Joseph’s Reviews > Varney, the Vampyre > Status Update

"'What the devil! Zounds!'
"Yes; that was what the parson said."

I don't believe you.

Y'know, this is supposed to be a scary story. It kind of kills the tension if the narrator constantly mocks the characters for being scared.

"...family vault of the Crofton's was situated." Shouldn't have that apostrophe.

"I have not looked upon these stone steps since my poor wife went down there in the sleep of death."

Um. Did you have a wife before the boys' mother, or did she die sometime in the last week without the book bothering to mention it? Is that why she hasn't appeared since being mentioned 34 pages ago?

Typo: "a the entrance of the graveyard" should be "at."

Credit where it's due: Rymer isn't writing them as idiots like I expected.

CALLED IT.

"The finding the body" again. Is this some weird phrasing that would have been normal when this was written?

"...he had a first." Should be "at first."

So you hate Catholics, Jews, Quakers, evangelicals—is there any religious group that you approve of, Rymer? Or any nationality?