remiss if I did not mention the character of Rupert Harvey, a friend of Roger Collins who comes to Collins House and stirs up quite a bit of activity.  Rupert claims to be a psychometrist, which he describes is someone who has "a natural sensitivity to objects and places" (p. 92).  He relates this ability to a form of psychic power that allows him to pick up on the history of a particular thing or past simply by touching it.  It is interesting that the term is used in the para-psychological sense for this book (which I suppose is not too surprising, considering the nature of these stories), as psychometry also refers to an actual field of study that is concerned with the psychological measurement of knowledge, abilities, attitudes, and personal traits.  Honestly, until I saw this term used in this story, I had never actually heard of the word before!

 

As with the previous two books, this one also has two covers - the original, painted cover features Victoria fairly far from the great house, looking back in fear (perhaps a rendition of the scene where Jack's car is about to run her down?).  The photo cover, used in later printings, has Victoria standing with Barnabas Collins, who, once again, is not in the book series yet, so the only possible reason for having him on the cover was simply to cash in on his popularity in the television show at that time.

 

The further I get into the series, the closer I know I am getting to the last Victoria Winters story, as she is written out of the books, with her last appearance being in book six (and even that appearance is peripheral, as she does not actually appear as a character in the main story, which focuses solely on Barnabas Collins).  So, I must relish her stories while they last, no matter how formulaic they may be!

 

RATING:   8 emerald necklaces with matching earrings out of 10 for bringing Victoria (and readers!) to the brink of discovering her origins, within the confines of a terrifying tale of past love and murder!

Lucifer Cove, Book 4 - Masque of Satan (Virginia Coffman's Thrilling Occult Gothic Series)

"Jean Benedict came to the Cove to save a soul ... but the lure of its evil threatened her own." (cover blurb)

 

We are now past the half-way point of Virginia Coffman's occult Gothic series, with the fourth entry into the ongoing saga of the posh California spa that is way more than what it first seems.  Originally published in 1971, this later edition was published in 1973 with the stylish logo and similar covers to entice new readers to the series.  In true soap opera style, the series features a number of characters in every book, yet, at the same time, gives us a new protagonist to follow, which provides us with a fresh look at the Cove and unlocks more and more secrets as to what is actually going on in this den of iniquity!

 

Masque of Satan introduces Jean Benedict, a missionary of sorts who has come to Lucifer Cove at the request of Edna Schallert, one of the long-term residents at the spa.   (Oddly enough, the description on the back cover of the book asks the question "But what was Lucy Schallert's plight?" - yet, from the beginning of the series, the character has been named Edna, so not sure whose error this was - the publisher, the editor, or who, but clearly they goofed!)  Good ol' Edna Schallert has been around since the first book, more or less just a supporting character who, when we first meet her, admits to having stolen the man with whom Christina Deeth had an affair while she was married; then later, poor Edna falls for another man at the spa who is little more than a money-hungry swindler.  Now, in this book, Edna's problems come a bit more to the forefront, as the young Jean Benedict arrives, having been asked by Edna to come and help her and Buddy "fight an almost inconceivable menace" (p. 17).  While Jean does not understand what Edna is talking about, by now, readers most certainly know to what ... or rather, to whom ... Edna is referring!

 

Coffman takes a different turn with this book, as she turns the focus not just on a good person being enticed by the attractive temptations within Lucifer Cove, but she addresses how the lure of simple things, such as make up, clothing, and beauty could be a temptation for a woman who has lived her life in a way she believes is in service to God.  Let's face it, by now (the fourth book!), every reader knows that Lucifer Cove is a hotbed of sin and debauchery, with Satan himself personally present in the form of Marc Meridon (and if he turns out to be anyone else, I would be surprised).  Thus, to have a young woman in the form of Jean Benedict arrive, and to have her faith in God, her devotion to serving others and not allowing the ways of the world to detract her from her work, be tested in this way actually made for a very good read.  

 

I honestly did not expect Coffman to bring God into the equation in this series, other than in passing.  And although Jean Benedict is what I would call a borderline God-fearing person (she even admits at one point in the story that she battles her own pride in the work she does, questioning whether she is truly doing it for God or doing it for her own glory so people see what she has done), I thought Coffman did a great job showing how easy it is to be enticed by temptation - it starts off with something small (seeing how well-dressed everyone around you is), then it builds (back-sided compliments of what one could look like), and then an offer to make you look better than you imagined - and then ultimately seeing the difference those superficial changes make and allowing them to lure you into other temptations.  Jean, used to her look being simple and unadorned, never allowing frills or excess to enter her mind; but, from the moment she arrives in Lucifer Cove, she is surrounded by beauty and perfection, and it begins to make her question whether adorning one's self and paying attention to how one looks is truly prideful.  The longer she is kept from seeing Edna (which should have raised questions in her mind right away!), the easier it becomes for her to start questioning her beliefs.

 

The horrors of Lucifer Cove continue, as Jean is confronted with a dead man hanging from the ceiling in her room right after she arrives, and is confused to learn the man is Edna wrote to her about, asking for her help.  Already feeling like she has failed her friend (which failure makes her easy prey for the temptations offered by the oh-so-handsome Marc Meridon), she struggles to not only find a way to convince Edna to leave the place, but also to face the devil-worshippers of Nadine Janos up at the temple on the mountainside.  It seems like no matter what she does, there is no winning, and as she begins to lose hope, she begins to fall away from her faith and right into the hands of evil itself.  And when she is tricked into getting a make-over, even unwittingly signing a simple employment contract to work off her payment for the room and board while she is there (after all, as a disciple of God, she does not have the money to afford to stay at such a posh resort and spa), Jean discovers there is more evil within the confines of Lucifer Cove than she imagined - and her name on that contract could very well prevent her from ever leaving, even if she wants to!

 

And like with the last book, that gave us a quick glimpse at Jean's arrival in Lucifer Cove, so does this book give us a hint of who is to come in the next book:  "Kay Forest-de Landreau-Aronsen," described as "Only the richest female in the world ... Three, maybe four husbands" (p. 185).  Other that those few lines, we do not get any more information about this woman, or why she is coming to the spa. Like a well-written soap opera, Lucifer Cove has ongoing sub-plots, continuing stories involving certain characters that build slowly, and central stories that feature heavily on one or two characters, while giving us quick mentions now and again of what is to come.  This series could easily transition into a television show, and considering the craze for supernatural in today's media, it would likely do pretty well!

 

This book, just like the previous three, sports three different covers, depending on the edition.  I still like the blue-sky, stylized logo cover (first above), which features what I feel to be the best art of the three.  The look of the tudor-style building in the background, the beauty of the women on the covers.  This one, though, appears to set the house on the water's edge, which does not fit the location of the story inside.  I do like the bits of fog/mist that can be seen rising from the ground.   The Pinnacle Books edition (above center) does give readers the hint of evil that rests within Marc Meridon, as Jean appears to be fearful of him (despite her intense attraction to him within the story itself).  The Lancer Books edition (above to the right) features the same tudor style house, only bigger, at the water's edge as my copy (even having a mountain of sorts coming out of the water on the left side of the cover!); however, this edition finally acknowledges on the cover the fact that Marc Meridon is actually that lovable little cat, Kinkajou, with an image of Marc superimposed over the face of a cat.  The rendition of Jean is probably the most accurate, as this version is very unattractive and plain, which would correspond to the description of her in the book.

 

One of the better books in the series, for sure.  Now I'm well beyond the half-way point in this series, with only two more left to read.  I'm getting anxious to see how things are going to play out and whether Coffman will fully resolve all of the stories before the final book!

 

RATING:  8 cards flagged for the black box out of 10 for upping the ante in the battle of good vs evil, and showing that even the most desirable lure of temptation can be overcome with the right amount of faith and determination! 

Image of Evil - a Dell Gothic

This is a book I specifically hunted down because of the haunting cover.  The lone woman, standing in the swamp in her flowing white dress, with a dark mansion in the background - no light in an upper story window as so many Gothics are wont to do.  The greens and blacks setting the somber mood, the moss hanging from the trees, the moon barely visible in the sky.  To me, this cover screams creepy, and so I had to know if the story could match the horror of the cover art!  Took me a while to track down a copy at a reasonable price, but I finally managed to do so.  The book is written by Rosemary A. Crawford, and from all I can find, this appears to be the author's real name and this book appears to be the only Gothic I can find that she wrote!  If she did write any others, I would sure like to find them, especially if they are as good as this one turned out to be.

 

Image of Evil was first published by Dell in November 1971. The story is told in first-person, from the point-of-view of the main character, Susan (whose name is not actually stated in the book until page 15, when another character finally calls her by her name!), a twenty-three year old clothing designer from New York who comes to Louisiana to meet a family she never knew she had.  After her parents pass, she receives a mysterious letter from one Corinna Hamilton, who claims to be her aunt (her mother's sister).  The woman invites her to come stay at Southern Moon, the Hamilton homestead, and meet the rest of her family - which includes Corinna's two children, Paul Hamilton (a lawyer) and Lacy Hamilton (a spoiled debutante), as well as the brother of Corinna's deceased husband, Cedric Raimond.  Before she can even reach the mansion, which is deep in the Louisiana bayou, she has the misfortune of meeting the deputy sheriff, Billy Ben Curtis, to who she takes an instant dislike (due to his complete lack of manners and unpleasant disposition).  Once at the great house, she meets not only the family, but also the housekeeper, Matilda, and the surly cook, Lucille.  Susan is not overly ecstatic about this sudden appearance of a family she never knew existed, and so she is somewhat reserved when she arrives ... if only she had turned around and left the moment she arrived, perhaps she would not have experienced the terrors she did.  Of course, had she left, then she never would have learned the truth about why her mother left the Hamilton family and never looked back ...

 

I will admit, the story gets off to a somewhat slow start.  Crawford goes back and forth in the first two chapters between the present, as Susan is arriving at Southern Moon (the name of the Hamilton home) and Susan's receipt of her aunt's letter, her meeting with the attorney to learn more about the invitation to Louisiana, and her not-so-great experience on her first entrance into the swampland surrounding the great house. Once all of the backstory is told, Crawford then moves forward in a more normal, linear narrative form.  Susan's first observations of the family are somewhat accurate - Lacy is spoiled and clearly has no interest in knowing her; Paul is a playboy of sorts who takes a shine on her; and Corinna is playing a part, but just what part that is, Susan is unsure.  The only one she feels she can trust is the housekeeper, Miranda, who admits to remembering her mother and slowly, as the story progresses, tells her more and more about Meg Hamilton and why she left the way she did.  Of course, the more she learns about that, the more she learns about Corinna, and the more she begins to realize there is a lot more to this story than she realizes!  Things truly start to come to light when she meets Dr. Clay Foster, a young physician who is treating Miranda's daughter Lillian - and when she tells her new family she has a date with the doctor, she finds they are quite vocal on the matter.  By no means will a Hamilton ever go out with "white trash" like Clay Foster!  This is the beginning of the battle lines being drawn, and soon enough, more truths are revealed about Corinna, about Paul, about Clay, and about Lillian - and about Rosalie, the one no one is allowed to talk about!

 

Crawford build the suspense slowly, but as it rolls along, it gets more and more intense, and as it speeds towards the climax, the terror builds, as Susan finds herself first locked in the attic where Rosalie was hidden away for a number of years, and then ultimately as she runs through the swamps at night, daring to face any danger to escape the evil plans the Hamilton family has in store for her if she were to remain at Southern Moon!  What started out rather uninteresting definitely turns into a page-turner that I could not put down.  

 

The original printing by Dell has full cover art, interrupted only by the title and author's name at the top and bottom, respectively.  However, the book was later reprinted in October 1979 under Dell's "Candlelight Intrigue" banner; while the reprint used the same cover art, it reduced it to just a smaller square under the title and author's name, cutting off portions of the top and bottom of the art, so you do not get the full effect of the image.  Personally, I prefer the full cover printing (which is the version I have).

 

While several blogs and reviews I have read online seem to find this book not overly appealing, I found it to be rather engaging, once you get past the opening sequence.  I would certainly recommend it to those who love a good Gothic read from this time period - and the Louisiana bayou setting is definitely a nice twist to the theme!

 

RATING:  8 extra bolt locks out of 10 for taking our poor heroine through the ringer, with some intensely dangerous moments and a couple of unexpected deaths! 

Victoria Winters - the 2nd Paperback Library Gothic Novel based on ABC-TV's suspense drama (Dark Shadows)

I am having a thrilling time re-reading these Dark Shadows novels from the late '60s (which continued into the early '70s, well past the end of the television show).  It has been so many years since I originally read them, it is like I am reading them again for the first time.  And the author, W.E.D. Ross (writing under his most popular pseudonym, Marilyn Ross) does a pretty decent job with the characterization, capturing some of the nuances the actors instilled in the characters on TV.  I especially like the fact that these early books, like the early episodes of the TV show, focused on Victoria Winters, as she was by far my favorite character from the show.  Thankfully, Ross manages to instill her a bit more strength and awareness than she was given by the writers on the daytime soap.  It breathes a little more life into her, and definitely makes me love the character all the more!

 

Victoria Winters is the second book in the series, and the story picks up some months after the events in the first book (which depicted Victoria's arrival, her meeting the Collins' clan, her romance with Ernest Collins, and the terrifying events that led to Ernest leaving for an indefinite period of time).  Now, as summer has arrived, Carolyn and David are gone on a vacation, leaving Victoria behind to act as a personal assistant to Elizabeth Collins Stoddard.  The Collins' attorney, Will Grant, is still around (still trying to woo Victoria), and we meet his sister, Nora, with whom Victoria has developed a close friendship.  Burke Devlin makes a few quick appearances in this novel, and Matthew Morgan is his usual grumpy self.  Roger Collins continues to be the ultimate spoiled playboy.  The new characters who are introduced in this book are Paul Caine, a visiting artist who takes an instant liking to Victoria, as well as Henry Francis and his two daughters - the gorgeous Rachel Francis (who becomes entangled with Roger) and the invalid Dorothy (who is recovering from major brain surgery and is confined to a wheelchair in a near catatonic state).  It turns out Henry was an old classmate of Elizabeth's back in the day, so she welcomes the man and his daughters into her home unlike she would anyone else.  And now, with all the characters in place, the mystery unfolds...

 

 One might recall in the first book, it turned out Ernest's first wife did not really die as everyone believed, but was being kept secreted away in the dark halls of Collins House, as she had gone mad. It was revealed that she had murdered a woman Ernest had later fallen in love with - Stella Hastings, and she would have killed Victoria as well, if fate had not intervened.  Well, it seems that story was not quite over, as Victoria begins to see the face and ghostly apparition of a woman who she eventually finds out is none other than Stella Hastings!  Did the woman not die, as everyone thought?  Or was her spirit haunting the house where she had been killed?  As Victoria tries to figure this mystery out, she must also fend off a would-be killer, someone who is following in the footsteps of the silk-scarf strangler who Henry Francis tells her killed several woman back in Pennsylvania.  Did the killer follow the Francis family to Collinsport, stalking Henry's daughter?  Is Victoria simply another in a long-line of victims?  Or is there something much more sinister going on in the Collins' great house?  

 

We spend a bit more time outside of Collinwood (or Collins House, as Ross repeatedly refers to it) in this book.  Victoria and Nora head into Collinsport on several occasions, frequenting the Blue Whale, as well as Will Grant's office and the general store and post office.  Victoria and Nora also spend some time on the beach - after all, it is summer.  These interludes are nice reminders that there is an entire world within the Dark Shadows mythos, and the characters are not limited to the great house. It is also nice to see that Burke Devlin continues to make his brief appearances.  This book has a first printing date of March 1967, and by that point in the television show, viewers were treated to the final revelations regarding the mystery surrounding Mr. Devlin and his animosity towards Roger Collins.  Fans were also in the middle of the story where BIll Malloy is murdered and the phoenix, Laura Collins (David's mother and Roger's ex-wife!) shows up to claim her son.  While there are passing references in the books to Roger's ex-wife, there are no details given, and from what I can recall, the books never actually address who she is or her supernatural essence.

 

Ross once again gives strong hints at the supernatural, with the ghostly appearances of Stella Hastings, but as with your standard Gothic tale from this period, the haunting is explained away with real-world circumstances (in this instance, a look-alike who is mistaken for Stella).  Each of the continuing characters (Elizabeth, Roger, Will) are still exhibiting odd quirks and mood shifts that hint at secrets being withheld from poor Victoria, leading one to understand that Ross was likely hedging his bets, keeping their actions mysterious, yet not direct, so that if anything major was revealed on the television show, he could incorporate it into his stories.  I do like that he keeps Victoria true to form, in that she is not a Nancy Drew-type mystery solver, but rather, someone who seems to fall into these situations and is forced to go along for the ride until they resolve themselves.  I laughed at one line in the book, where Victoria was overwhelmed, and she realizes "[s]he had reached the stage where things when on around her and she simply sat in a kind of daze and allowed them to happen" (p. 100).  Many fans would say that is a pretty accurate description of how Victoria was always written on the TV show.  Thankfully, Ross does give her a bit more fortitude, so that even as she is forced into these situations, she has the mental acuity to reason things out.

 

As with the first book, this novel featured two different covers.  The first, which appeared on the early printings, was a painted cover (above), showing Victoria, in her overcoat, running away from Collins House.  This scene is taken from early promotional photos for the show, which shows Alexandra Moltke in that same position (also above).  For later printings, Paperback Library reprinted the book using a still photo from the television show, once again with Alexandra Moltke as Victoria and Jonathan Frid as Barnabas Collins.  As Barnabas did not make his first appearance on the show until April 18, 1967, a month after this book was initially released, and considering his character does not appear in the story at all, I find is somewhat misleading that the later printings used such a photo.  No doubt, Paperback was simply cashing in on Barnabas' popularity (since, by the time these books were reprinted, Barnabas had gained his success on the show, and the books were featuring Barnabas as their principal character).  Still, there were plenty of images of Victoria with other characters that do appear in the stories, which the publisher could have used.  Unless, of course, it was a mandate from Dan Curtis Productions, in which case, they would not have had much of a choice in the matter.

 

 This second book definitely takes the story of Victoria Winters further away from the direction she was written in the television show, and as such, it makes for some great reading.  These are new and unique stories, a "parallel time" of sorts, and it is a shame Ross was forced to write Victoria Winters out when she left the show.  This forum would have been the perfect place to reveal Victoria's true parentage, the one mystery that never got solved on any version of the television show (although, for the 1990's remake, that question was answered in Innovation Comics' Dark Shadows' comic book series, which picked up where the TV show ended and ultimately revealed Victoria really was Elizabeth's daughter...)

 

Only 30 books left to read in the ongoing saga of the Collins family!

 

RATING:  10 tiny silver earrings shaped like a leaf out of 10 for great Gothic suspense and ghoulish ghostly scares, with some well-written misdirects to keep the twist ending (somewhat) a surprise!