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    Turn of the Screw
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    Turn of the Screw
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    Turn of the Screw
    Audiobook4 hours

    Turn of the Screw

    Written by Henry James

    Narrated by Simon Prebble and Rosalyn Landor

    3/5

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    About this audiobook

    One of the most daunting ghost stories to ever be written, Henry James’ Turn of the Screw follows the transformation of Miles (age 10) and Flora (age 8) from well behaved children to deceitful liars. When a governess comes to their country estate to look after the children, she and Flora are separately visited by ghost; however Flora denies the experience and Miles claims to never have been visited by one, even when evidence supports an evil plot between the children and the ghosts. Devoid of common ghost story stereotypes, this timeless story is full of suspense, supernatural phenomenon, and thrills to frighten and delight any listener.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDreamscape Media Audio
    Release dateOct 25, 2016
    ISBN9781520019215
    Author

    Henry James

    Henry James (1843–1916) was an American writer, highly regarded as one of the key proponents of literary realism, as well as for his contributions to literary criticism. His writing centres on the clash and overlap between Europe and America, and The Portrait of a Lady is regarded as his most notable work.

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    Reviews for Turn of the Screw

    3/5

    61 ratings98 reviews

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      Chilling! That ending is utterly chilling!
    • 3/5
      At Bly, a country estate in 19th century England, a young woman is hired as a governess for two young children who have been recently orphaned after the death of their parents. The home belongs to the children’s uncle who, although their legal guardian, wants nothing to do with them. At first, all is seemingly well, as the governess is thoroughly charmed with the beauty, intelligence, and disposition of her charges. Soon enough, though, things take a serious turn for the worse when she begins to see the ghosts of two former employees of the estate who seem to have malicious intentions toward the children. But are these apparitions real and, if so, why is the governess the only one who can see them? Alternatively, is she slowly descending into madness, or afflicted by some other malady? What are the secrets that the children seem to be protecting? How does the uncle’s apparent indifference factor into the situation? What explains the ultimate fates that the children and the governess experience?Those are all excellent questions. Of course, one of the things that has kept The Turn of the Screw relevant fiction for more than a century is that Henry James never really answers any of them. Instead, he offers a psychologically complex gothic horror story that allows readers to decide—or at least try to—for themselves what actually happens. Certainly, the author’s innovations in this tale were hugely influential on many subsequent artists; over the years, the novella has inspired works in literature, film, theater, and even opera. What the book is not, unfortunately, is a particularly interesting or compelling narrative in the modern context. James wrote with a bloated, overly wordy style that severely minimized the impact of the suspense in the tale. Although described by some critics as “chillingly evil” and “sinister,” I found the story to fall well short of those marks, with the horrific elements often buried in long passages of verbose inner monologue from a very unreliable narrator. So, while I am glad to have read the book for its historical importance, it was not one that I especially enjoyed.
    • 4/5
      Another genre classic that I hadn't read for a long time-and this time with good reason. James' way with a convoluted sentence often makes me want to scream, and having to backtrack to work out his intended focus does not make for a smooth flow in reading experience.

      That said, there is a definite power in this tale, and it builds nicely in dread and atmosphere to a chilling conclusion. It is definitely a classic of the genre, but the movie THE INNOCENTS showed how it could have been done in a more straightforward, yet still distinctly superior, fashion, and Peter Straub's retelling in GHOST STORY is also a superior version.

      Could easily have been a 5 star tale, and saying that, I've nudged it up from 3 to 4 this time around. It could be a long, long time before I want to read it again though.
    • 2/5
      A ghost story with a horrific overtone.Victorian obscurity in expression, so not to say anything that could be objectionable. Took me a while to figure out what was worrying the governess.220
    • 2/5
      I have no freaking idea what I just read. It ended--if you can even call that an ending, which is up for debate--and I went back and re-read the last six chapters. It didn't really help.W.T.F????2 stars for a strong start and a cool story idea...he lost me after that.
    • 3/5
      The Turn of the Screw by Henry James is billed as a psychological thriller. It is the story of an unnamed governess who agrees to care for two children at their uncle's estate, Bly. Her story is told through her journal entries. Her charges are "darlings" until one day while walking she meets menacing apparitions. I wanted to love this book as I do the classics. However, the writing was convoluted and this reader was very much distanced from the characters and felt like a passive bystander. It's saving grace was that is was only 131 pages. 2 1/2 stars
    • 3/5
      Not much to say about this one. It had great potential to be a really creepy Halloween tale, but just fell flat for me.

      The writing was very good and typical of the writing in the late 1800s.
    • 2/5
      Nogal moeilijk verhaal over verschijningen; de lezer wordt op het verkeerde been gezet. Thema's: onschuld kinderen, overbescherming door volwassenen.
    • 3/5
      This was my first Henry James story and I really enjoyed it. It was a short novel that can be characterized as a classic psychological thriller or ghost story from the 19th century. The story itself was not particularly scary, but I really enjoyed James' writing style and how he got inside the head of the main character as she starts to lose it later in the story. I will certainly read more of Henry James.
    • 2/5
      A tale of a ghost in Victorian England.
    • 4/5
      An incredible blend of Gothic and Realism, "Turn of the Screw" sends the reader into a tailspin, questioning what is real and what is moral.
    • 4/5
      Tangled Victorian prose spoils this otherwise good ghost story. The scene where the governess meets the spectre of Peter Quint on the stairs is genuinely scary. I don't think I would read this one again just for enjoyment, so I'm going to register & release it on BookCrossing.
    • 2/5
      Nogal moeilijk verhaal over verschijningen; de lezer wordt op het verkeerde been gezet. Thema's: onschuld kinderen, overbescherming door volwassenen.
    • 3/5
      Written in 1898 and republished numerous times Turn of the Screw has also been adapted for the stage, television and the big screen. Someone told me it was even mentioned in an episode of "Lost" (I wouldn't know). James's technique is to tell the story within a frame - one story within another. We are first introduced to a man at a Christmas party telling a tale of a governess. From there we are in the story, told from the point of view of the governess. She has been hired to look after two small children after their parents are killed and they are sent to live on an uncle's estate. Soon after the governess's arrival she starts to notice strange occurances, shadowy figures stalking the grounds. She learns they are former lovers and hired hands, back to supposedly recreate their relationship through the children.While James uses words like "hideous", "sinister", "detestable", and "dangerous", there is great debate as to exactly what he is describing as so terrible. He refers to evil again and again, but his ghosts are not the usual spectors. They only hint at danger rather than taking action and "attacking". The other great debate is whether the governess is insane (or goes insane while at Bly). Because no one else really backs up her ghost sightings you have to wonder.
    • 2/5
      Intense? No. Boring.
    • 2/5
      I had a college professor who issued a threat to our class via an anecdote about a prof from his own undergrad days. If a paper ran past the prescribed length, his professor would put a red line through anything remaining and write "ends abruptly" in the margin. I can only assume that's what happened to Henry James when he wrote this novel. I was listening to this on audiobook, and, even though the lady with the British accent said the recording had concluded, I just sat there thinking that there had to be a hidden track or something and if I sat in silence long enough, it would reveal itself.I've not looked in a while, but I'm pretty sure it says on my English degree that I'm supposed to give at least four stars to everything British, and especially everything written in the 19th century, so it's possible that rating this book poorly will result in my being stripped of my bachelor's degree. Meh. I wasn't using it much anyway except for a little blogging, a few book reviews, and some obscure references with which I pepper conversations to discourage others from engaging me in small talk.But really, what the heck did I just read? I get that the narrator is unreliable, I get why the references to (sexual?) misconduct are mostly communicated through significant facial expressions, and I get that I'm probably supposed to be confused. Sometimes these things make me enjoy a book and sometimes they don't. My experience with The Turn of the Screw is closer to the latter.Now, one thing I like is how the narrator always wants to face things directly in a household of people who are tiptoeing around issues and an employer who expressly directs her not to talk to him about anything. It demonstrates how crazy-making it is to want to have straightforward answers when everyone around you is either silent or speaks obliquely. It's difficult to know where one stands when the best one can hope for in the way of explanation is an arched eyebrow or perhaps, if one is lucky, a wink-wink, nudge-nudge. Would it kill them to just come out with it? (spoiler alert...(view spoiler))
    • 2/5
      I just didn't get it? It didn't get me? It literally did not pull me into the story or hold my true interest. Perhaps a second reading/listening in the future.
    • 1/5
      I had to read this for English in year nine or ten I cannot rightly remember now. Anyway, I guess I'm not one much for ghost stories which is probably why I was never going to enjoy this book. Secondly we had to read it as a class, aloud one chapter at a time. I hate that. In a small group perhaps that would work but not a whole book. You do not really get to appreciate the language or the story because the change in reader (and quality of reader) was too distracting. I guess that's one way of making sure everyone does read it. Thirdly it was just a boring, pointless story. I can't remember precisely why now but I always liked reading in school, but this book was just absolutely excruciating. Perhaps I should give it a second read and see if my opinion has changed. Or maybe it will just reaffirm why I didn't like it.I remember wondering what the point was? Why is this story being told? Are the characters interesting? No. Is it well written? I can't remember so I cannot comment. Was what happened during the story interesting? No. Did I learn anything from it? No. Would I recommend it to anyone else? No.
    • 3/5
      I don't know why I was so irritated this time round, but I was. It was a chore to read. The writing seemed so roundabout, with sentences wandering hopelessly. Several of the premises didn't ring true and I felt no love for the governess or the children. And the ending...did her young charge, Miles the boy, die?!? What then happened his sister? Was Flora never to return? Was the governess discharged? Who was the man she "loved" as hinted at in the beginning of this tale by Douglas? The questions go on and on. Many people have stipulated that [The Turn of the Screw]'s "very ambiguity, its resistance to any final formulation in terms of the realistic or actual...is a major source of its strength." I would disagree. Most unsatisfying.
    • 3/5
      It was better than I thought it'd be.
    • 4/5
      A Victorian Ghost Story about the evils of men and the fear of the uncivilized... WE find a governess who is duty bound to protect the children in her charge from the things that go bump in the night. The story presents the isolation caused by a guarded Victorian rectified World.
    • 5/5
      I was gripped by this short tale of supernatural goings on. What was real, who was the ghost, was the protagonist what she seemed? The flow of the language on the page was like the flow of speech. I couldn't keep myself from reading on, I had to know what happened.
    • 3/5
      You know, it's good. I just don't like Mr. James' style. Oi! with all the goddamn commas! It's halting and unnecessary. I did, however, enjoy the story. Deep, engaging, suspenseful, everything you'd want in a ghost story. It's just his style. I can't get into it. I finally, in the last 20 pages or so, figured out how to tolerate his style: ignore the commas. It worked capitally. It was almost like reading Dickens.

      In all, I recommend this book, I just don't prefer it.
    • 4/5
      I like the ambiguity of the ghosts, it is the redeeming aspect of the story. Otherwise, I am convinced that woman is crazy and much of the dialogue seemed annoyingly unrealistic. "oh you know you know!" I guess no one could speak plainly back then? It is a quick read. I gave four insead of three stars because I think some aspects just didn't translate over time and the book deserves some credit for originaity when written.
    • 4/5
      An inexperienced young woman is hired to become the governess of two small children near the town of Bly in Victorian England. The children have no parents and it is their uncle who hires her. She is informed that she is not to contact him at all u less there is a good reason. The two children are Miles and Flora. Soon, two ghosts appear, Quint and Jessel, who were the former caregivers of the children.It never becomes clear if it is the governess alone who sees these ghosts or if the children do as well. Who is the crazy one... Who knows.
    • 3/5
      I really wanted to find this scary, but it's just too Victorian for me to take it seriously. (Oh, the scandal of a governess having a romantic fling! Oh, the horrors of young children keeping secrets from their elders! *sigh*)
    • 4/5
      The Turn of the Screw by Henry James; (4*)I certainly enjoyed this mildly spooky Victorian gothic tale. And I found that I quite like the writing style of Henry James.The story is about an orphaned brother & sister taken in by an uncle or some such male relation. He is a very minor player withing the scheme of the book as he hires a governess/tutor to care for the children at his country manse. The one stipulation upon her hiring is that she not bother him with anything to do with the children.When the governess arrives she finds that the male child is away at boarding school so she just has the girl child at first. She finds the little girl beautiful & angelic in every way. She is bright and quick to learn, has lovely manners, is obedient and the governess enjoys her very much.But soon the little boy is returned to the home, having been quitted from the school never to return and the governess & housekeeper (who have become friends) are never to know specifically why. The child never speaks of it so all they can do is wonder. He has the same positive traits as his sister and in the beginning all is well and everyone appears to be happy. "Appears to be" are the key words here.For we find that the owner of the manse & their employer had a houseman who has died and that the previous governess has died as well. There begin to appear apparitions of both of these persons: The governess to the little girl albeit the new governess can also see her and the houseman to the little boy with the governess able to see his apparition as well.Thus begins the tug of war between the governess & the housekeeper against the two apparitions who want the children.I thought this a very good though short novella & I can highly recommend it. It is my first Henry James and I found myself seeking out others of his work immediately upon finishing this one.
    • 3/5
      A young woman is hired as a governess for two orphaned children, with only one condition: the children's guardian, who lives elsewhere, doesn't want to be bothered with any reports or questions about them. Despite the worrying nature of this request, she very much enjoys her job and the two angelic children... until the ghosts start showing up. And until she starts wondering whether the children are quite as angelic as they seem.The basic story here is decent. The disturbing elements are nicely subtle and slow-building, and there's an intriguing ambiguity about the whole thing. But Henry James' writing style I do not get along. I can deal with wordy Victorian prose, in general, but James takes it to an entirely new level. Reading one of his sentences is like navigating a labyrinth: it's full of unexpected turns and distracting side passages, and by the time you've reached the end of it, it's hard to remember the route you took to get there. It was just way too difficult for me to give myself over to a sense of creepiness when I often had to read a sentence over two or three times before I could extract the meaning out of it without getting lost in the middle (generally somewhere around the fifth or sixth comma). And James is definitely not an author you want to read while still working on your first cup of morning coffee, or while desperately trying not to nod off at bedtime -- which, unfortunately, are the main times I've had available to read lately.
    • 4/5
      The very uncertainty embedded throughout makes this a dark psychological story. Illusion, reality, light, shadow, innocence and evil, all subtly inter-played. An enigmatic ending adds to the ambiguity.

      Despite all these interesting qualities, James' narrative can be tough going, his overuse of commas and lengthy sentences among some of the obstacles the reader must get through. I intend to re-read it in the future, in order to appreciate the subtle nuances layered over and within this unorthodox ghost tale.
    • 5/5
      Haunting and haunted and ambiguous. Don't read this for a pat ending.