So, I've always had a fascination with those sort of slinking, creeping stories that make your imagination go wild (or at least mine) walking alone in the woods. Those supernatural creatures that send shivers down your spine.
A game (which inspired several attempted murders, I believe) called "Slenderman" came out, and this really was, I think, the embodiment of that sort of primal, hunted feeling we like to get when walking alone (or am I completely alone on this?!?)
So, with all of that being said, Long Lankin is basically Slenderman fanfiction. The poem itself, which if you haven't read, I suggest, is an old English rhyme and is truly morbid, not something one recites at poetry readings, but if they did, I'd applaud.
I liked this book for the most part. It's told in alternating views from two kids, Cora, who, along with her little sister Mimi, arrives in the English countryside not so long after WWII. They aren't so happy to be there, and neither is their aunt, whom they are sent to live with.
It turns out they have good reason to not be wanted. There are strange things in the little village. An old church they are banned from, a strange tree, and perhaps, worst of all, there seems to be some slinking, spidery thing they never quite see, something that crawls up walls, creeps through gardens and is always watching.
There's a lot of mystery in this, what, or who, is Long Lankin, what the village secrets are, why is their aunt's house always locked tight? This is a ghost story, but much more deliciously, it is a monster story, and I'm all for that.
My only complaint is, like with most horror stories (in my opinion) the wheels do seem to fall off a bit at the end. (This happened in Red Dragon too, so perhaps I'm just picky) Something about the last bit of action left me a little...unimpressed. HOWEVER, finishing a story like this does require something dramatic, and it was, overall, a fun read. I did stay up much too late reading it, so I suppose that says enough.
So, if you like stories told from the kids' POV (which I do) monster stories (which I do) or anything from post WWII Britain (which I do) Or if you just like playing Slenderman, then I'd say, read the poem and then give this a go.
