Date: January 12, 2025
Author: Sarah Pearse
Title: Sanatorium
Page 60, joke. ‘Making a belt out of watches, it’s a waist of time’
Page 61, fun fact. If you’re drunk you don’t feel extreme cold. Which is why many have become drunk and died of hypothermia… In real life, about 30 years ago, I realize now that I actually saved somebody’s life from just such a fate. I had happened upon some random stranger passed out in the snow after bar close and I woke him up and sent him on his way. This is quite the realization that, wow, he really would have died. And I saved his life.
Oh my goodness! Its 10:17 pm at night and I made it to ending minus 40 pages. So, I’ve been going along in this book thinking to myself why does the blurb on the cover page compare this novel to Stephen King’s The Shining? Thus far I haven’t read about anything supernatural so I’ve wondered how they can state these words. But it’s been so good I can hardly set it down. I’ll try not to spoil it with too much info but if this does in fact turn out to be a ghost story, this is set up perfectly for the big reveal.
Let me set the scene, imagine, first of all, being stranded in an old sanatorium turned sheek new hotel in the Swiss alps. Ok. Now imagine not one but two avalanches! Totally cut off from rescue and there’s a killer on the loose. Now, imagine being in an underground tunnel that was once used for removal of the dead bodies so patients wouldn’t see.
How they got into this just-now-newly-found-tunnel was there was a hidden entrance nobody knew about and now they are descending into a dark hole leading to this tunnel of sketchy origins. (I shouted to them in my mind to stop. To get themselves a safety buddy. You know, send out a quick text so people at least know where to start looking, but alas, they didn’t.) If this does turn out to be a big ol’ scary ghost story, then Mz. Pearse got me. I had to quit reading because if this is some demon or ghost of a deranged lunatic (remember, they are in a sanatorium) and it does turn out to be supernatural? Therein lies the potential to scare me pretty good. It’s really dark out and getting later. I’m setting it down so I can finish in the light of day. Well done Mz. Pearse. You’ve scared me.
Spoiler alert:
The conclusion. I finished this up during the bright light of midday and must say I am sorely disappointed. The ending was predictable and not a ghost in sight. How can the publisher proclaim this to be a story of similar caliber to The Shining? Without any ghosts. They don’t even discuss the possibility of ghosts. Like Elaine on Seinfeld said to the Soup Nazi “next!”