James Herbert - Haunted

[Kell]

Author: James Herbert
ISBN # 0 340 41616 5

I'm a pretty big fan of James Herbert but this is not one of his better tales. Truth be told, I was several chapters in before I realised I'd actually read it years before & forgotten as it's pretty unmemorable (unusual, because I'm usually completely immersed in the worlds he creates). This is one of the rare occasions where I preferred the movie to the book (it was on just a few days prior to me picking up this book & it bears little resemblance to the plot he wrote, but in this case, they managed to improve on it a fair bit - sorry, Mr Herbert!).

Nah, I definitely prefer his later novels such as Once or The Magic Cottage which have far more of his famous atmosphere & mastery of words than this does.

[Margo]

I quite liked this one, and at the moment read The Fog by James Herbert, but I'm not really injoying the fog as much as I thought I would.

[Inanna]

I got halfway through before I realised that I'd seen the movie of it, still it was quite a good read, just a shame that I already knew the ending :wink:

[Kell]

The film was better. It actually changed large partso f the plot & aspects of various characters, but the film was definitely better than the book.

[Anonymous]

We really do differ in taste, don't we Kell? I think Haunted is the best novel that James Herbert has ever written.

Its limited setting, small cast of characters, and its preference in dealing with the interaction between the cast makes it far more interesting than his other novels, whether it be a cult trying to scare lovebirds out of their house or a deformed PI exploring the mystery around a hospital. And it's a lovely take on the ghost story; subtle yet effective. And a far sight better than the shoddy sequel (The Ghosts Of Sleath) that made the mistake of a) being a sequel; and b) upping the ante.

I definitely prefer his later novels such as Once... or The Magic Cottage...

But Haunted was released two years after The Magic Cottage. :wink:

[Kell]

But Haunted was released two years after The Magic Cottage. :wink:
Was it? Oops! LOL!

[Sarahrob]

I've never seen the film, but I did enjoy the book. I liked the eeriness of it and the relative simplicity. I wasn't convinced by the relationship of the main character and... can't remember the name... Edith?

I read it a few years ago, but I still remember the atmosphere of it, where I have forgotten most of his other books.