Synopsis "The Dread of Night Supernatural Encounters from the British Raj (in English)"
Ghosts, derangements and strange happenings abound inVictorian fiction. Evenmore so in stories from the Raj written by English writers, overwhelmed, oftenunnerved, by the vast and alien land they ruled but could not quite come togrips with.To them, India's jungles, village squares and railway stations-eventheir own colonial bungalows-bristled with the long-dead, the undead, theunexplained and the terrible.Women writers of the Raj brought greater imagination and skill to the spookytale than men.And among them, Bithia Mary Croker and Alice Perrin were easilythe best.This collection brings together, for the first time ever, the spookiestshort stories of these mistresses of the Raj supernatural.The khidmatgar of a derelict mansion is curiously always at his master andmistress' service, but only after dark.A dead woman comes calling for herdevoted husband, the Collector of a colonial outpost.An unwelcomingkhansamah in a secluded dak bungalow hides a sinister secret.An ayah bewildersher mistress when she sings lullabies to her imaginary charge.A missionary'halfcaste' Eurasian discovers the powers of a native goddess.And a stately hill stationhome comes to be occupied by a family of four, happy for the surprisingly lowrent they must pay, until they discover why.Drawing upon local legends, colonial records and Indian folklore, these gripping, atmospheric tales will send shivers down your spine and yet leave you craving formore.
