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The Servants
Paperback. Pub Date :2009-02-05 240 English HarperCollins UK childhood. the pain of loss and the power of imagination.It will charm and haunt its readers in equal measure.Eleven-year-old Mark is bored.He spends his days on the Brighton sea-front. practicing on his skate-board.His mother is too ill to leave the house. and his stepfather is determined that Mark shouldn't disturb her.So when the old lady who lives in the flat downstairs introduces him to rock cakes and offers to show him a secret. he's happy to indulge her.The old lady takes a large. old-fashioned key and leads Mark down a dusty corridor to a heavy door.Beyond the door is a world completely alien to Mark's understanding.For behind the old lady's tiny apartment. the house's original servants' quarters are still entirely intact. although derelict.Mark finds himself strangely drawn to t...
233 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2007
16 people are currently reading
581 people want to read
About the author
Michael Marshall Smith
253 books1,057 followersMichael Marshall (Smith) is a bestselling novelist and screenwriter. His first novel, ONLY FORWARD, won the August Derleth and Philip K. Dick awards. SPARES and ONE OF US were optioned for film by DreamWorks and Warner Brothers, and the Straw Men trilogy - THE STRAW MEN, THE LONELY DEAD and BLOOD OF ANGELS - were international bestsellers. His most recent novels are THE INTRUDERS, BAD THINGS and KILLER MOVE.
He is a four-time winner of the BFS Award for short fiction, and his stories are collected in two volumes - WHAT YOU MAKE IT and MORE TOMORROW AND OTHER STORIES (which won the International Horror Guild Award).
He lives in Santa Cruz, California with his wife and son.
He is a four-time winner of the BFS Award for short fiction, and his stories are collected in two volumes - WHAT YOU MAKE IT and MORE TOMORROW AND OTHER STORIES (which won the International Horror Guild Award).
He lives in Santa Cruz, California with his wife and son.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 132 reviews
December 21, 2016
In this coming of age tale, Mark is 11, unhappy about being moved from London to Brighton when his sick mother and stepfather, David, relocate there. He fears that David is not doing the right thing for the mom, and Mom always seems too tired to go out or do anything other than sit in bed or on a couch and look pale. Mark is trying to improve his skateboarding skills, but does not connect much with the local kids, who are much better at it than he is. One day, after blowing up at David, Mark escapes the house and happens across the old lady who lives in the basement. She invites him in for tea and cake. The small space in which she lives has a large, mysterious door that catches Mark’s interest. The old lady shows him what lies beyond, an expansive space an entire floor where the servants used to live back in the day. It is dirty and spooky. On another visit, when the old lady falls asleep Mark steals past the door and finds that there is more to the space than dirt. The inhabitants of the past reappear and Mark finds himself in another era. What does this all mean?
The rising dirt in the basement stands in for his mother’s advancing cancer, and ultimately, Mark taking some responsibility in the lower reaches, he plays a role in cleaning up the mess, participating, leading, and thus growing. Mom begins to get better. Surprise, surprise.
Mark had held on to ideal notions of what his father had been, but ultimately allows the truth of that to enter his consciousness as well. And he finds that David is not the monster he imagined him to be.
There is also a theme here about the past being always with us, the ghostly servants in the basement, the rotting pier, and ultimately, the friendship of David for Mark’s mother, from a time before Mark.
The book was an amazingly fast read, and was enjoyable, but it seemed a bit too obvious in a way, and I found that even though I did not get all the notions that were at play, I did not care enough to spend much thought on them. So, it is recommended, slightly.
The rising dirt in the basement stands in for his mother’s advancing cancer, and ultimately, Mark taking some responsibility in the lower reaches, he plays a role in cleaning up the mess, participating, leading, and thus growing. Mom begins to get better. Surprise, surprise.
Mark had held on to ideal notions of what his father had been, but ultimately allows the truth of that to enter his consciousness as well. And he finds that David is not the monster he imagined him to be.
There is also a theme here about the past being always with us, the ghostly servants in the basement, the rotting pier, and ultimately, the friendship of David for Mark’s mother, from a time before Mark.
The book was an amazingly fast read, and was enjoyable, but it seemed a bit too obvious in a way, and I found that even though I did not get all the notions that were at play, I did not care enough to spend much thought on them. So, it is recommended, slightly.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 11, 2017
A spellbinding, creepy novella, The Servants is chilling, but at the same time is grounded in the ordinariness of everyday life.
An 11 year old boy is transferred from his London home to Brighton by his mom and new stepdad and can't understand or reason out why his mom and dad are not together and he resents his new father.
His mom is also very ill and even this doesn't puncture his self-pity until the end of the story.
He is lonely and spends his days roaming the beach in the cold, rainy off-season and practices on his skateboard, the last gift he was given by his father.
Things don't change until he meets the intelligent, vibrant old lady who lives in the basement flat of their new house. She's odd, but interesting and tells him about the history of Brighton and their house; how it used to be jumping with activity and servants who lived below stairs and kept the house and its inhabitants alive. He steals the key from the old lady that goes to the servant's quarters and explores these basement rooms on his own. Surprising events ensue.
An 11 year old boy is transferred from his London home to Brighton by his mom and new stepdad and can't understand or reason out why his mom and dad are not together and he resents his new father.
His mom is also very ill and even this doesn't puncture his self-pity until the end of the story.
He is lonely and spends his days roaming the beach in the cold, rainy off-season and practices on his skateboard, the last gift he was given by his father.
Things don't change until he meets the intelligent, vibrant old lady who lives in the basement flat of their new house. She's odd, but interesting and tells him about the history of Brighton and their house; how it used to be jumping with activity and servants who lived below stairs and kept the house and its inhabitants alive. He steals the key from the old lady that goes to the servant's quarters and explores these basement rooms on his own. Surprising events ensue.
October 9, 2023
3.5 stars rounded down. Mark is eleven and has moved to Brighton with his mum and stepfather. His mum isn’t well and Mark can’t stand his stepfather, who never seems to let him get near his mum. Mark lives a lonely life. Then he befriends an old lady in the basement flat below.
When he spends time in her flat he starts to see and hear unusual things. Sounds and memories from a different time. Meanwhile his mum upstairs is becoming more and more poorly.
A lovely ghostly spooky concept. The character of Mark was great, I really warmed to him and his story drew me in. I also loved the dynamics of the character development between him and his step dad; it had finesse and understanding, their relationship was a slow one to develop.
The supernatural side of the story was also fascinating, I could easily imagine this happening in large old Victorian houses. The reason I didn’t give it a higher rating was only because the plot seemed just a little too simple, and not that scary.
When he spends time in her flat he starts to see and hear unusual things. Sounds and memories from a different time. Meanwhile his mum upstairs is becoming more and more poorly.
A lovely ghostly spooky concept. The character of Mark was great, I really warmed to him and his story drew me in. I also loved the dynamics of the character development between him and his step dad; it had finesse and understanding, their relationship was a slow one to develop.
The supernatural side of the story was also fascinating, I could easily imagine this happening in large old Victorian houses. The reason I didn’t give it a higher rating was only because the plot seemed just a little too simple, and not that scary.
July 9, 2020
What a great story, very surprised to find myself tearing up as I turned the last page of this. I know many reviewers have drawn comparisons with "Tom's Midnight Garden" but to me it seems to be deeper than that (don't get me wrong, I LOVE "Tom's Midnight Garden" but think authors should be allowed to create a story with similar elements). You can take this as a simple ghost story, or uncover a lower layer that points to it being about the pains of growing up and feeling out of place, and it takes on an even more poignant tone.
Mark has recently moved to Brighton with his mother Yvonne and his new stepfather David. Mark can't stand David, believes he is out to get him and that he wants to take over his mother's life. His mother is dangerously ill and therefore can do little except sleep all day and doesn't seem capable of standing up for Mark in anyway, therefore Mark chooses to go out to the pier to skateboard hour after hour, day after day. I think most of us who have divorced parents can relate to a new person coming into our parent's lives and seemingly 'taking over' the situation - especially if we are at an impressionable age (Mark is 11).
One gloomy afternoon however, he becomes acquainted with the elderly woman who lives in the flat below Mark and is soon going there regularly to sit in her cosy living room to drink tea and eat rock cakes. What Mark discovers however, is that this woman has a special key that unlocks the dirty, seemingly unlived in servant's quarters at the back of the building, and what Mark uncovers there will change his life forever. I did find myself getting goosebumps numerous times whilst reading this, but I wasn't ever outright terrified - if anything it was quite a moving, haunting story, and sometimes those stay with you a lot longer than your average horror.
Mark has recently moved to Brighton with his mother Yvonne and his new stepfather David. Mark can't stand David, believes he is out to get him and that he wants to take over his mother's life. His mother is dangerously ill and therefore can do little except sleep all day and doesn't seem capable of standing up for Mark in anyway, therefore Mark chooses to go out to the pier to skateboard hour after hour, day after day. I think most of us who have divorced parents can relate to a new person coming into our parent's lives and seemingly 'taking over' the situation - especially if we are at an impressionable age (Mark is 11).
One gloomy afternoon however, he becomes acquainted with the elderly woman who lives in the flat below Mark and is soon going there regularly to sit in her cosy living room to drink tea and eat rock cakes. What Mark discovers however, is that this woman has a special key that unlocks the dirty, seemingly unlived in servant's quarters at the back of the building, and what Mark uncovers there will change his life forever. I did find myself getting goosebumps numerous times whilst reading this, but I wasn't ever outright terrified - if anything it was quite a moving, haunting story, and sometimes those stay with you a lot longer than your average horror.
July 21, 2008
An ultimately cutesy story but emotionally very immature. Some might say that's because the main character is 11; I won't allow the author to hide underdeveloped characters behind such a lame excuse. This book might work for young adult readers, but it is not a satisfying novel for adults.
The story centers on 11-year-old boy Mark, who has just moved from London to Brighton with his very ill mother and his new stepfather. Mark is having difficulty accepting the limitations of his mother's illness, and he hates his new stepfather (David) for getting the way and trying to ruin Mark's life. OK, fine.
One day, Mark meets his downstairs neighbor, who lives in their house's basement apartment and has lived there for, apparently, a very long time. The downstairs, we learn, are what used to be the servants' quarters, and as Mark begins to venture behind a locked door in the old lady's apartment, he begins to interact with the long-gone former servants of the house.
This then turns into a coming-of-age story that, as I already said, lacked the real emotion and character development that I would have liked to have seen. The servants (be they ghosts or whatever) have earned themselves the title role but figure pretty minimally into the meat of the story. They are more important as a key role in running the house, which quickly becomes a trite metaphor for the deteriorating health of Mark's mother.
Mark's own emotional development is given its own weak metaphor. Mark enjoys skateboarding, and his improvement on the board too obviously mirrors his supposed growth as a person. Alas, these easy metaphors take the place of any real exploration of emotional growth.
In the end, everything is wrapped up to easily and too neatly to leave a reader satisfied as to its plausibility. Indeed, utter chaos turns to content calm within the span of the final five pages of the book. And there is so much left unanswered and unaddressed: Mark's difficult relationship with his real father is pointed at but left unresolved; Mark's mother is a central figure but never even given any character by the author; and we never find out who on earth the old lady downstairs is or why she's there.
So, the book is ok: it's short and kept me reading to the throw-away ending. But it's less than satisfactory for so many reasons, more than any that it is a coming-of-age story that is weak on the very development of character that must define those stories.
The story centers on 11-year-old boy Mark, who has just moved from London to Brighton with his very ill mother and his new stepfather. Mark is having difficulty accepting the limitations of his mother's illness, and he hates his new stepfather (David) for getting the way and trying to ruin Mark's life. OK, fine.
One day, Mark meets his downstairs neighbor, who lives in their house's basement apartment and has lived there for, apparently, a very long time. The downstairs, we learn, are what used to be the servants' quarters, and as Mark begins to venture behind a locked door in the old lady's apartment, he begins to interact with the long-gone former servants of the house.
This then turns into a coming-of-age story that, as I already said, lacked the real emotion and character development that I would have liked to have seen. The servants (be they ghosts or whatever) have earned themselves the title role but figure pretty minimally into the meat of the story. They are more important as a key role in running the house, which quickly becomes a trite metaphor for the deteriorating health of Mark's mother.
Mark's own emotional development is given its own weak metaphor. Mark enjoys skateboarding, and his improvement on the board too obviously mirrors his supposed growth as a person. Alas, these easy metaphors take the place of any real exploration of emotional growth.
In the end, everything is wrapped up to easily and too neatly to leave a reader satisfied as to its plausibility. Indeed, utter chaos turns to content calm within the span of the final five pages of the book. And there is so much left unanswered and unaddressed: Mark's difficult relationship with his real father is pointed at but left unresolved; Mark's mother is a central figure but never even given any character by the author; and we never find out who on earth the old lady downstairs is or why she's there.
So, the book is ok: it's short and kept me reading to the throw-away ending. But it's less than satisfactory for so many reasons, more than any that it is a coming-of-age story that is weak on the very development of character that must define those stories.
May 19, 2015
The Servants by M. M. Smith is a rather different offering from the author's previous books as Michael Marshall and Michael Marshall Smith.
It has the same core premise as Only Forward and Spares (and to some extent One of Us), of a solidified subconscious realm where the protagonist's psychological issues are worked out through surreally allusive imagery. Unlike those stories, however (and even despite the fact that it's set in Brighton, like certain key scenes in Only Forward), it's a tighter, more disciplined work. It eschews the genre-bending, heavily cyberpunctuated S.F. setting of those books for a mundane, though compelling, narrative of difficult family dynamics seen through the eyes of a painfully alienated present-day eleven-year-old.
If it wasn't quite so dark, and so demanding of emotional maturity from its readers, this could even be a "Young Adult" book. As it is, it seems to have most often been described as a ghost story. It's not, or not really -- there's no sense that the titular servants (who are sometimes to be found hard at work in the otherwise empty and long-abandoned basement area of Mark's stepfather's Brighton-seafront house) are the surviving spirits of the dead. Rather, they're a function either of Mark's subconscious or of the house itself -- or, this being a work of symbolism, of both. The Servants places us firmly inside Mark's head, and forces us for much of the time to see his well-meaning though sorely tried stepfather as the monster Mark needs to believe he is. The reconciliation between them, desperately needed by Mark's sick mother, is achieved only through her son's under-stairs work experience with the eponymous nonexistent domestics.
Although I doubt more than a dozen other people on the internet have read the thing, the story reminded me of nothing so much as David "A Voyage to Arcturus" Lindsay's psychological fantasy The Haunted Woman, where a specific room in a house awakens the higher consciousnesses of otherwise mundane human beings, whose everyday selves are tragically incapable of retaining the enlightenment they receive there.
Peculiarly enough -- and I swear I'd forgotten this until this moment -- that book was also set partly in Brighton, and features a major character named Marshall.
The Servants is shorter than Smith's other books and more focussed, inspired by a humanistic (I might almost be tempted to say "christian") view of the value of vocation and of losing oneself in service to another. It's a very effective demonstration of his paradoxical versatility as a writer.
It has the same core premise as Only Forward and Spares (and to some extent One of Us), of a solidified subconscious realm where the protagonist's psychological issues are worked out through surreally allusive imagery. Unlike those stories, however (and even despite the fact that it's set in Brighton, like certain key scenes in Only Forward), it's a tighter, more disciplined work. It eschews the genre-bending, heavily cyberpunctuated S.F. setting of those books for a mundane, though compelling, narrative of difficult family dynamics seen through the eyes of a painfully alienated present-day eleven-year-old.
If it wasn't quite so dark, and so demanding of emotional maturity from its readers, this could even be a "Young Adult" book. As it is, it seems to have most often been described as a ghost story. It's not, or not really -- there's no sense that the titular servants (who are sometimes to be found hard at work in the otherwise empty and long-abandoned basement area of Mark's stepfather's Brighton-seafront house) are the surviving spirits of the dead. Rather, they're a function either of Mark's subconscious or of the house itself -- or, this being a work of symbolism, of both. The Servants places us firmly inside Mark's head, and forces us for much of the time to see his well-meaning though sorely tried stepfather as the monster Mark needs to believe he is. The reconciliation between them, desperately needed by Mark's sick mother, is achieved only through her son's under-stairs work experience with the eponymous nonexistent domestics.
Although I doubt more than a dozen other people on the internet have read the thing, the story reminded me of nothing so much as David "A Voyage to Arcturus" Lindsay's psychological fantasy The Haunted Woman, where a specific room in a house awakens the higher consciousnesses of otherwise mundane human beings, whose everyday selves are tragically incapable of retaining the enlightenment they receive there.
Peculiarly enough -- and I swear I'd forgotten this until this moment -- that book was also set partly in Brighton, and features a major character named Marshall.
The Servants is shorter than Smith's other books and more focussed, inspired by a humanistic (I might almost be tempted to say "christian") view of the value of vocation and of losing oneself in service to another. It's a very effective demonstration of his paradoxical versatility as a writer.
November 21, 2018
What a weird little book! I was uncannily reminded of Tom's Midnight Garden. Yes? No? I gave my mum the synopsis, and she just said, "Well, that's just like Tom's Midnight Garden, isn't it?"
Well, not quite. I got a few little messages out of this book (there may be a few SPOILERS ahead). Obviously, Mark's mother is a metaphor for the house, and the terrible conditions Below Stairs were a metaphor for her deteriorating health. I also thought that the message Mark comes to understand ('I am not the be-all and end-all of my Mother's existence, others have mattered to her before me') could resemble the coming and passing of servants who all do the same jobs - we come in and out of people's lives, thinking that, to an extent, they have only truly existed when WE knew them. But of course, they have existed just as fully before we were there, and they will continue to exist afterwards. A bit like houses.
Anyway, the book. It was an enjoyable read; the cliffhangers and suspense kept me gripped. I liked the timeless feel created by the old-fashioned cover and, in a way, the phrasing and 'feel' of the writing, which could have easily been compatible with a historical novel - juxtaposed by the modern time period of the book.
Mark is a likable, realistic character despite his bad behavior. I found David a little irratating, which could have been because of the way we saw him through Mark's eyes. The way Mark was infuriated by David wiping his hands on a little towel was, to me, completely understandable. Mark's life was also brain-numbingly boring, so to be honest, you can't blame him.
The time-travel aspect of this book was nice even though it felt completely unrealistic due to the fact that it was all a very obvious metaphor. I liked the way that, the first time Mark went back in time, it was a very, very slow fade between the present and the past. I really felt the tension and, because of the incredibly vague blurb, I had no idea what was about to happen.
The other metaphor I got from this book (I am entitled to my own interpretation, am I not?) was that maybe the House was a metaphor for Life (!!!). 'The Family' were never specified at all, not even in the very confusing period at the end of the book when Mark seemingly lived for years Below Stairs, Serving away. Perhaps within the whole Life metaphor, this could symbolise: Why do we live? Who do we live for? (Sorry if this all comes off as obnoxiously deep).
However, within this metaphor, I got a nice message from the section when Mark and the servants had managed to get the house to rights: they still had to keep serving, for ever. Or at least, someone did. Isn't life a bit like that? Even when we make it 'perfect', we still have to work to keep it that way. Even if politicians managed, at some point, to solve every problem all over the world, they would still have to keep working to keep it that way, wouldn't they? We can't ever say: "There. I've done every job I will ever need to do. I've finished! My life is perfect! Now I will never have to do anything ever again." Because we will always have to keep serving, preparing meal after meal for a Family Above Stairs who never stop feeling hungry.
Well, not quite. I got a few little messages out of this book (there may be a few SPOILERS ahead). Obviously, Mark's mother is a metaphor for the house, and the terrible conditions Below Stairs were a metaphor for her deteriorating health. I also thought that the message Mark comes to understand ('I am not the be-all and end-all of my Mother's existence, others have mattered to her before me') could resemble the coming and passing of servants who all do the same jobs - we come in and out of people's lives, thinking that, to an extent, they have only truly existed when WE knew them. But of course, they have existed just as fully before we were there, and they will continue to exist afterwards. A bit like houses.
Anyway, the book. It was an enjoyable read; the cliffhangers and suspense kept me gripped. I liked the timeless feel created by the old-fashioned cover and, in a way, the phrasing and 'feel' of the writing, which could have easily been compatible with a historical novel - juxtaposed by the modern time period of the book.
Mark is a likable, realistic character despite his bad behavior. I found David a little irratating, which could have been because of the way we saw him through Mark's eyes. The way Mark was infuriated by David wiping his hands on a little towel was, to me, completely understandable. Mark's life was also brain-numbingly boring, so to be honest, you can't blame him.
The time-travel aspect of this book was nice even though it felt completely unrealistic due to the fact that it was all a very obvious metaphor. I liked the way that, the first time Mark went back in time, it was a very, very slow fade between the present and the past. I really felt the tension and, because of the incredibly vague blurb, I had no idea what was about to happen.
The other metaphor I got from this book (I am entitled to my own interpretation, am I not?) was that maybe the House was a metaphor for Life (!!!). 'The Family' were never specified at all, not even in the very confusing period at the end of the book when Mark seemingly lived for years Below Stairs, Serving away. Perhaps within the whole Life metaphor, this could symbolise: Why do we live? Who do we live for? (Sorry if this all comes off as obnoxiously deep).
However, within this metaphor, I got a nice message from the section when Mark and the servants had managed to get the house to rights: they still had to keep serving, for ever. Or at least, someone did. Isn't life a bit like that? Even when we make it 'perfect', we still have to work to keep it that way. Even if politicians managed, at some point, to solve every problem all over the world, they would still have to keep working to keep it that way, wouldn't they? We can't ever say: "There. I've done every job I will ever need to do. I've finished! My life is perfect! Now I will never have to do anything ever again." Because we will always have to keep serving, preparing meal after meal for a Family Above Stairs who never stop feeling hungry.
December 14, 2017
I’m not sure what to make of The Servants, in the end. It sounds like it’s going to be creepy, but isn’t really. It feels like Tom’s Midnight Garden, except that it’s a bit more mature in some ways, and then again in other ways it isn’t. It doesn’t quite seem to all fit together right, producing a story that doesn’t seem to know what it is — one minute it’s deeply real, a boy’s experience of his mother’s sickness and his parents’ divorce. The next, it’s into the Midnight Garden type of fantasy, and in the end comes off as feeling too easy, almost wish fulfilment. I wasn’t sure who the book was really aimed at, either.
It’s not a long or difficult read, but I found it rather puzzling because the elements didn’t come together. I don’t really recommend it, partly because I’m not sure who I’d recommend it to. There’s some great atmospheric bits and description and glimpses into the head of a boy dealing with a stepfather and a mother’s critical illness… and yet.
Reviewed for The Bibliophibian.
It’s not a long or difficult read, but I found it rather puzzling because the elements didn’t come together. I don’t really recommend it, partly because I’m not sure who I’d recommend it to. There’s some great atmospheric bits and description and glimpses into the head of a boy dealing with a stepfather and a mother’s critical illness… and yet.
Reviewed for The Bibliophibian.
February 5, 2015
"If you live long enough, everything happens." (Servants, Prologue)
I finished Servants by M. M. Smith last night. It turned out to be one of those books I couldn't actually put down, which is a bit strange considering I usually dislike novels were the main character is a kid or a teenager. Stories were the main characters are kids are usually hard to write and hard to digest I think. But I put down all the other books I'm reading and read through this one fast. It was hard to put down.
I started reading it without knowing anything about it. The only thing I knew was that it was written by Mr. Smith, which in itself merits a read.
The last book I read with a young main character was Neil Gaiman's The Ocean at the End of the Lane. And I have mixed feelings about it. I started reading it, hated it and stopped reading it. Ran into the audiobook and finished it while running. And it stayed with me. In fact every time I run past the place I used to run while I listened to it I think of it. So something in it caught me - and it won me over a bit.
This novel however I liked from the start. The eleven year old Mark is going through hard times and through his eyes you get to know his mother and his stepfather David, who is anything but popular, and the strange old lady in the cellar. The story is heartbreaking, heartwarming and adventurous, all at the same time. It tackles a dark subject and Mr. Smith handles it with ease and such care.
It wasn't until just now that I looked the book up on the Internet that I realised it might be a Young Adult novel. I really don't like genre talk and YA always confuses me. Maybe because I'm young at heart? Lets hope it's that and not simple naiveté. Anyway - I don't really care in what shelf it falls in the bookstore. It's a good story, very well written - at times I found myself reading for the sake of the words and not just for the story and it's not often that happens - and despite the seemingly mellow pace of the story it was quite suspenseful.
The fact that the eleven year old Mark is the center of the story also provides the reader with additional depth. You slowly get to learn the truth behind the mother and the stepfather, and because the story is told through Marks eyes you get a narrow view on the other characters, which in itself makes you develop with Mark. The truth behind the strange things that are happening in the "house" may come first to Mark but when it comes to other characters the reader may have some advantage.
It's a heartwarming story, thrilling and captivating. Putting a YA stamp on it may limit it. I know nothing of YA novels or what speaks to young adults. I didn't like Harry Potter. But I know what I like and this is a very well written and a warm story.
I finished Servants by M. M. Smith last night. It turned out to be one of those books I couldn't actually put down, which is a bit strange considering I usually dislike novels were the main character is a kid or a teenager. Stories were the main characters are kids are usually hard to write and hard to digest I think. But I put down all the other books I'm reading and read through this one fast. It was hard to put down.
I started reading it without knowing anything about it. The only thing I knew was that it was written by Mr. Smith, which in itself merits a read.
The last book I read with a young main character was Neil Gaiman's The Ocean at the End of the Lane. And I have mixed feelings about it. I started reading it, hated it and stopped reading it. Ran into the audiobook and finished it while running. And it stayed with me. In fact every time I run past the place I used to run while I listened to it I think of it. So something in it caught me - and it won me over a bit.
This novel however I liked from the start. The eleven year old Mark is going through hard times and through his eyes you get to know his mother and his stepfather David, who is anything but popular, and the strange old lady in the cellar. The story is heartbreaking, heartwarming and adventurous, all at the same time. It tackles a dark subject and Mr. Smith handles it with ease and such care.
It wasn't until just now that I looked the book up on the Internet that I realised it might be a Young Adult novel. I really don't like genre talk and YA always confuses me. Maybe because I'm young at heart? Lets hope it's that and not simple naiveté. Anyway - I don't really care in what shelf it falls in the bookstore. It's a good story, very well written - at times I found myself reading for the sake of the words and not just for the story and it's not often that happens - and despite the seemingly mellow pace of the story it was quite suspenseful.
The fact that the eleven year old Mark is the center of the story also provides the reader with additional depth. You slowly get to learn the truth behind the mother and the stepfather, and because the story is told through Marks eyes you get a narrow view on the other characters, which in itself makes you develop with Mark. The truth behind the strange things that are happening in the "house" may come first to Mark but when it comes to other characters the reader may have some advantage.
It's a heartwarming story, thrilling and captivating. Putting a YA stamp on it may limit it. I know nothing of YA novels or what speaks to young adults. I didn't like Harry Potter. But I know what I like and this is a very well written and a warm story.
February 15, 2017
A wonderful tale of a boy coming to terms with changes in life. And the beautiful, gorgeous language of Mr Marshall Smith. I found myself underlying sentences on every other page. Inspiring. I loved it.
December 3, 2023
It is like a gift from my past self. I started this but then stopped part way through for unremembered reasons and it remained in my bedside table for a dozen years. I picked it up again and was utterly transported into both parts of this world.
March 26, 2009
I really enjoyed this book. Read some of the other reviews, & I guess I really didn't open this book with any expectations whatsoever. I knew it would be well written of course. It is MMS we're talking about after all. So I was pleasantly surprised by how it unfolded page after page.
It's a subtle ghost story. Not a haunted house story. Guess I never thought it would be, looking back to before I started reading it. More metaphor than ghost story really. And that's okay.
After all, what's wrong with a touching story about a young boy as both individual & son, coming to terms with the realities of his mother, stepfather & father. MMS didn't write this short novel in the voice of the young boy, but as a well-spoken, fly-on-the-wall observer.
The old woman. The ghost servants. The house itself. The location. The tea. The skateboard. The key. All added a wonderful texture, depth & meaning to the novel as a whole.
Great authors like MMS personally intensify the lines between books that I read for fun, & books that I read, then carry with me in my head long after I've read the last word on the last page. Books that impact me. Books that change me, even just the tiniest bit.
There are books that I WANT to read. And then there are books that I NEED to read. Books by MMS easily fall, rest & wait patiently in my NEED to read pile. Which, it should come as no surprise to any reader, is the shorter of the two piles.
Chris Roberts
It's a subtle ghost story. Not a haunted house story. Guess I never thought it would be, looking back to before I started reading it. More metaphor than ghost story really. And that's okay.
After all, what's wrong with a touching story about a young boy as both individual & son, coming to terms with the realities of his mother, stepfather & father. MMS didn't write this short novel in the voice of the young boy, but as a well-spoken, fly-on-the-wall observer.
The old woman. The ghost servants. The house itself. The location. The tea. The skateboard. The key. All added a wonderful texture, depth & meaning to the novel as a whole.
Great authors like MMS personally intensify the lines between books that I read for fun, & books that I read, then carry with me in my head long after I've read the last word on the last page. Books that impact me. Books that change me, even just the tiniest bit.
There are books that I WANT to read. And then there are books that I NEED to read. Books by MMS easily fall, rest & wait patiently in my NEED to read pile. Which, it should come as no surprise to any reader, is the shorter of the two piles.
Chris Roberts
February 17, 2009
Certain aspects of this fast read reminded me of the movies "The Others" and "The Sixth Sense," although the plot is very different. I picked it up because I enjoy reading fiction and nonfiction about "the golden age of servants," but this is mostly a contemporary coming-of-age story about an 11-year-old boy whose mother and new stepfather move him against his will from London to a huge, old house on the Brighton Beach during the off season. Most of the house is closed off. The little old lady who lives in the teeny basement apartment invites the bored, angry young man to have tea with her. She introduces him to a secret basement world that turns out to have ties both to the house's past and the boy's present and future. I'm not sure I completely bought into the basic premise of the book, but I enjoyed reading it nonetheless. The author manages to nail the boy's immature voice and growth while at the same time portraying the complexity of the adult characters and their relationships with subtlety. I received a copy of this book from the publisher. (Thanks!) I am going to donate it to the YA collection at my public library to see how teens like it.
January 21, 2008
This book was easy to read and follow, although there were some unconventional interactions with characters and places from the past. The 11 year old main character, Mark, was able to grow and learn to understand people's imperfect relationships with each other. He could see that people and events from the past are always part of the present. He grew from a young child with selfish needs to one who could step outside his own needs to understand those of his Mother and new stepfather. These adults didn't always make it easy for him to understand but, even without their help, he was able to make that leap. What helped him most was the downstairs neighbor and the rooms behind her apartment.
I don't feel that I learned anything from this but I found it inviting enough to want to finish.
I don't feel that I learned anything from this but I found it inviting enough to want to finish.
March 9, 2015
The Servants is an interesting young adult/middle grade story featuring a troubled young boy as a protagonist. Mark’s life has taken a turn he didn’t expect and can’t change, and he is having difficulty coping. I enjoyed Mark’s young perspective, and following him as he struggled to understand his new situation. I was less interested in the supernatural elements of the story, though, except as they were related to Mark’s growth as a character. I also felt that the ending was a little too abrupt and out of tone with the rest of the story. Altogether, I enjoyed this short novel and its interesting portrayal of a child whose circumstances force to handle some serious ideas.
Full review on my blog
Full review on my blog
June 7, 2014
I read this book in one day, but was disappointed that it wasn't all I'd hoped for. I was attracted to the plot line that the main character discovers the ghosts in the old servants quarters in his home. While this was the case, the author didn't really take the plot in the exciting direction I would have liked.
The main character was a young boy dealing with the breakup of his parents, and his ill mother marrying an American and moving to Brighton. There is a lot of skateboarding out in the cold weather that begins to take its toll on the reader, and not enough about the boy's discovery in the old ladies' flat in the basement.
The end was abrupt and the 'twist' that I thought was coming never arrived, which made this a disappointing read.
The main character was a young boy dealing with the breakup of his parents, and his ill mother marrying an American and moving to Brighton. There is a lot of skateboarding out in the cold weather that begins to take its toll on the reader, and not enough about the boy's discovery in the old ladies' flat in the basement.
The end was abrupt and the 'twist' that I thought was coming never arrived, which made this a disappointing read.
May 1, 2008
I loved this book. It was wonderful. Marshal-Smith has a wonderful way of throwing all your expectations into his books with each line you read then turning those ideas on their heads.
I will say i didn't enjoy it as much as a couple of his other novels but it was engaged thoroughly until the end. I liked how just because bad stuff happened in the book, there wasn't a magical resolution to the real problems, despite the servants predicament and the main characters visiting them.
I enjoyed the literary view of brighton from Smiths perspective through a young boy. It was a great book.
I will say i didn't enjoy it as much as a couple of his other novels but it was engaged thoroughly until the end. I liked how just because bad stuff happened in the book, there wasn't a magical resolution to the real problems, despite the servants predicament and the main characters visiting them.
I enjoyed the literary view of brighton from Smiths perspective through a young boy. It was a great book.
June 16, 2013
A wonderful story about a boy and his transition from a child into a young adult. I thought that his child-like self obsession in which he assumes that everyone's actions, particularly his step-fathers, are an attempt to antagonize him was well written. Once he matures and realizes the folly of his own perceptions, he is able to see and appreciate people for who they really are, and the more plain motivations of their actions. There were many metaphors alluding to this in the story.
October 28, 2017
Touching, interesting, creepy and mysterious. I enjoyed this book. An off-beat way to glimpse into a child's psychology at a difficult stage in life. I thought it was clever, done well, and left me wanting to read it again
May 29, 2018
After his successful departure into crime fiction, Michael Marshall Smith returned to matters more fantastical in 2007, this time as 'M. M. Smith', with this short novel that's part ghost story and part family drama.
Smith makes good use of the particular variant of unreliable narrator that is an eleven year old boy who lacks the maturity to fully comprehend what's going on around him. Mark is stuck in a house with his beloved but mysteriously ill mother and his new stepdad whom he's convinced is a complete jerk.
As adult readers we immediately suspect there's more to it than that, but Smith delicately reveals the complexities of the interrelationships between the three, and the boy's natural father, at the pace our protagonist is gradually able to perceive it.
Meanwhile, in the grand tradition of adolescents in portal fantasy, an enigmatic old lady assists Mark to explore the old 'downstairs' servants' area under the house, and through an indeterminate combination of imagination or time-warping or supernatural shenanigans, he encounters the servants as they once were.
The head-scratcher for me is what purpose this whole fantasy aspect of the story serves. It's already a pretty decent family drama with some believable interactions and a solid arc of the protagonists emotional growth. Perhaps the ghosts are a coping mechanism, Pan's Labyrinth-style, but I expected there to be more significance to it.
One would think they'd teach him some kind of lesson to facilitate his progress through the rest of the plot, but any such suggestion to that effect is tenuous at best. Perhaps they're representative of his internal emotional, but even that's a bit weak. The whole thing feels bolted on and unnecessary. It also lacks the internal arc you'd expect of a ghost story, such as some element of mystery which is solved or of a lost soul achieving piece.
Despite these misgivings, I still think it's a solid short read and something a little different for MMS fans.
Smith makes good use of the particular variant of unreliable narrator that is an eleven year old boy who lacks the maturity to fully comprehend what's going on around him. Mark is stuck in a house with his beloved but mysteriously ill mother and his new stepdad whom he's convinced is a complete jerk.
As adult readers we immediately suspect there's more to it than that, but Smith delicately reveals the complexities of the interrelationships between the three, and the boy's natural father, at the pace our protagonist is gradually able to perceive it.
Meanwhile, in the grand tradition of adolescents in portal fantasy, an enigmatic old lady assists Mark to explore the old 'downstairs' servants' area under the house, and through an indeterminate combination of imagination or time-warping or supernatural shenanigans, he encounters the servants as they once were.
The head-scratcher for me is what purpose this whole fantasy aspect of the story serves. It's already a pretty decent family drama with some believable interactions and a solid arc of the protagonists emotional growth. Perhaps the ghosts are a coping mechanism, Pan's Labyrinth-style, but I expected there to be more significance to it.
One would think they'd teach him some kind of lesson to facilitate his progress through the rest of the plot, but any such suggestion to that effect is tenuous at best. Perhaps they're representative of his internal emotional, but even that's a bit weak. The whole thing feels bolted on and unnecessary. It also lacks the internal arc you'd expect of a ghost story, such as some element of mystery which is solved or of a lost soul achieving piece.
Despite these misgivings, I still think it's a solid short read and something a little different for MMS fans.
September 5, 2019
Hmmm...feeling rather underwhelmed having finished this book. It had great potential and I may have missed the point but it didn’t really seem to have a point.
The cover blurb mentions this being a parable into and a child’s powerlessness and anger but parables tend to have a meaning and I’m grasping to find what that is.
Mark moves to Brighton with his mother (who is sick we are eventually told with cancer) and his new stepfather (who he hates). Mark is a very angry boy, as a character he’s also very irritating, but I felt in many ways his anger was justified. His mother is sick yet neither parent bother to actually engage with him and explain what’s happening to him and to include him in what’s happening. If he understood more he may well have been less angry.
The Servants of the title are ghostly apparitions living in the basement of Mark’s new house and I felt that the decay they are living in and finally clear out is synonymous with the decay his mother is suffering from her cancer but I’m not sure I’m convinced this actually works. The vast majority of the book was not related to the Servants at all just more pages of Mark being a spoilt brat and his parents ignoring him.
All in all I think two stars is being quite generous.
The cover blurb mentions this being a parable into and a child’s powerlessness and anger but parables tend to have a meaning and I’m grasping to find what that is.
Mark moves to Brighton with his mother (who is sick we are eventually told with cancer) and his new stepfather (who he hates). Mark is a very angry boy, as a character he’s also very irritating, but I felt in many ways his anger was justified. His mother is sick yet neither parent bother to actually engage with him and explain what’s happening to him and to include him in what’s happening. If he understood more he may well have been less angry.
The Servants of the title are ghostly apparitions living in the basement of Mark’s new house and I felt that the decay they are living in and finally clear out is synonymous with the decay his mother is suffering from her cancer but I’m not sure I’m convinced this actually works. The vast majority of the book was not related to the Servants at all just more pages of Mark being a spoilt brat and his parents ignoring him.
All in all I think two stars is being quite generous.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 6, 2021
If you love magical realism, ghost stories, novels about growing up or tales about family, I really think you'll like this one.
In the story, the young protagonist, Mark, has to move from the bustle of London to the quiet of Brighton, and deal with a stepfather he doesn't like as well as his mother's deteriorating health. He is – understandably – angry and confused. But when he meets the old lady living in their basement apartment, and she shows him a hidden door through which he can see the ghosts of servants past, he begins to look at life, and conflict, through new eyes.
This is one of those clever tales that keep you guessing at whether the otherworldly elements are really happening, or if they're simply metaphors – coping mechanisms Mark is using to deal with his mounting pain and trauma. I appreciated its emotional maturity and beautiful, introspective language. Ill health and grief can be tough topics, but the hopeful telling of this story made the overall vibe more uplifting than sad.
What I loved the most was the idea that people have 'secret rooms' – there are parts of ourselves we present to the world, like showrooms at the front of a house, but our dark thoughts and secrets, and who we are outside of the perceptions of others, are hidden away like servants quarters, below ground perhaps, but always there.
If you like hunting for double meanings, and are looking for a powerful, quick read, I recommend The Servants.
In the story, the young protagonist, Mark, has to move from the bustle of London to the quiet of Brighton, and deal with a stepfather he doesn't like as well as his mother's deteriorating health. He is – understandably – angry and confused. But when he meets the old lady living in their basement apartment, and she shows him a hidden door through which he can see the ghosts of servants past, he begins to look at life, and conflict, through new eyes.
This is one of those clever tales that keep you guessing at whether the otherworldly elements are really happening, or if they're simply metaphors – coping mechanisms Mark is using to deal with his mounting pain and trauma. I appreciated its emotional maturity and beautiful, introspective language. Ill health and grief can be tough topics, but the hopeful telling of this story made the overall vibe more uplifting than sad.
What I loved the most was the idea that people have 'secret rooms' – there are parts of ourselves we present to the world, like showrooms at the front of a house, but our dark thoughts and secrets, and who we are outside of the perceptions of others, are hidden away like servants quarters, below ground perhaps, but always there.
If you like hunting for double meanings, and are looking for a powerful, quick read, I recommend The Servants.
August 12, 2024
this kept me very entertained for a good 3hours of the plane. seeing into the mind of this boy was so real to me like i truly understand him. thinking everyone is out to get u simply because you can’t comprehend a world or context in which their actions could make sense? i feel that
the old woman was my fave, i feel like there is another layer of metaphor to her existing there, beyond the metaphor of the house being Mark’s mother, beyond her being the house’s guard (and therefore his mother’s) that my travel-exhausted brain didn’t pick up on, but i rly had a nice time reading
“He did not comprehend all these things clearly yet, or in words he could say, but as he sat and stared out of the window at the black car driving away, the paths of understanding were laid in his mind, the sad walkways that later in life would shape the routes by which he understood the world and its ways. And for now, from a place inside him so deep he had no inkling it even existed, he cried.
And cried, and cried.” (pp189)
and when i read this, i cried and cried and cried
the old woman was my fave, i feel like there is another layer of metaphor to her existing there, beyond the metaphor of the house being Mark’s mother, beyond her being the house’s guard (and therefore his mother’s) that my travel-exhausted brain didn’t pick up on, but i rly had a nice time reading
“He did not comprehend all these things clearly yet, or in words he could say, but as he sat and stared out of the window at the black car driving away, the paths of understanding were laid in his mind, the sad walkways that later in life would shape the routes by which he understood the world and its ways. And for now, from a place inside him so deep he had no inkling it even existed, he cried.
And cried, and cried.” (pp189)
and when i read this, i cried and cried and cried
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 22, 2019
I was ultimately disappointed with this book. The gap between expectation from the back cover synopsis and the reality of the contents ended up being larger than I anticipated.
The depth of the scenery and textures - although beautifully written - felt more developed than the characters, which made it harder to connect with any one of them.
The story in and of itself was not terrible, but it was not what I was hoping for when I picked up this book. I found myself struggling to continue, even though it was not a long or difficult read. I realized, well after the fact that this was a YA novella, (which was not indicated anywhere on my copy). Knowing that now, I would definitely say this would be a decent read for someone that is not a 30 year old woman with a penchant for dark, gritty, supernatural thrillers.
The depth of the scenery and textures - although beautifully written - felt more developed than the characters, which made it harder to connect with any one of them.
The story in and of itself was not terrible, but it was not what I was hoping for when I picked up this book. I found myself struggling to continue, even though it was not a long or difficult read. I realized, well after the fact that this was a YA novella, (which was not indicated anywhere on my copy). Knowing that now, I would definitely say this would be a decent read for someone that is not a 30 year old woman with a penchant for dark, gritty, supernatural thrillers.
January 28, 2017
Absolutely loved this brilliant lovely book. I felt I was right in the house and at the beach when he described it.
A very touching story. I highly recommend this book.
Michael Marshall Smith is an exceptional author.
A very touching story. I highly recommend this book.
Michael Marshall Smith is an exceptional author.
November 26, 2017
Il est très facile de rentrer dans l'histoire et on veut savoir la suite. Je ne m'attendais pas à une lecture aussi rapide. L'histoire est assez sympa.
February 27, 2018
Weird little book that is more about a boy dealing with the emotional fallout of his parents' divorce, his new stepfather, and his mother's illness than anything else. Still charming in its way.
May 5, 2019
Didn't realise it was young adult genre
January 15, 2023
I'm conflicted. Did I learn something from this book? Yes. Was it worth waiting for the character to grow to get there? Not sure, especially as I'm still not certain as to what even happened.
August 18, 2024
As expected, a good read, not quite as dark as some of his other stuff but still good.
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