MIDNIGHT ROOMS

In 1840, an Englishwoman fights for her sanity—and her life—when she marries into an exceedingly rich and mysterious family.

Orabella Mumthrope is the 26-year-old orphaned daughter of a white father and a Black mother; she’s living with her uncle, who grudgingly puts up with the arrangement, when Elias Blakersby shows up one day asking for her hand in marriage. It’s clear from the moment Orabella meets him that not everything is as it seems. Elias’ appearance is unkempt and his manner undeniably strange, but Orabella is thoroughly seduced by him and agrees to his proposal, leaving behind her family and friends for a new life at the Blakersby family estate. When Orabella and Elias arrive at Korringhill Manor, she discovers a home that has—in typical gothic fashion—fallen into decay. Elias’ family is less than welcoming to his new bride. While some of them are curt and distant, others act far too familiar with Orabella, treating her like a rare creature meant to be on display. Stranger still are the nightmarish bacchanalian dinner parties during which they seem to take on animalistic qualities. Despite Orabella’s initial misgivings, Elias convinces her they will have a long and happy life together as long as she does what she’s told and stays in her room at night. But the longer Orabella spends locked behind the doors at Korringhill, the harder it becomes to tell reality from dreams. While this novel has many of the trappings of a classic gothic, its supernatural undertones make it stand out. At times it feels like a fever dream, and will undoubtedly leave readers confused as they try to parse out what exactly is happening to Orabella within the dimly lit halls of Korringhill; the narrative becomes increasingly unclear as the story progresses.

A hallucinatory and hair-raising gothic horror story that suffers from a disjointed style.