The Magic Cottage

[[James Herbert]] was part of the wave of horror authors who helped define a genre in the 1980s. Butt he gets quite little attention, especially here in the United States. Stephen King often shows up blurbing his books, like [The Fog], and mentions several of them in his non-fiction treatise on horror, [Danse Macabre].

This book is not of the same ilk as most of Herbert's frontal-assault, frighteners, but it has its own appeal in the quiet horror, like [[Charles L. Grant]]'s work. A couple move from London to the British country, taking over a cottage that seems steeped in magic. But they can't quite grasp the magic as it bubbles around them. Add in a nearby cult, bent on taking over the cottage and all its magic power, and you've got a show more slow-burner that packs a punch in the last few pages. It must be admitted that the slow-burn sometimes felt a little too slow, and the main characters sometimes a little too slow on the up-take. But never so much so that you don't want to keep reading.

4 1/2 bones!!!!!
Highly Recommended - though not where I'd start with Herbert. show less

I thoroughly enjoyed this. A true dark fairytale. Unique and thrilling, one of my favorite Herbert books :)

I really enjoyed this book, and have read it a couple of times. The last time was several years ago, but I still remember a lot of details (which, as you can see from reading some of my other reviews, is not always the case). A young couple moves into what appears to be a charming cottage in the country, but before long, they realize that things aren't what they seem. A fun story, scary in a delicious, shivery way (instead of relying on lots of blood and guts).

Published in 1986, this James Herbert novel is a lot of fun.

Herbert had the talent to write very different types of stories. From flat out splatter like The Rats or The Fog, to comedic humor like the horror story Creed, I know that Herbert guarantees me a good time. The Magic Cottage was not a disappointment.

A fun, slow burning story about a loving couple wanting to get away from things and instead ending up in the middle of things. Strange happenings at their new cottage in the country, happenings that they are slow to pick up on, lead up to an all out crazy ending that I enjoyed.

I had a lot of fun with this book, even though the pacing was a little slow. The vivid images of the cottage and all of the creatures and flowers there will show more be with me for a while.

Recommended to fans of slow burning horror, James Herbert, and haunted houses. show less

Herbert died not too long ago, and in one of his obits I read a quote from him about how Britain was still a class society and that he hadn't gotten the sort of recognition or respect he deserved because he was working class. There's something to that. But there's also something to be said for the education he missed out on, and the subtlety and restraint he might have learned having read more of the old masters of this sort of book. Pretty good nonetheless, but just a bit too obvious and a bit too much of its time (1980).

I read this book for the first time when I spent a night in hospital: my doctor was going to operate early in the morning and insisted I spent the night before in the surgical ward so I could 'get some rest'. An old woman in an alcove off the ward suffered from some sort of alcohol related mania and spent the whole night screaming. Literally. The nurses were used to it and basically ingnored her.

So much for rest. I did manage to finish the book however and must admitt to being a little disappointed. The magic cottage is obviously too good to be true and the experienced reader knows it is just a matter of time before things start to go horribly wrong and the idyllic surroundings tranform from enchanted forest to sinister Gothic wood.

The show more sudden physical deterioration of the house matches the mental and psychological deterioration of the characters as they become more and more isolated, more and more removed from their London life and friends, and more and more trapped in trapped in a menacing and claustrophobic web.

Their relationship also deteriorates and the artist wife is ripe for plucking by the cult who are terrified but at the same time fascinated by their home. The husband, a musician and by no means a strong character, has to fight to save his wife, their relationship, their sanity and ultimately their lives.

The story discomforted rathwer than frightened me and I did not enjoy reading it nearly as much as I expected: on the other hand, sitting under the meagre glow of a hospital bedside light in a crowded ward, kept awake by the shrieks of a mad woman, and anticipating an operation, the conditions were perhaps not ideal. show less

This was one of the first books I read by Herbert, and remains one of my favourites too.

Set in the New Forest (portrayed wonderfully by the author), a young couple move into an old house that has a lot of character - and disturbing magic - to it.

Vaguely similar to Herbert's later work Once, this is a chilling, disturbing at times, and fairly emotive book.