A mystery story in the Gothic mode.
The writing of a "thriller" is breaking new ground for Ms. Lawrence, but the experiment is a triumphant success! When Mirena Clare, lovely, young and alone in the world, accepts the offer of an apparently tempting post in the country and travels to Cornwall to take it up, she encounters a shock. From this point, in fact, thrill follows thrill in quick succession. Was old Mrs. Holland mad -- or was her son? The mystery of the garden of a house which ran wild and whose walls were built like those of a prison, a man's dread of a blue-check frock, sinister warnings from an unexpected quarter -- these are the baffling mysteries of this excellent novel, the theme of which Miss Lawrence handles with her extraordinary skill and assurance. Every character is alive, there is drama and action, and the excitement is particularly well maintained.
