Safe Return Doubtful

British Literature – published 2020

Set between the wars in an era still very much influenced by the great ghost story writers who were still producing books, the likes of M.R. James, Algernon Blackwood, and E.F. Benson, this is a tale that is an absolute pleasure to read, as much because of Catling’s style of writing, as the strange goings-on. Those fine writers of the supernatural and weird may have been an influence, but the book also puts into the mind the writing of PG Wodehouse and Dylan Thomas; it has good humour with splendidly drawn characters.

Pulborough Abbey is a magnificent old historic building and though the nearby village maybe quaint, it has a set of residents that are behind the times, to say the least.

The arrival of a monkish ghost triggers a chain reaction that causes such a kerfuffle that some in London get wind of it. Indeed, a celebrated investigator, Walter Prince, aka the ‘Ghost-Finder General’ by the tabloids, comes to see for himself. Prince settles himself in the Coach & Horse, owned by the spherical and salacious William Penney, who manages it ‘like the surly captain of a dubiously credited ship’.

Other characters are a treat also.. such as the dastardly Verger Chyne, who treats the Abbey as his fiefdom, and despises visitors who are not visiting for worship, as they are usually looking for a public convenience.

This absolutely isn’t in the mould of the nostalgic ghost stories that may have initially influenced it. Rather it is clear-sighted about the ‘good old days’, especially in its depiction of the harassed barmaids of the dreadful pub. This is not an affectionate portrait of the English, but a depiction of grotesque vanity, selfishness, and ignorance, with just the occasional moment of warmth in the midst of a very wintry tale.

My GoodReads score 5 / 5