A quick and unsettling read, this book is a collection of short stories following the history of a haunted piece of land in the fens. First, a woman suspected of using evil witchcraft was drowned in the pond at the farm. Then, dreadful things happened to the workers who drained the pond and built the foundations of a new hotel. After this, the hotel gains a reputation of a haunted place where people are drawn back and go missing. The stories follow the experiences of people who visit or work at the hotel. Finally, students explore the derelict building while making a film, and disappear. We are led to believe that the land itself is haunted and that whatever is built where the hotel used to be will have the same effect on the psyche of women in particular. The ghosts bring out our memories and are really the ghosts of ourselves.

I have to admit that most of the stories weren’t quite spooky enough or had vague meanings, but they did have an impact. After being annoyed by some aspects of the writing style in Johnson’s novel Everything Under, I wondered if this book would be similar, but as the stories are mainly narrated without dialogue, it didn’t bother me. I used the word ‘unsettling’ in my review of the novel, too. The Hotel was commissioned and originally broadcast for radio, so I don’t know if it worked better for the format, but nonetheless, the book is worth reading.

Published by Jonathan Cape, 2024.