Book Review: Erosion
A gothic novel with a modern twist
What is real and what is imagination? What is magic and what is coincidence?
Lucya Starza’s novel Erosion poses these questions and then leaves the reader to decide what the answers are, both in this intriguing story and perhaps also in real life.
Alison, more often called Alice after the character from the Lewis Carroll novels, finds herself falling down a rabbit hole of a different kind, 1980s style, in a tired seaside town in the south of England. The friends she falls in with offer a welcome change from the conventional, mainstream life her parents are pushing her toward. And the witchy woman in the cottage past the edge of town adds even more fascination. But Alice’s summer quickly goes from unconventional to disturbing, thanks to both the local situation and her own choices.
This isn’t a horror novel as such; there’s no gore, although there are dead bodies and bones - human remains, to be precise. To me, the story feels very much in line with classic gothic novels like those the Brontë sisters wrote: a focus on the emotions of the characters, the depths of darkness that their psyches generate, and the way we so easily slip into fear and hysteria, especially when the rain and the wind and the fierceness of nature come to bear.
Of course, there’s always the possibility that the darkness isn’t just Alice’s imagination.
That’s what makes this novel so enjoyable to sink your teeth into. There are no tidy answers, just like in real life. Plenty to relish while you’re reading it and plenty more to ponder afterward.
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About Laura Perry
I'm an author, artist, and creator who works magic with words, paint, ink, music, textiles, and herbs. I'm also the founder and Temple Mom of Ariadne's Tribe, a worldwide inclusive Minoan spiritual tradition. My spiritual practice includes spirit work and herbalism through the lens of lifelong animism. I write Pagan / polytheist non-fiction and fiction across several different subjects and genres. I'm currently working on an illustrated book of modern Minoan myths and a Minoan entry in the Moon Books Pantheons series. I’m also an avid gardener and living history demonstrator.
Thank you! :)