 Horror comes in all shapes and forms; I read The Eloquent Years of Silence on the back of finishing a full-on blood-soaked fast-paced horror novel, a book that couldn't be further from the Eloquent Years of Silence by John Travis in terms of narrative styling, both had the power to unsettle and chill this reviewer. Travis forsakes a breakneck narrative structure for one that uses a sense of melancholy isolation to deliver a chilling narrative to elicit a sense of dread and despair. At its heart, The Eloquent Years of Silence is a haunted house story, but rather than following the years of tradition, Travis sheds the typically historical setting of these types of stories and places the story right here in the centre of the here and now. In an age where so many of us are looking at a bleak future with regards to work, money and life, having the protagonist Brundick facing a future where he is out of a job and struggling to make ends meet confers an all too easily relatable set of circumstances, that we could easily find ourselves facing. So when the chance to housesit for a friend pops up, Brundick jumps at the opportunity for a small respite in the chaos of his life. Little does he know that his life will get way more complicated than he ever imagined. One of the strengths of this novella is the protagonist Brundick (despite having an odd name, I'd love to know why Travis chose this name);. At the same time, he may be the proverbial sadsack and not what you would typically class as a relatable character; there is probably too much self-pity in his nature to be completely relatable. This is not a criticism of the story in any way; if anything, it adds a level of believability to the story, and when the whole nature of this novel is based on the mundane world being infiltrated by something from the beyond, it was refreshing to have a main character that was equally frustrating as he was sympathetic. Another strength of the story was the author's ability to create an oppressive mood, where the supernatural elements melded seamlessly with a powerful sense of suburban decay, where the drab and dreary world of the novella played just as an essential role in inferring a sense of ever building unease and trepidation as the presence of a ghostly evil. From the chilling scenes of discovery in the house next door to the captivating scene outside the local pub, Travis knows how to create a truly chilling story without resorting to the more grisly end of the horror spectrum. There is an inescapable sense of sadness to The Eloquent Years of Silence, from the isolation and loneliness that Brundick endures to the nature of the supernatural entity and the drab ambience of the world around them, everything seems to be rotting slowly from the inside out. If you are looking for a thoughtful, modern ghost story that will slowly chip away at your emotions, then The Eloquent Years of Silence is a perfect read. Powerful, emotional and eloquently written (sorry, I couldn't help myself) an ideal read for how so many of us are feeling right now. ELOQUENT YEARS OF SILENCE bY JOHN TRAVIS It seemed like an ideal situation to Bundrick: a couple of months house-sitting for friends just as he was about to become homeless. He was even okay with the fact that the house next door had been the scene of a strange death a few months earlier – because, for the first time in his life, Bundrick, however briefly, would have his own place. But when strange noises start coming from that house, noises that shouldn’t exist, that simply couldn’t have been heard, Bundrick’s curiosity leads him down into the dark cellar. Discovering the wall separating his house and the empty house has collapsed, it’s almost as if it were inviting him in... CHECK OUT TODAY'S OTHER ARTICLES ON GINGER NUTS OF HORROR THE HEART AND SOUL OF HORROR FICTION REVIEWSComments are closed.
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