The Children's Home
Ratings3
Average rating2.8
A “disquieting” (The New York Times) and mesmerizing tale from an award-winning British author about a mysterious group of children who appear to a disfigured recluse and his country doctor—a tale that “[stirs] the imagination in the manner of Roald Dahl or C.S. Lewis” (Winnepeg Free Press). In a sprawling estate lives Morgan Fletcher, the disfigured heir to a fortune of mysterious origins. Morgan spends his days in quiet study, avoiding his reflection in mirrors and the lake at the end of his garden. One day, two children, Moira and David, appear. Morgan takes them in, giving them free reign. Then more children begin to show up. Dr. Crane, the town physician and Morgan’s lone tether to the outside world, is as taken with the children as Morgan, and begins to spend more time in Morgan’s library. But the children behave strangely. They show a prescient understanding of Morgan’s past, and their bizarre discoveries in the mansion attics grow increasingly disturbing. Every day the children seem to disappear into the hidden rooms of the estate, and perhaps, into the hidden corners of Morgan’s mind. “A one-of-a-kind literary horror story” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), The Children’s Home is “an absorbing and dream-like narrative that recalls both the pastoral gothic of Shirley Jackson and the dystopic vision of John Wyndham” (Columbus Dispatch). “Written with charm and restraint,” (The Missourian), Lambert’s American debut weaves elements of psychological suspense and neo-gothic horror to reveal the grotesque—as well as the glimmers of goodness—buried deep within the soul. “This genre-bending horror story is sure to haunt you in all the best ways” (Bustle).
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What a strange and wicked story... I've just finished the book and I must admit I'm feeling a bit weird about it. The story takes quite a time to start, getting all the elements in the picture one by one, and getting slowly weirder and weirder.
I must admit that the Neil Gaiman feeling is quite there, as we're digging in some dark fantasy world (While the world where the story is based could seem quite real, some elements are disturbing, or seem “off place”, giving the whole a weird feeling, like when you feel that something is wrong but can't quite tell what exactly is happening.). For some parts, it also reminded me on American Mc Gee's work on Alice in Wonderland, by the same wickedness and the way some characters acts, like they seem to know way more than they should. But all in one, the story ends to be really interesting, even if it takes imho a bit of time to get there. So, if you like some twisted and dark fantasy tale, you should definitely go for this book !
This is a book with a compelling premise that just failed to do much for me. Described as “neo-gothic horror” and “perfect for fans of Roald Dahl and Shirley Jackson,” it missed all of the creeping dread, the brilliant writing, and the clever plot twists that are the hallmarks of those talented authors. The writing was unremarkable other than to note that it was a bit scattered, jumping around in time and from topic to topic, serving only to confuse an already muddled story. The plot played out like a dark reverse Narnia, with mysterious children arriving in the real world, but even as a fairy tale it falls flat, leaving us no lesson or moral imperative to look to. In the end, the book took a dark turn toward a dystopian view of the world and then abandoned the reader in a confused conclusion.
On the bright side, this book is closer to a novella than a novel, coming in at 210 pages. The problem this causes is there's just not enough room to explore the characters all that much. Morgan, the protagonist, is the only character the reader walks away feeling as though they really know, and it's only because, as the narrator, Morgan tells you everything that runs through his head, coherent or not. The rest of the characters are one-dimensional. They're creepy, certainly, but none are very compelling.
This book was a good idea with poor execution.
