The Unusual Possession of Alastair Stubb

July 4, 2016
This plummy pastiche of traditional gothic fiction is chock-full of the set pieces that make such stories so delectably dark: a poisoning, a parricide, a coveted inheritance, a whispering phantom, a raving woman in an attic, hypnotism, hallucinatory dreams, and murderous intentions. At the center of the story that they ornament is the title character, an emotionally frail young boy living in the imaginary English town of Muchmarsh early in the 20th century. His increasingly eccentric behavior suggests that he may be channeling the spirit of his (presumed dead) grandfather—who may also be his father. Griffin (Two Dogs at the One Dog Inn) pulls out all the stops, providing his grotesque characters with names such as Pump, Nuckle, Brood, Snippet, and Brittle and larding his narrative with richly overstuffed sentences that evoke the sensibility of the classic penny dreadful. Readers with a taste for old-fashioned thrills will find this sensational story to their liking.

August 1, 2016
After losing her son, Eleanor Stubb suffers a mental breakdown and is institutionalized. While she is in the sanatorium, her husband, William, loses his job and their home. The couple is forced to move in with William's father, Theodore. Theodore is an entomologist who fills the attic with preserved specimens. He also possesses a unique pocket watch that he uses to hypnotize people. While hypnotism may seem like a fun pursuit, Theodore is an odious man, who rapes Eleanor once she is in a hypnotic state. When Eleanor becomes pregnant, she is overjoyed, for she thinks her dead son is coming back to her. William is enraged and plots his revenge against his father. The story flashes forward 13 years, when young Alastair deals with the repercussions of that revenge and starts to experience strange, disturbing happenings. This slow-building gothic tale may frustrate horror readers looking for an action-packed, quick read. But those willing to invest in the Dickensian language will enjoy the creepy characters, the dreamlike plot, and the horrific conclusion.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)