I'm not a particular fan of horror, so had never even heard of the improbably named Oliver Onions--reminiscent of the reformist author Samuel Smiles--but Brian Evensen referred to this as an almost perfect story and then it cropped up in Tony Walker's great Classic Ghost Stories podcast, so I gave it a listen.

As Mr. Walker often reminds us, horror stories are frequently moral tales and this one certainly tied in with my recent hobby horse about people failing to grasp the relationships that are offered them. In this instance, Paul Oleron is a mediocre writer struggling to finish what is to be his great novel, Romilly, he thinks because he has to travel halfway across London from his flat to his office to work on it. To resolve the problem he rents out space in an abandoned mansion, but once ensconced is just as distracted, now by his efforts to redecorate and, eventually, by a haunting presence in the house. Meanwhile, his sole friend and unabashed fan, the journalist Elsie Bengough, encourages him throughout his travails but becomes concerned about his mental state as he becomes obsessed with the "ghost" he shares the house with.

Onions does a good job summoning dread, but the reader wants to give Oleron a good shake and tell him to marry Elsie, who is clearly besotted, and move into a normal apartment. You'll have guessed by now that isn't what happens though... A legitimate classic, if a maddening one.

(Reviewed:08-Nov-24)

Grade: (A-) Orrin C. Judd

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Oliver Onions Links:

    -WIKIPEDIA: Oliver Onions
    -ENTRY: Oliver Onions British author (Encyclopedia Britannica)
    -PORTRAIT: Oliver Onions (National Portrait Gallery)
    -FILMOGRAPHY: Oliver Onions (IMDB)
    -ENTRY: Onions, Oliver (Encyclopedia of Science Fiction)
    -ENTRY: Oliver Onions (Fiction Database)
    -AUDIO INDEX: Oliver Onions (LibriVox)
    -INDEX: Oliver Onions (Internet Archive)
    -ENTRY: Oliver Onions (Internet Speculative Fiction Database)
    -ETEXT INDEX: Oliver Onions (Project Gutenberg)
    -STORY: The Beckoning Fair One (Oliver Onions)
    -AUDIO: The Beckomning Fair One (LibriVox)
    -RADIO PLAY: The Beckoning Fair One (Mollé Mystery Theatre, 1943)
    -STUDY GUIDE: The Beckoning Fair One (Story Graph)
    -STUDY GUIDE: The Beckoning Fair One (eNotes)
    -ARCHIVES: The Beckoning Fair One (Internet Archive)
    -PODCAST: 'The Beckoning Fair One' by Oliver Onions: In Episode 8 join me, Adam Z. Robinson, and my guest, Jenn Ashworth, as we discuss 'The Beckoning Fair One' by Oliver Onions. (Jenn Ashworth, Mar 3, 2021, Ghost Story Book Club)
    -PODCAST: The Beckoning Fair One by Oliver Onions (Tony Walker, Sep 05, 2020, Classic Ghost Stories Podcast)
    -PODCAST: THe Beckoning Fair One (Dark Descent)
    -PODCAST: The SFFaudio Podcast #181 – The Beckoning Fair One by Oliver Onions, read by Julie Davis (of Forgotten Classics and A Good Story Is Hard To Find): This is a complete and unabridged reading of the novella (2 Hours 40 Minutes) followed by a discussion of it. Participants in the discussion include Scott, Jesse, and Julie Davis! (SFFaudio Podcast)
    -ESSAY: Evoking Damocles in Oliver Onions’ “The Beckoning Fair One” (Terry W. Thompson, 21 May 2019, ANQ)
    -ESSAY: “The Beckoning Fair One”: Oliver Onions and the Muse of Eros (Terry W. Thompson, 28 Jul 2020, ANQ)
    -ESSAY: “As in a Mirror”: The Medusa Allusion in Oliver Onions’ “The Beckoning Fair One” (Terry W. Thompson, September 2020, ANQ)
    -ESSAY: “The Beckoning Fair One”: Oliver Onions’ Presentiment of the Modern Horror Tale (Miskatonic Debating Club & Literary Society, 31 December 2012)
    -ESSAY: The Strange Fiction of Oliver Onions (Stephen Carver, 2017, Wordsworth Editions Blog)
    -ESSAY: ‘Let the miserable wrestle with his own shadows’: The beleaguered Edwardian male author in Oliver Onions’ ‘The Beckoning Fair One’ (Zoe Brennan, Literature & History)
    -VIDEO ARCHIVES: The Beckoning Fair One (YouTube)
    -REVIEW: of Widdershins by Oliver Onions (Sally, what we have here is a failure to communicate)
    -REVIEW: of The Beckoning Fair One (Anne M. Pillsworth, Ruthanna Emrys, Reactor)
    -REVIEW: of The Beckoning Fair One (Reviews of Old and New Stories. Mostly Old)
    -REVIEW: of The Beckoning Fair One (Vulpes Libris)
    -REVIEW: of The Beckoning Fair One (The Books of Daniel)
    -REVIEW: of The Beckoning Fair One (Bedlam Files)
    -REVIEW: of The Beckoning Fair One (Cosmic Dream)
    -REVIEW: of The Beckoning Fair One (Lance Eaton, By Any Other Nerd)
    -REVIEW: of The Beckoning Fair One (I’ve Read That)
    -REVIEW: of ‘The Hand of Kornelius Voyt’ by Oliver Onions (Michael Dirda, Washington Post)
    -REVIEW: of The Dead of Night: Oliver Onions’ Ghost Stories (Murray Ewing, Mewsings)
    -REVIEW: of The Dead of Night (Oddly Weird Fiction)
    -REVIEW: of The Dead of Night (John O’Neill, Blackgate)
    -REVIEW: of
    -REVIEW: of (Mike Ashley, SF Site)

FILM:

    -FILMOGRAPHY: Oliver Onions (IMDB)
    -FILMOGRAPHY: The Beckoning Fair One (2021) (IMDB)
    -FILM: The Beckoning Fair One (2021)
    -TV EPISODE: Journey to the Unknown: The Beckoning Fair One
    -FILM REVIEW: The Beckoning Fair One (Folk Horror Revival & Urban Wyrd Project)

Book-related and General Links: