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Book Review of Julian's House

Julian's House
Julian's House
Author: Judith Hawkes
Genre: Horror
Book Type: Paperback
reviewed on
Helpful Score: 3


This was an intriguing novel about a haunted house and a newly married couple, David and Sally, who are parapsychologist who rent the house for the summer to investigate the historical reports of paranormal happenings. Strange things do happen but is the house actually haunted? Over time, the relationship between the couple seems to deteriorate, as each of them reacts differently to their experiences in Julian's House.

This is a beautifully written story, At times, the descriptive narrative almost reads like poetry. This is a haunted house story in the tradition of Shirley Jackson and a ghost tale as cleverly obscure and ambiguous as Henry James's "The Turn of the Screw". This is as much a story of the interaction between Sally and David and their individual mindscapes, as it is a story of hauntings of an old house. Is David possessed by the ghost of Julian? Is the only way he can hope to become his former self again through an exorcism?