Minerva Stone (Ulverscroft Romance)

Rating:
Summary: Gothic romance in good form
Review: Before Rosemary Rogers revolutionized the romance genre in the 70s by detailing her characters' sexual encounters, there was "gothic romance." THE MINERVA STONE was written at a time when romances avoided explicit sex, but what tension it lacked in that aspect, it made up for in menace.

The Minerva stone is a marker that was found in the gardens of the Palfrey family home, Guinever Court, in England's county of Dorset, with the words "Semper. Minerva," chiseled into it. The family believes it is the gravestone for a beloved pet, and none relish the idea of digging up the remains of a long-forgotten animal.

Twenty-year-old Sarah Rhodes is the daughter of a famous artist, Kester Palfrey, and married to a celebrated TV personality, Niall Rhodes. She visits her family while her husband is on a business trip in New York. As she waits for a member of the household, paraplegic Dido Singleton, to conclude a doctor's appointment, Sarah is taunted by a strange child. At the same time, her former lover, Luke Ashton, coincidentally appears and helps her question the boy. Then someone tries to run over her as she leaves a concert. She receives puzzling and intimidating notes. While in the gardens of Guinever, someone shoots and barely misses Niall as Sarah argues with him. Someone leaves an Italian doll with its head broken off in her car. Aside from the warning, the villain's intent is clear as mud. Sarah's frustration deepens when she learns Niall has a dark past he never hinted at before.

These days when the term gothic is used in regard to fiction, it usually refers to something dead brought back to life. For around 200 years, the gothic romance genre had traditional traits that infrequently included such an eerie component. Usually one could expect to find a large old house, mystery, and heroine who finds a good romantic relationship at the end (not necessarily all connected together, as in this case). A couple of classics include MANSFIELD PARK, by Jane Austen, and REBECCA, by Daphne de Maurier. After all this time, it's amazing to realize how little romance these novels actually contained.

Author Anne Maybury provides an excellent cast of characters in this 1968 novel. Kester is level-headed, but a typical example of man who needs a woman in his life, especially when the last wife was a good experience. With Niall's arrogant, domineering, and manipulative behavior, it's easy to figure out why he took a wife much younger than himself. Teen-age Dido is bitter and spiteful after having an accident that left her crippled. Medical research comes before everything else in Luke's life, including Sarah. Polly Singleton, Kester's ex-wife and Dido's overprotective mother, is a freeloader. Freda, Sarah's stepmother, gave up a career in opera to make a home with Kester.

The character that most lacks distinction is the protagonist, Sarah. She must be a by-product of that period between the 40s and 70s when the "good" women on TV had to fit the June Cleaver stereotype. Sarah certainly is no wuss, but she has no particular passion for anything outside of her family. In an argument with Niall, she complains she wants to have children, then lets it go later when she resents his reasons for reconsidering. She has no job, hobbies, volunteer activities, or preferred pastimes, aside from being with her family and that comes off normal. She also has a tendency to unburden her troubles to her elders and let them make the ultimate decisions. It's natural and reasonable behavior for someone in a close-knit family--especially if that's the only thing left to do--yet protagonists who act on their own initiative are more exciting. Sarah grows a little in the end, but the transformation is more in her living situation than her character.

Maybury's writing style is excellent. She avoids excessive dialogue attributives and keeps the plot moving. The only thing the story lacks is texture. It has great visual images, but appeals to the other four senses too sparingly. It's a bit of a drawback when building suspense.

In some respects, it's unfair to judge a book that was written over 30 years ago by today's standards. Social practices and attitudes toward crafting fiction have changed since then, but this review is written for today's readers. If they can cut THE MINERVA STONE some slack for being conceived during the 60s, it can be a satisfying way to pass time.