📚Contemporary #Horror In An Alternative World. @OlgaNM7 Reviews Conditions Are Different After Dark by @OwenKnightUK for Rosie’s #BookReview Team #RBRT

Today’s team review is from Olga.

Olga blogs here https://olganm.wordpress.com/

Rosie’s Book Review Team

Olga has been reading Conditions Are Different After Dark by Owen Knight.

This is the second book I’ve read by the author, and I was intrigued because it promised to be quite different from the previous one. And it sure delivered.
As seen in his biography, the author describes this novel’s genre as ‘contemporary horror with alternative history’ and that suits it well. It brought to my mind The Wicker Man, Midsommar (which the author mentions in his note at the end of the book), and Village of the Damned, although it is also quite different from all of those. But if you enjoyed those, you might want to check this one out.
The novel starts with a prologue (after a note on the sources, that works well with the author’s note at the end to ensure people who want to find out more about the historical background can do so easily) set in April 1662, where Captain George Massey is executed, and he utters a curse. Any readers will quickly suspect this will be related to what happens in the rest of the novel, which is set in contemporary times (although more about that later).
A well-off couple who live in London, James and Faith, have been looking to move to the countryside. He works as a financial advisor and can work remotely, and his wife has a business selling luxury items (mostly watches) online, so they can both move anywhere and continue to run their businesses. They are thinking about starting a family and are trying to find the right place for it. Eventually, an estate agent contacts Faith on social media, and they find the perfect property in the perfect village. They are both very conscientious and determined to make the right impression. They want to rely on local businesses as much as they can, avoid being seen as strangers trying to impose their ways, and go out of their way to ensure they won’t be disturbed by people from their previous life. They are a couple who seem to rely mostly on their own company, and although Faith is friendlier and connects with people easily, that is not the case with James. (I will resist the temptation of coming up with a diagnosis for him, but he is extremely focused on facts, doesn’t mix too well, and although he does not dislike company, he is quite happy concentrating on work and not socialising more than is necessary, so you can reach your own conclusions).
The house seems idyllic as is the village, but some strange things start happening soon, and, Faith especially, worries at what seem to be strange comments and warnings. She starts playing the violin again and makes friends with a school teacher, Katherine, who plays with a quartet. Katherine has been researching the history of the village and has a lot of information about the events that took place there during the English Civil War. Faith also meets the priest, who has some interesting comments as well, as does their gardener. James and Faith meet the most influential family in the village, who live in the Manor (previously castle), Grey and Anne. They talk to them about local traditions and history, and they become friendly with them, exchanging invitations. Despite all that, Faith, who gets pregnant, becomes increasingly concerned about events and comments she hears, although James keeps trying to reassure her. Something seems to be at work there, despite the reassurances they get from all quarters, but what?
Of course, I’m not going to reveal what happens, but the author excels at creating an atmosphere that starts quite pleasant and bucolic and it becomes increasingly dark and menacing. Anybody who has lived in a small village might be familiar with the way old events and family feuds can influence everyday life, so the initial scenario is not far-fetched, making it so effective.
I also liked the historical background and how this is introduced in the novel. There is a fair amount of telling (because both characters are trying to find out information about the place and the different neighbours they talk to offer different versions and parts of the story), but I did not find it intrusive, as it is quite interesting, especially for readers not too familiar with that period of English history. Because the couple are trying to reassure each other and find out information separately, there is some overlap at times, although that might work well for readers who don’t have long periods to read, as it is easy to reacquaint oneself with the facts of the story if there are gaps in one’s reading.
The novel is set in contemporary times, narrated in the third person from Faith and James’s points of view (mostly Faith’s), but there is something old-fashioned about it. There is mention of social media, and both of the main characters work remotely and rely on their Wi-Fi and internet connection, but the village seems to live in some sort of alternative/parallel time, isolated from the outside world and modernity. The relationship between James and Faith is quite old-fashioned, and they treat each other very formally, in a way that seems more appropriate for a novel set in the 1930s or the 1950s, rather than now. They care for each other and are very careful not to upset the other, trying to protect each other from bad news or worries, but it all seems very deliberate and similar to the way they plan how to interact with the rest of the people in the village. Faith appears a bit more spontaneous but James doesn’t, and that is one of the main issues other reviewers have also commented upon, the lack of realism in the relationship between the couple.
There are twists, turns, and surprises (I suspected what might be behind the mystery early on, but that didn’t affect my enjoyment of the story and the ending, which works well), and the rhythm and the menace of the book increase as we get along. I would recommend the novel to people who have enjoyed the movies I mentioned earlier and who are intrigued by the historical period of the English Civil War. It might not work too well for readers looking for very realistic characters and relationships that closely resemble real life, but those who appreciate a dark and menacing atmosphere and who enjoy getting hooked on a dark plot will enjoy it.
As a bonus for those who enjoy history, the author’s note at the end elaborates more on the real information that has been incorporated into the fiction, and it adds to the interest of the story.

Book description:

In 1660, a man is wrongly executed for signing the death warrant of Charles I. While awaiting execution, he asks to speak with a priest, to whom he declares a curse on the village that betrayed him. The priest responds with a counter-curse, leaving just one option to nullify it.
Over four centuries later, Faith and James move to the country to start a new life and a family. They learn that their village lives under the curse uttered by the hanged man. Could their arrival be connected?
Faith and James fear that their choice of a new home is no coincidence. Unexplained events hint at threats or warnings to leave, including the slaughter of their hens, an attic break-in and other menacing incidents. They become convinced the village continues to live under the curse despite denials from their new friends. Who can they trust, and who are potential enemies?

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