What do you think?
Rate this book
The cure
This historical novel is based on a true story - the trial of Martin Cleary for the murder of his wife, Bridget in 1895. His defence was that he was attempting to exorcise a fairy possession first by gentle means and finally by fire. She died during the latter part of this process.
305 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1994
1 person is currently reading
92 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 23, 2023
http://www.hyperebaaktiivne.ee/2023/1...
Carlo Gébler "Ravi" jutustab õudse loo, kuidas külmetushaigus võib viia tuleriidale. Raamat põhineb päriselt aset leidnud kuriteol, mille eest mõisteti süüdi 9(!) inimest.
19. sajand, Ballyvadlea, Iirimaa. Michael Cleary usub vanadesse kommetesse, sest kui ta veel väike poiss oli, soovis ta vihahoos emast lahti saada ja too kaduski mitmeks päevaks, väites naastes, et oli haldjate manu. Kui Michaeli abikaasa Bridget ei jää ega jää lapseootele, tuleb mõistagi abi otsida iidsetest tavadest. Isegi kui need alt veavad, pöördub mees arsti asemel taas rahva rohtude poole, kui naine peale kolme nädalat tõvevoodis mingeid paranemise märke ei ilmuta. Kui ravi ei toimi, hakkab ta kahtlustama, kas on ehk kaval haldjas naise asemele asunud. Sellisel juhul aitab ainult tuli.
Sarnaselt Graeme Macrae Burnetile kasutab ka Carlo Gébler võtet, et jutustus on teise jutustuse sees. Sissejuhatuseks leiab peategelane loo, antud juhul oma isa märkmikud, kes need omakorda sai kuritööd uurinud politseinikult. Raamjutustus kannab mõtet, kuidas Iirimaa on viimaks piisavalt küps, et kodanikel pead segi ajavad haldjad ei määri tema mainet.
Kui sa oled kuulnud Michael Clearyst ja Iirimaa viimasest nõiapõletamisest, siis tead täpselt, millest "Ravi" räägib. Kui sa oled nagu mina ja see lugu ei ole varem sinu kõrvu kostnud, siis pane end valmis üheks õõvastavaks jutustuseks. Romaan annab endast kõik, et avada tausta ja anda sündmuste käigule loogiline seletus, aga mitte miski ei valmista lahti minevaks põrguks ette. Aeg ja uskumused on sootuks teistsugused ning ma ei saagi sajaprotsendiliselt mõista, aga kuidas see võimalik oli, mida kambakesi ühe vaese naisega tehti, lihtsalt KUIDAS?!? Okei, mees tapab naise ära, ikka juhtub, aga kuidas pöördub majatäis inimesi hetkega ligimese vastu!?! Mu aju ei võtnud seletusi vastu ja otsis paaniliselt uusi.
Hinnata on seda raamatut jube raske, kuna šokk matab kõik tunded. Samamoodi ei oska ma öelda, kas soovitaksin lugeda või mitte. Lool võiks nagu olla õpetlik väärtus, aga toimunu juures oli kõik nii vale, et ei oskagi kuskilt kinni hakata. Muidugi hoiatab romaan selle ekstreemse näite varal alternatiivmeditsiini ohtude eest, aga minu jaoks tugevaim sõnum oli ehk see, et lastele ei tohi valetada.
Aitäh, kirjastus Argo, raamatu eest!
Carlo Gébler "Ravi" jutustab õudse loo, kuidas külmetushaigus võib viia tuleriidale. Raamat põhineb päriselt aset leidnud kuriteol, mille eest mõisteti süüdi 9(!) inimest.
19. sajand, Ballyvadlea, Iirimaa. Michael Cleary usub vanadesse kommetesse, sest kui ta veel väike poiss oli, soovis ta vihahoos emast lahti saada ja too kaduski mitmeks päevaks, väites naastes, et oli haldjate manu. Kui Michaeli abikaasa Bridget ei jää ega jää lapseootele, tuleb mõistagi abi otsida iidsetest tavadest. Isegi kui need alt veavad, pöördub mees arsti asemel taas rahva rohtude poole, kui naine peale kolme nädalat tõvevoodis mingeid paranemise märke ei ilmuta. Kui ravi ei toimi, hakkab ta kahtlustama, kas on ehk kaval haldjas naise asemele asunud. Sellisel juhul aitab ainult tuli.
Sarnaselt Graeme Macrae Burnetile kasutab ka Carlo Gébler võtet, et jutustus on teise jutustuse sees. Sissejuhatuseks leiab peategelane loo, antud juhul oma isa märkmikud, kes need omakorda sai kuritööd uurinud politseinikult. Raamjutustus kannab mõtet, kuidas Iirimaa on viimaks piisavalt küps, et kodanikel pead segi ajavad haldjad ei määri tema mainet.
Kui sa oled kuulnud Michael Clearyst ja Iirimaa viimasest nõiapõletamisest, siis tead täpselt, millest "Ravi" räägib. Kui sa oled nagu mina ja see lugu ei ole varem sinu kõrvu kostnud, siis pane end valmis üheks õõvastavaks jutustuseks. Romaan annab endast kõik, et avada tausta ja anda sündmuste käigule loogiline seletus, aga mitte miski ei valmista lahti minevaks põrguks ette. Aeg ja uskumused on sootuks teistsugused ning ma ei saagi sajaprotsendiliselt mõista, aga kuidas see võimalik oli, mida kambakesi ühe vaese naisega tehti, lihtsalt KUIDAS?!? Okei, mees tapab naise ära, ikka juhtub, aga kuidas pöördub majatäis inimesi hetkega ligimese vastu!?! Mu aju ei võtnud seletusi vastu ja otsis paaniliselt uusi.
Hinnata on seda raamatut jube raske, kuna šokk matab kõik tunded. Samamoodi ei oska ma öelda, kas soovitaksin lugeda või mitte. Lool võiks nagu olla õpetlik väärtus, aga toimunu juures oli kõik nii vale, et ei oskagi kuskilt kinni hakata. Muidugi hoiatab romaan selle ekstreemse näite varal alternatiivmeditsiini ohtude eest, aga minu jaoks tugevaim sõnum oli ehk see, et lastele ei tohi valetada.
Aitäh, kirjastus Argo, raamatu eest!
January 24, 2019
This story is widely known. This retelling is particularly haunting though.
June 27, 2024
i can’t blame the lengthy time it took me to finish this book on the writing- my reading slump actually had nothing to do with this book more so on persephone station and starting work full time. each time i picked this book up i was drawn in. i love the story. we follow a man who discovered letters that had been lost upon his fathers death. the son (left behind but not in mourning) sets out to finish the novel that his dad started.
immediately we are placed into a memory that ends up becoming the meat of the book. the story of a couple living in the irish countryside surrounded by friends and family but the superstitious nature of the husband michael eventually brings the demise of everyone the couple ever knew- including the wife (most importantly the wife)
the characters are very different from each other. each other carrying their own distinct voice. for instance i knew that joanna was a woman who had been told her whole life to submit to the whims of men, she has found solace however with her husband and he treats her well. unlike her cousin brigette who (though she loves her husband) is ignored by her husband, he doesn’t have any patience or respect for her when it comes to making decisions. nrigette seems fine with this. she is happy to be married and wants more than anything a baby. even going to unconventional lengths to get it.
the women are the central focus of the book (despite the men being the main characters i don’t think they’re the FOCUS) it feels like a lot is being said about a woman’s place in the home, in marriage, and what “through sickness and health” means to the superstitious lol.
it was hard to read in some parts (not because of bad writing but because of how desperately i wanted michael to be right. i wanted brigette to return to him because the alternative was so much worse. dying at the hands of the man you love the most while trying to convince him and everyone else (including your beloved cousin) that you are innocent. that you’re just sick. and no one believing you.
unfortunately women have died for less at the hands of their husbands. it’s interesting though because i feel like this is a feminist book unintentionally but it definitely reads to me as one. joanna’s act of confessing to the police what her brother in law has done was a rebellious act that allowed justice (in a small quantity- but still justice) for her cousin. which i think is very special.
once we return back to the grieving son he says something that i actually quite like, it gave me lots to think about and i think will stick with me going forward. “it’s because of what happened to an author that a book is written, not the social circumstances. all fiction is autobiography.”
i think it’s a little bit of both. the environment an author finds themselves in and also the social circumstances. the son reveals that his father didn’t publish his notes on the story because he felt no one would want to hear it and he died without it ever going to print. the son felt as though he had to finish the story- do right by a dad who didn’t do right by him. and so he print it. and now i get to read it. the ultimate message of the book is: there is evil in this world, and the evil could be right on your doorstep (inside) whether orchestrated by fairies or not, the evil will persist. i think that michael had many opportunities to come out the other end scoot free. but he continued to listen only to himself and see only what he saw- so i don’t feel bad for him. even though i wanted him to be right so badly, but men like this rarely ever are. they take everyone down with them though.
immediately we are placed into a memory that ends up becoming the meat of the book. the story of a couple living in the irish countryside surrounded by friends and family but the superstitious nature of the husband michael eventually brings the demise of everyone the couple ever knew- including the wife (most importantly the wife)
the characters are very different from each other. each other carrying their own distinct voice. for instance i knew that joanna was a woman who had been told her whole life to submit to the whims of men, she has found solace however with her husband and he treats her well. unlike her cousin brigette who (though she loves her husband) is ignored by her husband, he doesn’t have any patience or respect for her when it comes to making decisions. nrigette seems fine with this. she is happy to be married and wants more than anything a baby. even going to unconventional lengths to get it.
the women are the central focus of the book (despite the men being the main characters i don’t think they’re the FOCUS) it feels like a lot is being said about a woman’s place in the home, in marriage, and what “through sickness and health” means to the superstitious lol.
it was hard to read in some parts (not because of bad writing but because of how desperately i wanted michael to be right. i wanted brigette to return to him because the alternative was so much worse. dying at the hands of the man you love the most while trying to convince him and everyone else (including your beloved cousin) that you are innocent. that you’re just sick. and no one believing you.
unfortunately women have died for less at the hands of their husbands. it’s interesting though because i feel like this is a feminist book unintentionally but it definitely reads to me as one. joanna’s act of confessing to the police what her brother in law has done was a rebellious act that allowed justice (in a small quantity- but still justice) for her cousin. which i think is very special.
once we return back to the grieving son he says something that i actually quite like, it gave me lots to think about and i think will stick with me going forward. “it’s because of what happened to an author that a book is written, not the social circumstances. all fiction is autobiography.”
i think it’s a little bit of both. the environment an author finds themselves in and also the social circumstances. the son reveals that his father didn’t publish his notes on the story because he felt no one would want to hear it and he died without it ever going to print. the son felt as though he had to finish the story- do right by a dad who didn’t do right by him. and so he print it. and now i get to read it. the ultimate message of the book is: there is evil in this world, and the evil could be right on your doorstep (inside) whether orchestrated by fairies or not, the evil will persist. i think that michael had many opportunities to come out the other end scoot free. but he continued to listen only to himself and see only what he saw- so i don’t feel bad for him. even though i wanted him to be right so badly, but men like this rarely ever are. they take everyone down with them though.
August 13, 2024
Täiesti uskumatu kui tõsiselt võtsid iirlased tegelikult haldjaid, ebatavalist ravivõimeid ja uskumisse muudesse jõududesse. Antud lugu põhineb tõsielul põhinevatel sündmustel, kus abikaasa põletas ja tappis ära oma naise, sest uskus, et tema keha on üle võetud ebaloomulike jõudude poolt. Iirlastel on üldse uskumised väga tugevad, igas avalikus metsas või pargis võib näha haldjate "küla" või mõnd pisikest ust, kus müütilised olendid elavad. Nüüd on see lastele muidugi väga põnev, aga vanal ajal koheldi neid uskumusi ikka nii tõsiselt, seda kardeti nagu vanakuradit ennast.
Raamatu kirjapilt tundus minu jaoks nii nagu justkui olekski raamat kirja saanud vähemalt 100 aastat tagasi, iseenesest teema oli põnev, isegi karm kui mõelda mis see mees oma naisega kõike korda saatis.
Raamatu kirjapilt tundus minu jaoks nii nagu justkui olekski raamat kirja saanud vähemalt 100 aastat tagasi, iseenesest teema oli põnev, isegi karm kui mõelda mis see mees oma naisega kõike korda saatis.
September 2, 2023
SJC Review: 5.01
This dark disturbing historical novel offers the haunting tale of Michael Cleary, a man whose deluded belief in the lore of fairies, leads him to be convinced that his own wife is a doppelganger. Gebler uses multiple narrators to evince the building tension, and to brilliantly reflect the superstitions, misguided loyalties, and fear of reprisals, which govern the actions and inaction of those who participate in or witness the inhuman treatment of poor Bridget Cleary.
This is a novel deserving of far greater readership.
This dark disturbing historical novel offers the haunting tale of Michael Cleary, a man whose deluded belief in the lore of fairies, leads him to be convinced that his own wife is a doppelganger. Gebler uses multiple narrators to evince the building tension, and to brilliantly reflect the superstitions, misguided loyalties, and fear of reprisals, which govern the actions and inaction of those who participate in or witness the inhuman treatment of poor Bridget Cleary.
This is a novel deserving of far greater readership.
July 26, 2015
Those with an interest in history, fairy mythology and mystery will enjoy this book, an imagining of the case of Bridget Cleary in Ireland in the late 19th Century. Suspenseful and displaying the darker side of belief and fanatical thoughts.
My only irk is that I did not see the reason for the opening chapters as they did nothing for the story but add pointless (in the sense of the book) information about the author.
My only irk is that I did not see the reason for the opening chapters as they did nothing for the story but add pointless (in the sense of the book) information about the author.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews