Bone House

by Betsy Tobin

Book Overview

In this stunning debut, Betsy Tobin spins a classic tale of gothic suspense. Immersing readers in Elizabethan England, she masterfully evokes a heady place where science and superstition walk... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743406168
• ISBN13: 9780743406161
• Release Date: March 2002
• Publisher: Scribner Book Company
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.3" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Couldn't put it down!

I can't think of another book that I've read in less than a day. "Bone House", a classicly gothic book, is filled with atmosphere, mystery, and memorable characters. I simply couldn't put it down!The tale is told in the voice of an unnamed lady's maid whose mother is the local midwife. They befriend Dora, a prostitute, who settles in their small village after emigrating from a country "across the waters." No one knows where she's from or her story, but the men enjoy her services and the women, oddly enough, her friendship. When Dora is found dead, apparently having slipped on ice covered rocks, our young narrator feels there is more to her death than an accident. When Dora's grave is robbed of her body, rumors of witchcraft begin to fly, with the narrator's mother, the midwife, as chief suspect. Dora's half-wit son, Long Boy, cannot grasp that his mother is dead. Rumors of Dora sightings begin to spook the villagers. The lord of the local manor, Great House, requests that a portrait of the dead woman be painted. Dora's death seems to be beyond acceptance by anyone. Secrets begin to unfold with the search for the body. The narrator must find out the truth about Dora's death and the theft of her body before her mother is convicted of witchcraft.Throw in the characters of the dying grande dame of Great House, her evil but now deceased husband, their deformed son, and the portrait painter with secrets of his own and you have a smashing good read. Tobin's prose flows comfortably. Characterization and dialogue both fit well with the setting. "Bone House" is Tobin's first novel and I will definitely read her second.

An excellent novel

What really made the book for me were the characters, whose actions and motivations were deep and complex. Though this book is frequently referred to as a mystery, it's not a traditional mystery. Call it a "literary mystery." I enjoyed the way the events unfolded and how the death of Dora ended up revealing so much about the people in the village. Everyone says it takes place in the 17th century, but if so, it's before 1603, because Elizabeth is still queen. There's also a romance in case that matters to you.

Amazing novel... couldn't put it down.

Bone House is an amazing debut by author Betsy Tobin. It's so exciting to find a new writer whose novels you can cherish. This story brings to life the seventeenth century in England like few other books I've read. I really felt like I caught a glimmer of what life was like then. And I also was caught up in the thrill of the mystery and the playing out of the sophisticated romance in the book. All in all it's a fabulous read.

a must read!!

The "Bone House" is a haunting and compelling tale. I simply could not put this book down! Betsy Tobin does a wonderful job of evoking the lives of the inhabitants of a small and somewhat isolated 17th century Elizabethan village, bringing to life all the different denizens of the village: from the landed gentry that inhabit the Great House and all their servants, to the ordinary people in the village. The novel centers around the mysterious figure of Dora, the village prostitute, who suddenly appeared in the village many years ago. No one knows much about Dora, where she came from or why she left her native country to settle in rural England; but such was her charm and vitality that she was almost immediately accepted by all the men and women alike in the village. And when she is found dead, at the bottom of a ravine, everyone is shocked and saddened by the loss. None more so than the unnamed narrator of the novel. Our narrator is the daughter of the village midwife, and has longed admired Dora for her courage and warmth, so that Dora's death hits her really hard. And when it comes to light that Dora died pregnant, our narrator begins an obsessive quest to discover who the father of the unborn child is, and to find out if she can uncover more about Dora's past. In the process, our narrator sees how much Dora touched and affected all those around her, herself included; and sees that that influence that does not seem to preclude death.This novel is a absorbing read. The plot is a compelling one and is richly textured with most themes that one would expect from a historical novel that is set in the 17th century: birth and death, sexuality, superstition and witchcraft. However it is the way in which Tobin has pulled all these themes together that is a testimony to her masterly storytelling skills. I think that I can safely recommend the "Bone House" as one of the best historical novels I have read for quite a while.

Great historical mystery

Fourteen years ago, Dora crossed the Channel to settle in the English village. Dora lived by her own rules, but though a big lady, men wanted her and women befriended her because she was fair and honest. She made her living lying with males. About three years later, the narrator's mother, a midwife, helped Dora give birth to a boy whose father is not known. Eleven years pass, the boy is big like his mother, but seems a bit slow perhaps because he looks like a man already. However, he reacts like the child he is when Dora dies from what appears to be an accident. The narrator, a maid, beings making inquiries into Dora's death when she learns that her role model of female independence was pregnant and predicted her own death. BONE HOUSE is a superb look at a remote English seventeenth century village. The story line centers on the roles of townsfolk and the questioning of the prevalent paradigm. The characters as individuals are fully developed and provide a lucid look at the era, but seem off kilter in relation to one another. Still, Betsy Tobin provides a well-written powerful historical fiction that places a magnified look at a bygone era.Harriet Klausner