Customer Reviews

The Time of the Ghost

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have come to expect a consistently terrific story from Diana Wynne Jones, and this story is no exception. In it she sets a creepy mood and immediately jumps into the story, tossing the reader puzzle pieces so the reader can figure out what is going on even as the characters do (something she does incredibly well.) Not a scene is wasted. The story is tight and without the 200 pages of material which should have been edited out that you'll find in many fantasy novels nowadays. Although the reader may be confused at times, it's because the situation is confusing to everyone involved and not because it's poorly written, not at all.

My quibbles would be that the story is rather dark at times in theme and tone, and that the characters other than the narrator are difficult to like at first. The parents have no redeeming features, although it seems like she tries to give them some toward the end. It's not lighthearted at the end, and readers of some of Diana Wynne Jones' other titles may be startled by this. The ending is very satisfactory, but again, it's a bit dark.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a fantasy set in the modern world, or who likes to solve mysteries along with the characters. But I would also recommend not looking at the cover, as that hideous face kept me from actually reading the book for about six months.

This book is a difficult read. It is not easy sailing, though the writing is superb. This book is unconventional to the extreme. There are two confusing points in the book, one of which is the ghost's identity (which sister is it?), and the other is that fact that the ghost is NOT a ghost of a dead person. But you can figure out the ghost's identity fairly quickly if you pick up several obvious clues that many seem to miss, and this book is one of my favorites.
I won't go into the plot--other's, such as the publishers, have done it already--save to say that it is not gory or freakshly disturbing. If you are zealosuly religions, then you may not like this book, as it does have a "dark, old, female something" (a goddess-like presence) and severe neglect from the parents regarding the four sister-protagonists. One of the sisters goes missing, and the parents doen't even notice after several days, even though the mother comes in to say good-night and the father throws a rage at them later, even going through all four names without noticing before leaving.
This book is more like a window into a at-once familiar and fantastical world than a science-fiction/fantasy novel, a world where things that most people go through in childhood (such as a play-sceance using scrabble-letters or a belief that there is a ghost in the house) do not collapse into disbelief with time but are confirmed in a subtle, definite way. THAT is the whole of the 'horror and occult' in this book.
The characters are exactly drawn. Perhaps others do not know people as unusual or interesting as the four Melford sisters, but they are the sort of people who are at the edge of the population, who turn into famous artists, writers, musicians--the sort of people who go into history books (the sort of people who are very unusual). They are disinctly portrayed, and you can feel that you would recognize them on the street after reading the book. The personalities are very vibrant, and the entire book is a pleasurable read. You may want to reread this book later, because it is one of those books that can be reread many times; not open and direct, but secretive, mysterious, and very well-woven. Five stars on this one. Diana Wynne Jones has done an excellent job and has not been afraid to step out of the borders of conventional fiction writing to turn out a novel of striking originality.

I didn't find the book confusing, it does make you dizzy but no more so than any of her books. I think the book is very very funny in many ways, from the bowl of blood with all the boys queueing up for 50p with nose bleeds etc. The girls' father is also an amusing factor, not unlike the ogre in "The Ogre Downstairs" without the humour, and the way he constantly forgets their names, "Sally, Fenella er, Ingrid." and has to speak at least three before he gets the right one is entertaining. The book does have the underlying menace that Wynne Jones is famous for, and Monaghan is a creepy force. The end of the book is also slightly daunting, and one feels sorry for the 'sacrifice' in some ways. I enjoyed the book, it is a change from some DWJ's usual stuff and that may surprise readers and leave them disatisfied if that is what they expect, but if you keep an open mind I think you'll enjoy it.

I've read many books by Diana Wynne Jones, and this is definitely my favourite. Unlike some of her other books, the story makes complete sense once all the pieces come together in the end. The ending itself is very satisfying. The characters and situations in the book are quirky and original. Very nice, a great read!

this is a wicked book, but boy, is it confusing! it's a story about a girl who finds herself a ghost, and the only thing she can remember is that "there's been an accident!". she goes to the house of a bunch of sisters, who she knows she is one of. i don't want to spoil it, so i won't tell you too much more, but it involves a strange doll seeking revenge (kind of). the ending has always made me cry, but i love it anyhow. however, it's for older readers (well, over 11) and you'll have to read it a couple of times to understand it (it took me 4 times!). read it!

I found this book very hard to start as it was very mysterious and hard to keep track of the characters, and the ghost, who at first has no name. Once I got about halfway through I enjoyed it a lot more as the story became more exciting and the ghost's mission became clear. I thought the four sisters were very intresting characters and in parts the book was quite sinister and chilling. It's not my favourite book, and you have to be quite a good reader to keep on with it but it does improve as you go on.

The title of this book - 'The Time of the Ghost' is a definite clue as to what themes to expect in this novel - 'time' and 'ghosts'. It begins with an unidentified 'ghost' who has an overwhelming feeling that a terrible accident has occured, though she cannot remember any details. As she travels through a boys boarding school, little bits and pieces of memory come back to her - she suspects she is one of four sisters - Imogen, Sally, Charlotte or Fenella, who through a game they called 'The Worship of Monigan', have brought to life a terrible goddess. The sisters begin to believe that they are being haunted and seek out the ghost's knowledge, while one of the school students Julian Addiman, has a secret adjenda with Monigan himself. The ghost continues to piece together her past, but all the time wondering - who is she? Where is she from? Why is she here? What should she do?

If you want the answers to the questions then don't expect to find them at the beginning/middle of the story - you'll have to hang in there till the end. Like all Wynne Jones's stories nothing is what it seems, not even the premise of the story - you may assume that the 'ghost' is a ghost, and that events run in chronological order, but don't be fooled. Reality and assumptions turn themselves upside and round-about on more than one occasion. Whether you like this book or not, you'll have to appreciate the cleverness and complexity of the story that takes a very unique imagination to design.

However, this story lacks any explanitory narrative, which deeply confuses the reader, and leaves them confused till the end of the story, or perhaps even until a second read of the book. It would have been so much simpler to have a few 'eye-of-god' paragraphs to just explain to the audience what is going on in a few situations. However this is made impossible, as the viewpoint of this novel is strictly that of the ghost's. The closet we get to explanations are dialouges by other characters as the plot catapults along.
This is the typical style of all Diana Wynne Jones's novels, and in my opinion, her downfall. The lack of black and white, clear-cut explanations as to what is going on confuses most readers and prevents her from getting into the league of other fanatasy writers such as J.K. Rowling.

This book is a good, memorable one with a clever, well thought out plot. The only problem is that is Wynne Jones gives us no way to appreciate this as we go along, but makes us wait till the very end of the book to explain what was happening the whole time. Therefore, 'The Time of the Ghost' reads like a guessing-game, and you have to piece together the plot as you go, without really knowing whether your holding the right pieces.

The book opens with an un-named (female) protagonist becoming aware that she is a ghost, who appears to be haunting her three sisters who are the terribly neglected children of a couple operating an English private school (possibly in the 1950s). Much tension is developed by the ghost trying to find out exactly who she is, and why she is condemned to haunt this family. At the same time the characters and the lifestyles of the children are fascinating in themselves. But as the book evolves we learn about the evil that has been evoked and what the consequences are. Needs a mature reader (I'm 45!) but appealed very well to my 15 year-old, who is fond of all of this author's books

I have so far enjoyed all of Diana Wynne Jones' books, and this one was no exception. It's a good story as well as an adventure. Besides just that, having a favorite author consistently providing good stories of varying subjects is refreshing.

I think this book is really god, but extrmemley confusing. At first I couldn't figure out what was going on, but I got it eventually (by the middle of the book)It is entertaining, but some parts are not for the squeamish. A little graphic detail, but the story is all the richer for it. I would recommend it to people who like ghost stories. I would also reccommend you read Diana Wynne Jones other books.