The Prayer

by Violet Hunt

This early work by Violet Hunt was originally published in the early 20th century and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. 'The Prayer' is a short story by the author of 'A Hard Woman'. Isobel Violet Hunt was born on 28th September 1862 in Durham, England. Hunt covered several literary forms, including short stories, novels, memoirs, and biographies. Her first published work was her novel 'The Maiden's Progress' (1894) which fell into the New Woman genre and represented her ideals as an active feminist. These political views led to her founding the Women Writer's Suffrage League in 1908. Feminism however, was by no means her only subject matter, with works like 'Tales of the Uneasy' (1911) being a collection of supernatural fiction short stories. Although Hunt produced many works, her reputation is as much for the literary salons she held at her home in Campden Hill as it is for her writing. She would entertain guests such as Rebecca West, Ezra Pound, Joseph Conrad, D. H. Lawrence, and other important writers of the time.

Genres: Short Stories, Mystery, Horror, Classics

54 pages, Paperback

Published June 3, 2014

About the author

Isobel Violet Hunt was a British author and literary hostess. She was an active feminist. She covered several literary forms, including short stories, novels, memoirs, and biographies.

Reviews

[Lucas Tunes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Até agora o melhor conto que li na antologia Vitorianas Macabras. Muito carregado emocionalmente e também o mais maduro. Divido em 4 partes me pareceu um salto na qualidade da escrita, com elipses muito bem colocadas e cada cena mais envolvente que a anterior. É mais uma tragédia do que uma história de terror propriamente dita. Além disso é o primeiro com uma protagonista feminina e isso fez toda a diferença para mim. Eu não estava esperando tantos protagonistas masculinos numa antologia de escritoras mulheres. Espero ver mais protagonistas femininas nos próximos.

[Shuggy L. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Depicts upper class, married life in the 19th century - London, UK. Describes how Alice and Edward Arne's relationship changes for the worse during an illness. Weirdly, Edward seems to have been brought back from the dead.

Religious themes reflect metaphysical issues that are still around today: "You blurt out your blessed petition to your Deity and the idea that you're irrelevant never enters you head, soft, persistent, High Church thing that you are..."

See for instance: The Extraordinary Life of Samuel Hill (Robert Dugoni) where the mother petitions religious help and says her prayers using rosary beads (novena): "Maybe it's God's will, ... I no longer believed in God's will."

Also see Charlotte Bronte (Gaskell's LCB) speaking from the same religious tradition:

"We saw her taken from life in its prime. But it is God's will, and the place where she is gone is better than that she has left".

Victorian Ghost Stories - Edited by Richard Dalby

[Benjamin Stahl · Rating 3 out of 5]

A grieving widow prays for her husband to return from death, only, predictably, to regret it. Some nice foreshadowing glimpses of later horror such as the Stephen King classic, ‘Pet Sematary’, and also a couple of fun twists.

[Anne Bollmann (Annelise Lestrange) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite its terrific premise and beginning, the story was a little all over the place regarding its narrative style and the end was too open to scare or surprise.

[Barbi Berenyi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the gothic elements, but I think it could have been more elaborated at some parts.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐

AKA: The Story of a Ghost