Friday, October 31, 2014

Isis

Douglas Clegg
Vanguard Press
Reviewed by Nancy
5 out of 5 stars


Summary


New York Times bestselling author Douglas Clegg brings us Isis, a beautifully illustrated, unforgettable novella that is sure to become a classic tale of the supernatural.

If you lost someone you loved, what would you pay to bring them back from the dead?

Old Marsh, the gardener at Belerion Hall, warned the Villiers girl about the old ruins along the sea-cliffs. “Never go in, miss. Never say a prayer at its door. If you are angry, do not seek revenge by the Laughing Maiden stone or at the threshold of the Tombs. There be those who listen for oaths and vows….What may be said in innocence becomes flesh and blood in such places.”

She was born Iris Catherine Villiers. She became Isis.

From childhood until her sixteenth year, Iris Villiers wandered the stone-hedged gardens and the steep cliffs along the coast of Cornwall near her ancestral home. Surrounded by the stern judgments of her grandfather—the Gray Minister—and the taunts of her cruel governess, Iris finds solace in her beloved older brother who has always protected her. But when a tragic accident occurs from the ledge of an open window, Iris discovers that she possesses the ability to speak to the dead...

Be careful what you wish for…it just may find you.


My Review


At only 113 pages, this short story packs a lot of emotion into its pages. Iris Catherine Villiers is a lonely girl with an absent father and a depressed mother, and three older brothers, one of whom she is very close to. Very loosely based on the myth of Isis and Osiris, this is a sad and chilling story that explores love, loss and grief. After a fatal accident involving her favorite brother, Iris discovers that she possesses a special ability to speak to the dead.

The Cornwall setting, with its magnificent cliffs and rocky shoreline, the dysfunctional family complete with a mad grandfather and a cruel governess, and the beautiful illustrations, all make this a superbly haunting little tale that is perfect for Halloween.