P. M. Hubbard (1910–1980)

An obsessive collector of glass will go to any length, it seems, to get his hands on a saucer that may have been a gift to Queen Elizabeth I. To do so, he must deal with fellow collectors and a woman whose beauty is matched by her odd, cold nature. Lots of details here that slow the story down a bit but add to the ultimate suspense. What is interesting is that the story, told in first person by the collector, reveals him almost from the first to be not quite right himself. Very British. Nice ending.… (more)

I picked this up on Amazon US as a Kindle book for a few bucks, well worth a read. First published in 1965, it plays as high camp horror with shocking events occurring during rain storms and the final scene on a beach. Hubbard plays it very straight though, with a few small clues that the grotesque elements are intentional manipulations and not just nicely done hack writing.

An upper-middle class Englishman inherits an old house from a bad old uncle. He and his wife drive from London to the coastal village to take a look. Terrible events ensue.

I'm glad I found the author; I'll read more of him.… (more)

Mark Hawkins' brother Dick, an archaeogist with a specialty in neolithic/prehistoric sites, had set out for a climbing vacation in Wales and never returned. After some time, Mark goes to the home in which Dick was staying to retrieve his belongings. It turns out to be the home of another archaeologist, Dr. Merrion, who is a specialist in medieval archaeology, and who has been working on the site of an old, nearby Cistercian abbey. As Mark pokes around the woods surrounding Merrion's home, he begins to feel that something sinister has happened to his brother here, and is determined to get to the truth.

The sense of foreboding, the sense of place and the creepy atmosphere that the author manages to convey here are important to the central story. You won't find a lot of dialogue here, nor a huge cast of characters. It is a good read, and it is worth the amount of time you'll put into it. It's just very slow at times, and not very exciting, so you have to stay with it.

I'd recommend this to people who are interested in earlier writers of British suspense, to people who are interested in archaeological mysteries, and to those who like the old country house in the deep woods type settings in their mysteries.… (more)