Prospero's Mirror

Prospero's Mirror - A.N. Donaldson Oxford, 1935
M. R. James, Britain's greatest writer of ghost stories, is summoned by the Warden of Old College to investigate the inscription on an ancient stone mirror. But he finds himself drawn into a dark maze of secrets, including one from his own guilty past.

Oxford, 1665

At a time when established orthodoxies are being challenged by the new science, Warden Woodward of Old College has acquired the same mirror. He soon suspects conspiracy and witchcraft in a city besieged by plague.

Assailed by devastating visions, caught between fears of an ancient curse and the World Wars of the future, two men from different centuries delve into a forgotten mystery and are forced to confront their own demons. But is self-reflection the most dangerous thing of all? And are there some words that can kill?

"What is read cannot be unread...


Love this description “If Umberto Eco and H.P. Lovecraft had a torrid affair, the love-child would probably end up looking a little like this book.”

This is rather discomforting little book evoking the Golden Age of the ghost story in all its glory and featuring a master in the genre M.R.James.

Beautifully written, this is almost a homage; authentic in style and language with a gripping page turning dual plot line. It delivers a truly creepy, chilling reading experience that will leave you feeling very uneasy as you close it after having read the final page… I wouldn't leave it on your bedside table if you want to sleep well