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    Be forewarned! This is one terrifying, horrifying, downright creepy story. What makes psychological thrillers such as this so effective is their element of reality. People do go nutty, and although some don't believe this, they may also be possessed by evil spirits.
    Despite the fact that Onions is not a household name, he was actually quite a prolific writer, and many consider this to be a masterpiece in psychological horror. Many also considered him to be one of the best ghost story writers. He legally changed his name to George Oliver, but continued to write under the name Oliver Onions. The Beckoning Fair One was originally part of a collection called Widdershins, first published in 1911.
    I had read this book several years ago, but decided to read it again so I could write this review, and I appreciated it much more the second time around. Onions has demonstrated his proficiency of spinning out such shocking tales by slowly and subtly leaving tiny little clues to the progress of events. Paul Oleron does not realize he is heading down the road to total and utter destruction, and neither do we, at first.
    Oleron is a writer, with fifteen chapters complete on a novel which has already been sold to a publisher. He has struggled all his life, and counts on this book, Romilly Bishop to be his grand achievement. He lives in a sleeping room, but must walk across town to get to his working quarters.
    One day, he happens to pay more attention than usual to an old dilapidated house with several "To Let" signs hanging a various angles. He decides to inquire, and is allowed to rent only one floor, consisting of five rooms. He soon moves in, bringing his grandmother's furniture which he had had in storage. Even though he has a deadline to complete his book, he spends time painting and decorating his new abode, wasting much more money than he can afford, especially since he has no income. He also has to have fresh flowers every day. But what is even more disturbing, although we readers don't quite grasp it yet, is that he becomes obsessed with decorating, and every time he sits down to write, he sees something else he wants to investigate, such as the window boxes, which he pries open removing the old rusty nails and then refinishes them for storage. In one he finds a strange large bag, which he later learns once held a harp. But he is losing interest in Romilly and in writing altogether. We don't notice, but Elsie does. In fact, she notices everything that is changing about Paul Oleron.
    Elsie Bengough is a plump, pink, thirty-five year old unmarried, but independent journalist. She has been in love with Paul for years, but to him, they are just close friends. She accepts that, and would do anything for Paul that he required. Though she is making money, she believes Paul is the much worthier talent, and doesn't fail to support him in his writing. Which is why she is very disturbed that Paul has not written a single word since he moved to the new dwelling. He doesn't take her concern seriously, but she knows something is very wrong. He finally admits that he has lost interest in Romilly, and is considering starting the book completely over from scratch.

"What utter rubbish!" she broke out at last. "Why, when I saw you last you were simply oozing Romilly; you were turning her off at the rate of four chapters a week; if you hadn't moved, you'd have had her three-parts done by now What on earth possessed you to move right in the middle of your most important work?"

    She tells him to get out of the house—it is not good for him, and that he will never finish his book while he's there.
    After she leave, he finds himself getting resentful, critical of her, and convincing himself of what is the beginning of a long string of excuses for the drastic change which has begun. He muses that Elsie was perhaps the inspiration for Romilly, in fact that Elsie was the prototype for her, but he is unaware that another female is taking Elsie's place. All the while he is in deep thought, he is drumming his fingers to the melodic sound of the dripping faucet. He becomes aware of this, actually is mesmerized by the little tune being played by the drips.
    The next morning when the old Welsh Mrs. Barrett comes to fix his breakfast (the Barretts are the agents for the house rental), she comments on the tune he is humming:

"De-ar me! Her soft falsetto rose. "But that will be a very o-ald tune, Mr. Oleron! I will not have heard it this for-ty years!"

    Oleron is perplexed. He didn't realize he was humming, but it was the tune of the dripping faucet. Mrs. Barrett tells him it is called "The Beckoning Fair One," and was sung to a harp. After this he realizes that he is becoming super sensitive to all the little noises of the house.
    OK, so now we start to get the creepies. I did some research, and that song is real. It is a Welsh tune, Symlen Ben-bys, from about 1400, and there is a recording of it as part of a collection called The Chaucer Songbook.
    When Elsie returns, Oleron is finding her, his dear friend for a decade, more bothersome. She has an intense dislike of the house, and the feeling is mutual. Oleron tells her that he is considering burning his fifteen chapters of Romilly. She goes to fetch it from the window box, getting a huge bloody gash on her hand from a rusty nail. Oleron is upset to say the least, but also baffled, because he was positive he removed all the old nails. Elsie tells him her next visit will be preceded by a postcard.
    But it isn't. She uses the excuse that she is able to get him paying work for a couple days a week, which of course does not interest him, and as she is leaving, her foot breaks through one of the steps and badly hurts her ankle. She sobs that she is just fat, but also says that she is not wanted in the house.
    And not just by Oleron. Slowly, gradually, we realize there is another inhabitant. When Oleron realizes that the crackling sound he hears is the sound of a woman combing her hair he becomes terrified, but as his mental state deteriorates, he no longer fears living with this ancient inhabitant, but becomes possessed by her, in love with her.
    The remainder of the book describes each step of Oleron's complete and utterly hopeless descent into the realm of total mental and psychological breakdown and disconnection with reality, and its devastating and horrifying climax.
    If you like paranormal thrillers, you will love this one. It is on a level all its own, and truly one eerie, sinister story. Incidentally, I did not notice this as I was reading (twice), but when I started writing the review, something struck me interesting about Oleron's name: It uses parts of Onions own name! OLivER ONions. I'm sure that was not a coincidence!

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