John Connelly's Nocturnes (Hodder 2005, 446pp, ISBN978-1416534600 ) is a curious, bipolar book. There are twelve short stories and a novellette, the excellent "The Underbury Witches" in it, of which nine of the stories were written as the pseudo-Victorian/Edwardian ghost stories in which the BBC specialize at Christmas.
That the stories were commissioned by BBC Northern Ireland would lead the reader to assume that they were set in Ireland, be it North or South, but there are no special signs of place. Indeed, it's difficult to establish whether they are set in England or Ireland, even when the reader looks for clues, since Irishmen served in the First World War.
Many of the stories are set either during The Great War, as it was known at the time ("A retired major tried to engage two soldiers in conversation, but the men, new conscripts already fearful of the trenches, were in no mood to talk." p149), or immediately after, as in the case of 'Mr Pottinger's Daemon.'
John Connelly
Connelly is a student of English Literature, so it can be inferred that the time of the stories, together with a lack of a specific sense of place has less to do with omission than because Connelly has instead concentrated on a specific tone of voice. These are chillers in the vein of M.R. James, rather than any modern horror writer, and James was always more interested in a type of setting, rather than a specific one.
Nocturnes
Many of the stories, including the title one, feature children. "'Children,' he said, quietly. 'It's always children with you." (p.355) 'The Ritual of the Bones' is set in a minor public school and is all about the sacrifices demanded of its children. 'The Erlking' is written from memories of childhood; "We lie to protect our children, and in lying we expose them to the greatest of harms." (p.94)
Two of the stories, 'Nocturne' and 'The New Daughter' involve fathers raising their children alone, and moving to a new house, a move which later turns out to be a mistake. Both involve
Unlike the (paradoxically) longer US edition from Atria, the British paperback edition has three bonus stories, taken from Connelly's website. The best of these is 'The Bridal Bed,' a tale of obsessive love.
Charlie Parker
The bipolar nature of the book comes from the two novellas that bracket the stories. 'The Cancer Cowboy Rides' has a tone more akin to Stephen King than M.R. James, although its subject matter, that of The Big C personified, looking for victims, is more akin to Dan Simmons 'Meatstasis' than to the Bard of Maine. But the cast of everyman threatened is certainly reminiscent of King.
And comparisons will inevitably be made because the setting for most of Connelly's novels featuring Charlie Parker, his best known creation is Maine.
But again, in tone there is another writer who springs to mind in 'The Reflecting Eye,' the longest and by far the best story in the book, with its mirrors that show a scene other than what we would call real, and the malevolent spirit poisoning the house. That writer is Kate Wilhelm, and the story is powerfully evocative of her novel 'The Dark Door.' A comparison with such an outstanding writer is as high a compliment as can be made. 'The Reflecting Eye' alone would be worth the price of the book.
But in fact as a whole entity, Nocturnes is a clever, entertaining book whose effect is cumulative, and makes for especially good for reading at Christmas or any winter's night.
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