The Woman in Black by Susan Hill

The Woman in Black is a spine-chilling horror/thriller story about the experience of a man named Arthur Kipps. Arthur starts out telling a story to his second wife's kids. He didn't want to, but they wanted him to, so he did. His story isn't a nice one. It's a story that Arthur has tried very hard to forget.

Arthur has to do the dead Mrs. Drablow's paperwork, and he has to go to the Eel Marsh House to do it. There are many rumors about that house. People keep telling Arthur that he shouldn't go in the house because it's haunted, but he's a man. Why should he believe in silly stories like that? Before Arthur can go to the house, he must attend Mrs. Drablow's funeral. At the funeral, Arthur sees someone who looks wasted with sickness. She's dressed all in black. She doesn't give Arthur a happy feeling. Arthur tries to ask people who she is, but when people hear of her, they become too afraid to speak.

Arthur goes to the Eel Marsh House and starts on Mrs. Drablow's paperwork. He finds useless things. He also finds a locked door. This door eventually comes unlocked and he finds the Woman in Black. He later finds out that she is looking for her child, who was taken from her. When the Woman is seen, a child mysteriously dies. Soon, Arthur can't take anymore of her. He returns to London where his home is, marries a woman named Stella, and has a child. A year after the child is born, Arthur has almost forgotten about the Woman. He had forgotten about her, until he saw her again. Then, there's an accident and the child dies, and Stella dies ten months later. That is Arthur Kipps' terrifying story.

As many of you know, there is a movie. You can watch the trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBHeFA_LoGc&feature=share . The movie is good, but the book is better. I give The Woman in Black an A+. It was very suspenseful, and it was a book that made me think. However, this book probably shouldn't be read by those of you who are scared easily, because it might give you nightmares. But for those of you who enjoy books like this, I recommend it! The book is a little difficult to understand because it is older, but you do get used to it. This book never bored me! The book didn't really have a theme, but the plot was excellent. I reccomend reading the book before seeing the movie, if it's not too late.