This might be the first creepy doll story I’ve ever read and I can’t say I was mad at it.
Catherine is a new employee at the antiques auction house and she’s been tasked with the monumental, but lucrative task of cataloging and appraising the works of the late M. H. Mason, an extremely divisive taxidermist and puppeteer who was as eccentric as he was wealthy. His estate was left in the hands of his now-elderly niece, who invites Catherine to stay as a guest in their secluded mansion while she appraises the massive collection.
Between being surrounded by startling dioramas of The Great War populated by preserved rats (with uncannily human expressions) and being forced to watch an alarming, gruesome puppet show based on M.H. Mason’s extreme religious beliefs, Catherine begins to feel like things aren’t entirely right in the house. When she discovers that the residents are purposely making it difficult for her to leave, her suspicions are confirmed. Something sinister is afoot at The Red House and perhaps Mason’s legacy is still going strong.
Told with flashbacks to events in Catherine’s past, Nevill manages to weave an intricate story about a woman coming to terms with her life, her past, and who she is now. Catherine goes through a visible transformation, from meek and polite to forceful and assured, as she tries to escape the confines of the house and unravels to sordid past of the Mason family. Once it gets going, it’s a well crafted, gothic-toned story that felt sufficiently creepy. Catherine’s claustrophobia and tension feels palpable and draws you in, close enough to hear her scared whispers in the night.
For me, however, the primary reason this book isn’t a 5 star read (which I honestly would have loved it to be) lies in the pacing. While I don’t mind a slow-burning plot, this book this book redefines what it is to be slow for the first half of the book. Honestly, had it not been a book club read, I’m not entirely sure I would have pushed through to the second half. And that would have been a shame because the second half of this book is really great.
There is no doubt in my mind that Nevill is fantastic at developing eerie settings, interesting characters, and gripping plots. In fact, I would go so far as to say: When this book was good, it was really fantastic. Extremely high high points. But when this book was slow and slogging through exposition and excessive description, it was really tough to keep going.
Ultimately, though, I do think the payoff at the end was worth it. While some of the twists were perhaps a bit predictable, overall I got to the end of this book feeling satisfied and confident that I’d read a solid piece of gothic horror. I would absolutely recommend this one to horror lovers with advisement not to let yourself get too hung up on the slow parts.
A side note: I think this book would make a phenomenal movie. I know that Netflix adapted Nevill’s novel The Ritual, which was a great film, but the imagery and overall creepiness of House of Small Shadows would make for a movie I’d pay to see and likely watch multiple times.
