Magic Cottage [Paperback]

James Herbert (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 4, 2007

"We thought we'd found our haven, a cottage deep in the heart of the forest. Charming, maybe a little run down, but so peaceful. That was the first part of the Magic. Midge's painting and my music soared to new heights of creativity. That was another part of the Magic. Our love for each other - well, that became the supreme Magic. But the cottage had an alternative side - The Bad Magic." "What happened to us there was horrendous beyond belief. The healings, the crazy sect who wanted our home for themselves, the hideous creatures that crawled from the nether regions, and the bats - oh God, the bats! Even now those terrible things seem impossible to me. Yet they happened..." 'Beautifully orchestrated crescendo of suspense...Herbert had brought the shivers back to the genre.' - "Washington Post".

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Herbert's 12th novel is a minor effort about a young couple, Midge and Mike (she's an artist and children's book writer; he's a rock musician) who buy an idyllic country home, christened Gramarye ("magic" in old English) by a former owner. Gradually they find that Gramarye is the focus of supernatural energies, and that they themselves are sometimes the media through which these energies work. The house at first seems lovely and warm but takes on a sinister mood as cracks develop in the stone, moisture and mildew crawl up the walls, and bats multiply in the attic. Complicating the picture is the presence of a local cult, led by an Aleister Crowley type, which desperately wishes to gain control of Gramarye and its forces. A few creepy moments spike the generally lethargic pace of the novel. A veteran horror writer and bestseller in England, Herbert here writes like a noviceeverything spelled out, one-dimensional characterizations, no brevity, no wit; very occasionally diverting. Troll Book Club alternate.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Mike and Midge, an artistic young couple, decide to leave London and embark on a search for a country house. Midge is drawn to a cottage formerly owned by an eccentric old woman, and peculiar things start happening: falling to pieces at first viewing, the cottage is perfect when carpenters come; wild animals scamper through without fear; members of a religious cult need verbal invitation to cross the threshold. The book intriguingly implies that there is no good or bad magic, it's all in how it is used. However, a fairly interesting story is marred by unlikeable, unbelievable characters and an over-explanatory style. And Mike's "little did I know" narrative removes most of the suspense and mystery. A slow-moving, not very frightening horror story by the author of The Rats , The Fog , and Moon . A.M.B. Amantia, Population Crisis Committee Lib., Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Pan Macmillan (May 4, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0330451561
• ISBN-13: 978-0330451567
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 7.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,212,534 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enchanting, magical, edge of your seat reading, March 22, 2004

By 

Mary Chrapliwy (NJ, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Magic Cottage (Hardcover)

This was one of the most enchanting, gripping stories I have ever read. Unlike some of the horror Mr. Herbert has written, this was more suspense/thriller than horror, though it does indeed have it's horrifying moments.

The story centers around a couple from London, Mike and Midge, who begin to search for a house of their own. Midge starts scanning the newspaper and is drawn to a little add for a cottage called Gramarye. When they go see the house they find out from the realtor that is being sold as part of the estate of a very old woman who lived there most of her life and died suddenly. When they go to the house Midge is completely enchanted by the little cottage, feeling like it is home. Mike sees the flaws that need fixing. Still, passion wins over and they buy the little house and work to restore it's beauty. They seem like the perfect couple who has just found the perfect home.

Yet there is something strange and disturbing about Gramarye, Mike can feel it, Midge seems oblivious to it. Animals come into the house and eat out of their hands, they befriend a little red squirrel who comes in daily and chatters away at them. Wounds heal spontaneously. It all sounds pretty silly, but it is all part of the magic that is Gramarye.

Soon the enchanting life starts to take a turn when they meet young people who live in a house on the other side of the forest behind their house. Midge becomes entangled with their group, which ends up being a cult. The cult wants the house and will stop at nothing to possess it. Thus begins the battle of wills while Mike tries to save Midge from the cult and his new home from their possession. Don't worry, I haven't given anything away.

This book was a mystery loaded with magic and danger. It has ghosts and spirits, both good and evil. It begins by sparking the imagination, and the tension grows stronger and stronger in this well wrought story, until it reaches a crescendo that will leave you breathless. This was such a good book that I'm now buying the hardcover - yes, it's good enough to read again. Buy this book, you'll love it as much as I did!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GHOSTIES AND BEASTIES AND THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT.., July 4, 2003

By 

Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Magic Cottage (Paperback)

An attractive young couple is looking for an attractive little house. An attractive little house is looking for the perfect couple. When Midge and Mike find Gramarye, a darling, quaint little cottage in the English countryside, it is as if a spell had been cast upon them. They purchase this little cottage in the middle of nowhere, after a rather unusual negotiation.

Warm and cozy, with an inviting air, Granmarye is everything of which they ever dreamed, and they thrive in its salubrious atmosphere. The days never seemed brighter, nor the nights more romantic. The local flower and fauna around the cottage seem to blossom right before their very eyes. The small animals in the woods seem especially friendly, as do its birds, and they all seem to want to pay a call at the cottage. It is as if the house had a positive psychic energy of its own. It is as if it were a fairytale come true.

Midge and Mike discover that Granmarye's former owner, an elderly woman, had a reputation as a healer. They also discover that a local cult lives not far from them and that its members are reviled by the nearby townspeople. They meet a few of these so called cult members, and they do seem a tad peculiar. They also appear to be quite nervous when visiting Midge and Mike. The cult's leader, however, seems to want to visit very badly. Midge does not mind, but Mike has certain reservations, as there is something about that cult that just does not sit right with him.

Slowly, a shift in the atmosphere in the cottage takes place. As the tension in the book increases, strange and creepy things begin to occur in the cottage. A change in its psychic energy is beginning to take place, replete with a mysterious figure in the woods. Slowly but surely, Midge's and Mike's paradise on earth starts to become a living hell. Spooky, mysterious, and, alternately, charming and chilling, this is one of author's best books.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Casts a magic spell, but wears off too soon!, August 4, 2007

By 

Brian J. Oneill - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Magic Cottage (Paperback)

"The Magic Cottage" is something of a departure from James Herbert's other stories, with more suspense than horror, very little gore, and only tantalizing hints of the 'magical realms' JH describes in so much detail elsewhere.
This starts off as a very down-to-earth, slice of life tale of a young couple who find the 'perfect' country home and (very) gradually find the place is not exactly haunted, but definitely...different!

The deliberate (some would say slow) pace may turn off some readers, while others will like getting a chance to know Mike and Midge. The two of them make an interesting pair, though their respective jobs (storybook writer and session musician)are an excuse to bring some rather uninteresting supporting characters into the story; Bob the stereotypical frybrain rocker, and Val, the comic relief 'trendy' lesbian literary agent. One gets to fall victim to one of the book's scarier moments, while the other plays an unlikely role at the conclusion of the story.
The book, like the cottage, doesn't quite stay together all the way through. Despite Herbert's effort to make the Synergists interesting and different from the usual cult of one-dimensional brainwashed weirdos, they come across as...one-dimensional brainwashed weirdos!
The book is narrated by Mike in first person, a device that I liked at first, but ended up wishing Herbert hadn't used. Some of the sentences are choppier than they might have been in the third-person, and some are rather transparent attempts to build suspense, all but telegraphing some plot points, as if he said, 'I didn't think it was important at the time, but I would in about 4 chapters.'
I wanted to see more of Mrs. Chaldean and Rev. Sixsmythe(who seems to be the 'red herring'of the story, never really amounting to anything, despite some interesting characterization), and less of 'Mycroft' and his flunkies, who come off sounding like villains in a Dean Koontz book!
One thing that saved the book for me was the small but important(not to mention enjoyable) role of Rumbo the squirrel, who certainly had more personality than the bad guys!
Recommended for those who have read other James Herbert novels before. Not a good starting point if you're new to the author; in that case, try 'The Rats'