There are 199 steps leading from the town of Whitby to its ruined 7th century abbey, where Sian is participating in an archaeological dig. At night, she suffers from terrible nightmares of having her throat cut by a man with giant hands. By day, she suffers increasing pain from a lump on her hip.

At the halfway point on the climb, she meets Magnus, a doctor up from London to put his late father's affairs in order and his father's dog Hadrian. Mack, as Magnus likes to be known, has an heirloom of his father's which Sian, who specialises in paper conservation, might be able to help him with.

This is the fourth of Faber's works I've read. So far, I've been impressed by the diversity of the author's output. However, in many ways this is typical of his work. It is a psychological study like "The Courage Consort", and shares with that book an impressive economy of language. Also like that book, it is short enough to be easily read in a single sitting.

Like "Under The Skin" there are secrets which, like Magnus's heirloom, are gradually peeled away to reveal an unexpected truth at the novel's climax. Sian is a strong, sympathetically drawn female protagonist like "Crimson Petal and the White"'s narrator Sugar. However, this is also the first Faber novel I've read that hasn't surprised me either in content or tone.

The Whitby setting inevitably allows Faber to make connections with "Dracula", a somewhat lazy plot device to drive home the gothic nature of this novella. Magnus also seems just a little bit too good to be true, and Sian just a little bit too prudish, but I guess this is a feature of the genre.

Overall, another engrossing read from Michel Faber. ( )

The story involves Siân and Magnus, a couple who meet on Whitby's famous steps and begin a tetchy relationship based around mutual loneliness, a friendly dog, and an ancient murder mystery sealed in a bottle. For a book that's barely more than a hundred pages in length, Faber weaves layer upon layer of story, combining historical drama with contemporary romance; a fascination with myth, dreams and the supernatural; and spot-on characterisation. The spiky banter between the two protagonists is wonderfully realised - they remain drawn to each other despite the fact that their every conversation ends in argument or misunderstanding. There's also a rich contrast drawn between Whitby of the past (7th Century abbess St. Hilda, Stoker's famous vampire, and the tragic confessions of Thomas Pierson, circa 1788) and the cafes, arcades and drunken stag party louts of the modern day seaside town.

Read the full review at my blog. ( )

Do you know, if you go to Whitby, there aren't 199 steps any more! I know because I counted them