Customer Reviews

Elsewhere

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I am not one of those reviewers who write unstellar reviews simply due to thwarted expectations. I know this story was not supposed to be The Exorcist, so I approached it with an open mind to read it as a story in its own right.

And there are some good points to it:

-Blatty's humor is my type of humor. Lots of call backs and quirkiness. "Fyook."
-Unlike some of the reviews, I find Blatty's use of language unique and entertaining - I, for one, like his use of metaphor.

But I have to admit that I wanted the story to at least be unsettling. Instead, what's offered is something that borders on heart-warming. This is somewhat understandable, as Blatty is now in his 80's and the story seems to be written partially as an acceptance of the concepts of death and dying. I just wish that for one of his last (and one of his few) works he would have chosen to give us something as fascinating as his famous treatise on demonology.

"Dimmie, why you do this to me?"

Not surprisingly, William Peter Blatty sets up a cast of characters who are either tortured, losing their faith, or obsessing over what may or may not happen after death. Dr. Cole, a kind freelance physician (after the death of his wife, spends most of his time with an Electronic Voice Monitor hanging around haunted houses) Joan Freeboard (a real estate agent whose characterization just smacks of Regan's mother in "The Exorcist")--always smoking, defiant, witty, swearing a lot, and Terry Dare, a gay novelist with two puppies and a flair for acting just like the stereotype of a homosexual. Morna is the mysterious, beautiful house servant who is almost entirely absent for the slim read. Anna Trawley, a psychic we know very little about other than the abrupt loss of her daughter to a tragic car accident and her indispensable knack for knowing that something is just *wrong* with the house in Elsewhere.
(Finally, Blatty drops Ernest Becker's name and the title of his titantic work, "The Denial of Death". I was waiting for that to happen.)

The more you follow Blatty's written work the more you notice recurring themes and how he manages to creatively work them out with variations worthy of a true devotee to mankind's central metaphysical issues. In "The Exorcist" we are overwhelmed with terror, paranoia, and pity for a young girl defiled by forces seemingly out of her control. In "The Ninth Configuration" we see the Single Individual before God in the Kierkegaardian sense--Col. Vincent Kane battling with his own monstrosity and the most unGodly problems of mental illness and insanity. "Legion" successfully carries Blatty's main point of contention with life--the Problem of Evil--and entwines it with the original plot of "The Exorcist". ("Dimiter" is a different story, probably his best theological work, which grapples with the issue of where Christ is and isn't present.) Here, he sort of comes full circle to the question nihil, nothing, or the hand of faith guiding us "Elsewhere", out of meaninglessness.

Describing the plot at any length sort of spoils the novel since the whole thing is one big twist, but a lot is successfully borrowed from Matheson's "Hell House" and the film "The Haunting". This is a meditation on loss and how, as believers or non believers, we go on after loss--the loss of a loved one in particular. There are frightening parts indeed (when Dare and Freeboard are holed up in a room of the house, assailed by pounding sounds which they experience as "malevolent", kind of puzzling considering what the source of those sounds are?)

For anyone even casually interested in "the big issues" or fans of William Peter Blatty, "Elsewhere" is a must.

Elsewhere is the first William Peter Blatty novel that I've read since the Exorcist, which I read after seeing the movie. Though not a long book at just over 200 pages, Elsewhere's story will make you feel it's much longer.....but in a good way.

Okay, there are a few clichés used in delivering up the story, but don't let that keep you from enjoying the story. I mean, if you've read enough of these stories, every device an author uses can seem like a cliché.

Elsewhere is a house and it has a problem. On the real estate market for an extended period the house is hard to move because it has a reputation of being haunted. Enter Joan Freeboard, a realtor who decides to prove the house is free of spirits. She recruits a psychic, a parapsychologist, and an author to spend some time in the house and deliver the verdict that all is okay with the manor. And all does go well, for a time.

I believe that Elsewhere is more a psychological thriller than a mere ghost story, but it does pretty well on the latter. Elsewhere is well written but I had a hard time really getting to know the characters. There are a number of twists in the story, not so many as to make the story seem phony or contrived, but enough to make the read rewarding and interesting.

William Peter Blatty certainly isn't a stranger to well written stories. "Exorcist" on anyone's resume speaks loud and clear. Is Elsewhere that good? Read it and see for yourself.

Peace always.

William Peter Blatty, author of "The Exorcist", returns to the horror genre with a story that is more subtle than that classic novel, but by no means less powerful. This is a story in the vein of Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting" or Richard Matheson's "Hell House" in that the horror and atmosphere build slowly as psychological stress builds upon the inhabitants.

Joan Freeboard is a well-to-do New York City real estate agent who lives a lavish lifestyle. Her friends are the respected socialite types: artists, writers, etc... Joan has recently found a mansion named Elsewhere that can earn her a killing in commission if she can sell the place. The only problem is the house, located out on an island off Manhattan, is rumored to be haunted. Joan hatches a plot to get the house sold. She brings in a respected paranormal investigator, Gabriel Case, and a renowned psychic, Anna Trawley, to investigate the house and hopefully clear its reputation. She also enlists the aid of her close friend, writer Terrence Dare, to be her witness and document the events, and put to rest anyone's doubts about the mansion.

All arrive at the island and begin their investigation. It's not long before the house grabs a hold of each visitor in its own unique way, preying on each of their insecurities. Soon the phones and television go dead and then Joan is shaken to her core to find she can no longer see Manhattan from the island, as if it had completely disappeared. It's a classic haunted house mood with strange sounds and apparitions. Blatty is so skillful at working his spell upon the characters that you are not sure whether they are really seeing and hearing ghosts, or if their sanity is breaking down.

The characters are fresh and witty and their banter is often hilarious, dripping with sarcasm, especially as Joan and Terrence trade barbs at each other. The novel seems even shorter than its two hundred plus pages as Blatty keeps the pace up tempo throughout. Blatty throws numerous curveballs at the reader and saves his best pitch for the book's shocking climax that every good horror book should have. A quick read but one that is perfect for a dark and stormy night...or a bright sunny day, whichever you prefer!

William Peter Blatty's haunted house novella, "Elswhere", is an atmospheric and classic horror/ghost story in the tradition of "The Legend Of Hell House", among others. A NYC realtor is tasked with selling a mysterious mansion named Elsewhere that is purported haunted and tough to move as a result. She brings along a close friend who is going to write an article about Elswhere, as well as a British psychic and a NYC Parapsychologist. The four of them undergo the typical (and often predictable) haunted house scares. It is only in Blatty's darkly humorous delivery (and a pretty decent twist ending) that makes this novel a solid read for an October night.

The old mansion Elsewhere in Craven's Cove up the Hudson from NYC has a haunting reputation that makes it difficult to sell. Thus thirtyish Manhattan realtor Joan Freeboard hits on a unique idea to try to find a buyer for what has become a mausoleum. She persuades British psychic Anna Trawley, NYU parapsychologist Dr. Gabriel Case and renowned but currently wordless author Terrence Dare to accompany her inside of Elsewhere to prove there are no ghosts.

As the quartet settle inside of Elsewhere, a nasty storm strands them there. Meanwhile, each member of the team feels isolated from the others yet shares in common a growing sense of belonging to the mansion. As they learn the secret of the house, their personal secrets are exposed; each visitor has protected their egos with customized realisms.

In many ways this excellent haunted house tale is a psychological suspense thriller as much of the story line (except for the climax) follows the quartet as the house coaxes them to reveal their secrets. Illustrations by Alex McVey add depth to the atmosphere of pending doom. Fans of Peter Blatty will welcome his fresh approach of psychological paranormal paradigm twist to the haunted house horror sub-genre.

Harriet Klausner

Some advise if you have not yet read this book. DO NOT READ THE REVIEW BY S.BRAINARD ("Hard hitting ghastly ghost tale") as it gives away the plot line. A note to S.Brainard: PLEASE DO NOT GIVE AWAY MAJOR PLOT LINES IN A BOOK REVIEW UNLESS YOU WARN READERS THAT THERE ARE "SPOILERS AHEAD". Thank you so much for "spoiling" the story for us.

As for my star rating. I quite enjoyed this book. the characters were a bit stereotyped but still believable and the book was a lot of fun with humor laced throughout. Was this story spooky? No. Was it atmospheric? Yes.
I would recommend this book to someone who would like a quick fun read and who doesn't expect too many scares.

The main character in this is a hard-driving, female Manhattan real estate broker. Looking to distract herself from her own mid-life angst, she convinces her best friend, a writer, to accompany her to a reputed haunted estate on her listings. She arranges for a medium and a member of the owners family to join them, with the stated goal that they will figure out what's going on with the house, once and for all, allowing her to then put it on the market, reaping top price commissions.

Strains of A Haunting at Hill House and The Haunting? This book, unfortunately, lives up to neither. Red herrings and foreshadowing abound, but this is more likely to make you yawn than tingle your spine.

There were a couple of surprise twists, but that's it. Worth checking out, but keep your expectations in check.

I had such high hopes for this book. I didn't expect it to be another "Exorcist," but I'd hoped for at least some original ideas.

The only scary moment in this book is a reprise of a scene in Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House." For a moment I wondered which book I was reading.

The main plot twist is no twist at all. I knew what was going on a third of the way through the book. The characters are unsympathetic, with no depth, and there was no atmosphere. A little witty dialogue, yes, but pointless if you don't care about the characters, in my opinion. I'm sorry I spent money on this.

After having read the Exorcist and been so mesmerized by it so many years ago, I had such high hopes for this one. alas, it just seems that blatty had a day in which he did not know what to do and lazily jotted this off on his typewriter. It is slow, un-scary, and nothing much happens. If you thought it would be like another "exorcist", boy, will you be wrong! I sure was.