Book Review: The Small Hand by Susan Hill

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A quiet novel of intense mood and atmosphere with moments of profound creepiness. Not particularly scary but definitely unnerving. I loved the premise of the story, the main character (who doesn’t want to be a dealer in antique books, travelling the world to weird and wonderful places to find them for disgustingly rich collectors) and the settings – from the English countryside to a hard-to-reach French monastery. I would have liked to have stayed in the monastery for far longer – it was by far the most interesting part of the book and promised more than it delivered. The writing itself was a pleasure to read with descriptions so evocative you are easily drawn in. Slight but intense, I enjoyed this hugely…..except for the denouement. I really didn’t buy the cause of all the spooky goings on and thought it lacked detail. I’m also not mad at everything coming out in a letter right at the end. It all felt a bit rushed and the twist lacked the kick it should have had. But worth reading for the beautiful prose alone.





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