First sentence: 'Turn down Slade Alley - narrow, dank and easy to miss, even when you're looking for it.'
Plot: The mysterious Slade House is only a short walk down dank Slade Alley, concealed from view by a high wall and a small, black, iron door. This chilling, dark scary story begins in 1979 and ends in 2015, every 9 years following a different viewpoint/ character perspective. The split narrative leads us through a diverse selection of entertaining characters, into the tempting grip of house itself. Thing is, the people who go in, never come out. And this house is notoriously hard to find, unless you're looking for it, or in fact, it's looking for you.
Thoughts: This was my first encounter with David Mitchell, though I know his multiple viewpoint style and stories are much loved and held in high regard by readers. Maybe the fact that many of his novels could provide a month's supply of toilet paper halted my interest in the past, the man likes to write big. This one is little though, don't fear. Idiotically enough, it even slipped my mind on handling, that the book was created by the other David Mitchell, the comedian. Anyway, that's not why I bought it shut up. Slade House takes a unique spin on the haunted house genre and the 'missing person' mystery. The story is paced to perfection and after 9 years (and a large chapter), we meet a new victim, all of whom are ridiculously well sculpted and entertaining in their own ways. Old, young, bad, good, it's all there and we root for them to somehow break the chain of gruesome events. All the characters are likeable, developed, and feel very, very real. Though it does have some elements of the old Goosebumps books, it is adult fiction; adult horror.
My favourite characters were those found in Slade House. They were fascinating to say the least. I shan't divulge too much, but Mitchell, though sometimes too heavily, does a grand job of providing a delicious back story and history of those dwelling within the attic, proving to me he isn't just a comedia..Yes, at times it was a little heavy on back story specifics, but I enjoyed the insight and pondering how long it took him to mould the two intricate villains. The descriptions and goings on in the attic were also enjoyable to read. Without feeding you details, and I'm not, as his descriptions were very open to the imaginative among us, it sort of vibrated with dark energy, full of circling patronus charms, blood and black magic.
The story is unpredictable, gripping with strong supernatural elements and a pretty cool ending. A stand alone spooky novel. As many other self assured reviewers have said (I'd like to not lump myself in that bracket), Mitchell does a superb job of teasing you throughout, adding uneasy elements and pulling at our fears and anxieties. I also enjoyed how Mitchell created unique jargon for the novel to support his inventive concepts.
Bonus points: I would like to award extra awesome points for the presentation of the novel. The front depicts the entrance of Slade House and the pages are STAINED GREEN for heaven's sake. When I was opening it, the inner nerd within me felt it not dissimilar to the descriptions of the lush bloom of green plants in the gardens of the house! Nice job of making us think we hold the foundations of the house within our trembling hands Sceptre Books.
Cons: Although it isn't sold as hardcore horror, it wasn't as 'scary' as I'd hoped. And the villains weren't Ted Bundy's. Maybe I just like gore in the form of limbs being removed with katanas. I dunno. I can't call the novel exceptional, but I highly recommend it for Halloween feels or just a gloomy yet weekend read.
Sarah
