By Jessica Hamilton
1978 Sphere
Paperback, 157 pages
This is one of the most
brilliantly written books that I have ever read. Every word is perfection,
every paragraph a work of art. Yes, I also enjoy reading Grade-Z tripe but when
I come across something like this, it is a truly magical experience. This book
also goes a long way towards proving to me that I’ll always have a lot more in
common with an evil 14-year-old girl than with men who are supposedly my peers.
Elizabeth is fourteen and on
vacation with her parents when she first sees Frances in a mirror. Frances is a
long dead witch who wants Elizabeth to know of her bloodline… and her powers.
After her parents die that same day (hmmm, how’d that happen), she is taken to
live with her grandmother, her uncle James, his wife and child, and a tutor.
Frances is there too, in the mirrors. Elizabeth’s powers grow and people who
get in her way have a habit of disappearing.
Jessica Hamilton is a pseudonym
for Ken Greenhall, and this was his first novel. The short novel is filled with
despicable characters and uncomfortable situations for the reader. As Elizabeth
wields her powers, her sexuality being one of them, she puts her uncle under
her spell and keeps him under her thumb with favors. None of the incestual
pedophilia is spelled right out, nor is much of the violence or other sexual
situations in the book, but you know it’s there. The story is told by Elizabeth
in first person and her mind is complex, calm and indifferent to everyone
except Frances. Her asides to the reader can be humorous or chilling, often at
the same time. I guess it says something about my own disturbed mind that I
felt a solid kinship with the cold and empathy-free Elizabeth throughout the
narrative.
An absolutely stunning piece of
literature. I went back to admire some lines again and again. I wish I had the
power to write something so powerful. Forget the online reviews by myopic
cretins who didn’t understand it. They don’t deserve Elizabeth or Greenhall.
This book is brilliant. Thanks to the good folks at Valencourt Books, it is
back in print.
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