What do You think about Vacant Possession (2000)?
Colin Sidney and his dysfunctional family live in the house formerly owned by the Muriel Axon and her mother, a psychic reader. Muriel Axon is sent to a psychiatric institution after her mother dies in a fall but Muriel is released due to budget constraints and she is seeking revenge on those she blames for her problems. A complex web connects Colin and his family, the Axon's social worker, and Muriel Axon. In the end, no one is safe from Muriel, themselves, their family, and British social services.This is dark humor at its best. If the only Mantel you have read is "Wolf Hall" or "Bring Up the Bodies" then prime yourself for a totally different reading experience. This book is a sequel to "Every Day is Mother's Day" yet you don't need to have read the first book. I didn't know it was a sequel and had no problems understanding the backstory.
—Laura
I didn't find this novel as frightening as "Every Day is Mother's Day," because the revenge plotted by Muriel Ashton is understandable, even predictable. What is shocking, however, is the denouement which suggests that it's impossible to control events or even to find reasons for them. The most terrible things can come about by coincidence or strange convergences. The novel starts slow (having to summarize events of the prequel), but then it's a fast read, better plotted than most thrillers and certainly better written.
—Diane
"Colin fell back into his chair and stared at the TV. It was an early evening variety show. To the accompaniment of facetious patter, a magician held up a burning spike and passed it slowly through the forearm of his studio volunteer. The audience applauded. The magician withdrew the brand, and held it flickering aloft. The volunteer's face wore a set, worried smile. There was an expectant hush; a roll of drums; and then the magician, with great deliberation, whipped the flame through the air and poked it cleanly through his victim's chest."There's a part in The Art of Cruelty where Maggie Nelson lists female writers known for their 'cruel writing' - the obvious (O'Connor, Angela Carter, Shirley Jackson, Sarah Kane etc) as well as some I'm not familiar with (hope to rectify that soon, starting with Compton-Burnett) - and I was surprised at the omission of Mantel. It's probably a cliche at this point to call her prose incisive, but it's the perfect word to describe her writing. She carves out figures and worlds with her sharp, immaculate prose, and then twists the blade, leaving you reeling and marveling slightly. Tbh, Mantel's mind terrifies me but that's part of the thrill.
—Linda
