Crow Hollow

by Dorothy Eden

Vintage paperback

Genres: Gothic, Mystery, Romantic Suspense, Fiction, Romance, Horror, Suspense

191 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1950

About the author

Aka Mary Paradise.

Dorothy Eden was born in 1912 in New Zealand and died in 1982. She moved to England in 1954 after taking a trip around the world and falling in love with the country. She was best known for her many mystery and romance books as well as short stories that were published in periodicals. As a novelist, Dorothy Eden was renowned for her ability to create fear and suspense. This earned her many devoted readers throughout her lifetime.

Reviews

[Dorcas · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you enjoy Victoria Holt you'll really like this. If you're someone like me who has possibly overindulged in gothics and can smell a red herring a mile away, you'll find this a pleasant albeit predictable read.

In a nutshell, a young woman marries the man of her dreams who she has known less than a week and he takes her away to his ancestral home, Crow Hollow.

There, his three peculiar aunts rule the roost as well as their beautiful pampered servant girl/ companion, Willow.

After several attempts on the heroine's life she must decide whether she leaves Crow Hollow to save herself or stand by her man...

Pleasant way to spend a few hours, nothing to tax the brain cells.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is my second trip with Dorothy Eden. So far, I'm not impressed. There were a few good gothic elements, but the heroine was too wishy washy for my tastes and the ending was anti climatic. Might be a while before I head back down one of Ms. Eden's mist shrouded manors.

[Keri Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wild read! Newly married Lois has to navigate three eccentric aunts, one oddly unsettling servant girl, and one of the worst husbands ever in this 1950 gothic romance novel.

Although, taking Rodney the terrible husband into account, it’s really more of a mystery with gothic undertones - romance is nowhere to be found for the modern reader. It boggles the mind just how many times Rodney doesn’t take his wife’s perfectly legitimate concerns seriously. Everyone else is constantly dismissing her, too. Get ready for the most gaslighting you’ve ever seen in a book if you take the plunge and read this! While the gaslighting was incredibly aggravating, I have to admit that it did add to the peril of the book, and kept my eyes glued to the page to find out what awful thing would happen next.

The three aunts as well as Willow, the servant girl, are undoubtedly the best part of the book. These characters in particular feel a little like something out of Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle, or The Sundial. But because Crow Hollow was published in 1950, it actually predates those Jackson books. The characters aren’t as fully developed as something Jackson would come up with, but still, I think fans of hers looking for a fun, non serious read might enjoy this book.

Dorothy Eden is definitely the best gothic romance author I’ve found when it comes to pure entertainment factor. I’ve yet to be disappointed by her!

[Bobbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really entertaining gothic mystery, however I will admit that I guessed the murderer fairly early in the book, as well as the motive. It still was a good book with many twists and turns.

[snowy the penguin princess · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first time reading a gothic mystery novel and it did not disappoint! I don’t read “whodunits” and books like this, but after watching the 1952 movie of the same name (which was PG), I just had to read the book! For the most part, the movie was honest to the book, but of course, the book has more context and detail. It’s pretty mild but still spooky given the nature of the plot. It was a good book but it’s time for me to return to my normal programming! 😅

[Adrian Griffiths · Rating 2 out of 5]

In this gothic, our young heroine Lois gets married to a man after meeting him twice, and goes to live in his huge mansion with grumpy servants, stern grandfather and three aunts. Soon, someone is trying to kill her.

This is a fairly standard gothic. There are the usual silly mechanics: the husband is a doctor, so he is constantly disappearing for days on end due to emergencies and sick babies in the village, leaving Lois alone to be menaced. The husband is a very bland character but the three eccentric aunts are fun. There is only a slight mystery to uncover, but at least it's easy to read.

[Swathi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book from a roadside vendor selling old and used books(pune,india) for peanuts. I had never heard of the author before. This is my favorite book of Dorothy Eden . I must have read this book a million times throughout the years. I keep going back to this one when i am bored and there is nothing else to read. The novel is suspenseful and the atmosphere sinister. The characters are all very intriguing especially the 3 aunts each unique and one of them may be a murderer.! I am eagerly waiting for the kindle edition

[Macey Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. The aunts that live in the old eerie house are very interesting characters. The spookiness in this one to me is more on the cozy side, even though there are darker moments. I always love how in their own head Dorothy Eden's main characters are, and it's one of the reasons I love her books, but I think this one beat that theme over our heads a little too much, and wanted the main character to be a tad more subtle in that department. This is why I gave 4 stars instead of 5. I think it's well worth the read, though, for any Dorothy Eden fans out there!

[Dramatica Darmody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started out a bit dull, but got rather engrossing by the end.
(Thank goodness Cass showed up, it was getting aggravating for awhile there, though!)
I figured some secrets out myself, but it was rather well done and not completely obvious IMHO "whodunnit".
Good as a mystery, but no romance to speak of.

[Carrie Dalby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suspenseful, engaging. Eden always does a wide mix of characters.

[Jon FK · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Stunning" is a strong word. And this book does not reach Macabre status at all. Saying that it's amazingly mediocre is an overstatement even for 1950.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book had an hour intriguing ending.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gothic.

[Emily Kestrel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Silly but fun. It turned out to be more of a clever mystery than a typical gothic.