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The Birthing House

by Christopher Ransom



      Conrad Harrison is tired of his flagging marriage and stressful life in LA, and when he buys an old Victorian house in rural Wisconsin on a whim, it seems the right thing to do.  But his more dynamic wife, Jo, seems to be keen on going on a course for several weeks, which will lead to more lucrative work, leaving him still stuck at home as a "househusband."  Conrad soon encounters the former residents of the house, who are trying to make it on a farm, and a pile of things relating to the house’s history is given to him.  One of the items contains an old photograph of the house, showing some grim-looking women in black standing outside—why is one of them his wife?

Most supernatural novels are about death, but this one is about the opposite, which makes it rather unique.  It is also a compelling picture of a modern marriage with all its problems: busy separate lives, lack of children, affaires etc.  First time author Ransom does a nice job too of setting the scene and conjuring up an eerie atmosphere, which builds gradually and reaches its crescendo in the final pages.  Stories about couples moving into spooky old houses are hardly new, but the fact that this one manages to center around the power of birth rather than death makes it worth reading.  After such a powerful debut it will be interesting to see what this author does for an encore.  If you enjoy Stephen King and John Saul then you ought to like this too.

The Book

Sphere (Little, Brown)
8 January 2009
Paperback
0751541710 / 9780751541717
Horror
More at Amazon.com US || UK
Excerpt
NOTE: US edition is different
Some sex and horror scenes

The Reviewer

Rachel A Hyde
Reviewed 2009
NOTE:
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