The Turn of the Screw - post II

Once it has been established that the children appear to be haunted by the ghosts of the former man servant and governess then the story picks up the pace.

It becomes a question of trying to stop the children from being destroyed by the ghosts and the governess, with the help of the house keeper, sets out to do just that.

With a fairly limited story and cast of characters James nevertheless manages to get over a sense of growing horror. In the best traditions of tales of this type it is the anticipation of a visitation that keeps the reader on the edge of the seat. Although the ending, which will not be given away here, is also unexpected.

Once you cut through the difficult language conventions and get to the underlying story beneath this is a great little nugget that will provide seeds for future thoughts and nightmares.

A review will follow soon…