I found this book to be deeply disturbing.

It is divided into two parts. For the first 300 pages or so, it is a romantic story that is charming yet not completely compelling. There are just enough odd occurrences in this first part to maintain your interest and engagement, making you guess where the author is headed and think you have a good inkling. Adams' prose is always elegant, so you remain content as the story progresses steadily.

And then, in the last 75 pages, he hits you with a sledgehammer, jolting you out of your sedate progress. It is not really frightening, although there are one or two scary bits. However, the denouement is so disturbing that I was actually shaking at the end of it! This is a book that will stay with you for a long time, but in a way that will give you a shiver whenever you think of it. Nevertheless, it is most definitely worthy of a read.

You will be drawn in by the initial romance, only to be shocked by the unexpected turn in the later part. Adams has a way of lulling you into a false sense of security and then hitting you with a powerful and disturbing conclusion. It is a unique and unforgettable reading experience that will leave you with mixed emotions.

Despite the disturbing nature of the book, it is well-written and engaging throughout. The characters are well-developed, and the story has enough twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat. If you are looking for a book that will challenge you and make you think, then this is definitely one to consider.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good story with a bit of a twist. It may not be for everyone, but for those who are willing to take the plunge, it will be a reading experience they will not soon forget.

This is either one of the best books I've ever read, or one of the more offensive ones. I am still unsure, and continue oscillating between the two views.

On the one hand, it's impossible not to fall in love with the female protagonist. You share in the joy of the relationship between the protagonists and are inspired by the staggeringly lyrical use of language by the author. The plot builds up with terrifying complexity before it all falls apart.

On the other hand, putting aside the misogyny in the book, there is something deeply disturbing about the plot. While on the surface one might think otherwise, for me it's clear that the villain here is the male protagonist. He is exceptionally self-absorbed, consciously blinding himself to inconvenient truths. Beyond anything else, he is truly the source of the tragedy in this book due to an offhand remark he makes at the beginning of the relationship with Käthe. The fact that I'm not entirely sure whether this portrayal is conscious or subconscious is perhaps what lies at the core of my discomfort with the novel. If it's the former, then this is a nuanced critique of the male psyche. If it's the latter, however, this becomes a criticism of "gold digging" women, and this clearly didn't age well. Unfortunately, not enough of me believes the former.

I find myself constantly reevaluating my stance on this book. The beautiful language and engaging plot draw me in, yet the disturbing elements make me question its overall value. It's a complex and thought-provoking work that leaves me with more questions than answers.

Perhaps with further reflection and analysis, I will be able to come to a more definitive conclusion about this book. For now, I remain in a state of uncertainty, grappling with the conflicting emotions it has evoked within me.

While this book had great potential, it unfortunately did not live up to it.

It was extremely verbose, with the author using an excessive number of words to convey the story.

In fact, it took over 300 pages to tell a tale that could have easily been told in 200 pages or less.

This made the reading experience rather cumbersome and time-consuming.

Moreover, the book was labeled as a ghost story, but in reality, it did not truly deserve that classification.

The elements of a traditional ghost story were lacking, and it failed to create the expected atmosphere of mystery and spookiness.

Overall, despite its initial promise, this book fell short in several aspects and did not meet the expectations of the readers.

I first read this book in my 30s.

It was a captivating experience that left a lasting impression on me.

Over the next 10 years, I found myself rereading it a few times.

Each time, I discovered new details and gained a deeper appreciation for its beauty and wisdom.

Now that I'm 65, I have a strong desire to read it again.

I wonder if, with the passage of time and the accumulation of life experiences, I can finally understand why I loved this book so much.

Perhaps it holds a special place in my heart because it speaks to something fundamental within me.

Or maybe it's the way the author weaves the story, creating a world that is both familiar and enchanting.

As I embark on this new reading journey, I'm filled with anticipation and excitement.

I can't wait to immerse myself in the pages of this beloved book once again and see what new insights and emotions it will bring.

4.7 stars.

Serious horror enthusiasts should definitely grab a copy of The Girl in a Swing. This beautiful novel is haunted by snatches of a witch woman and a terror tale. Pummeled by a ceramic fist, my eyes devoured the resplendent, Venusian descriptions of fine china, weeds, and flowers. It is pure poetry that you'll want to read aloud.

A socially awkward English man brings back a wife from mainland Europe, specifically Copenhagen. She is gorgeous, different, erotic, and...supernatural. Together, the groom and bride run the fine china shop...for a while. Fans of Tanith Lee should be drawn to The Girl due to its hallucinatory, abstract, scary, and foggy feel.

I'm not sure if there's a connection, but I wonder if Adam named his novel after the Rococo era painting "The Swing" by Jean-Honoré Fragonard. Adams' gorgeous prose surely matches the awesome magic of Fragonard's painting.

This book is a welcome addition to any serious collection of pretty prose or horror.

This was one of those books that could be read with enjoyment once. However, considering that a lifetime is so short and there are so many excellent novels to be read, it's hard to imagine anyone wishing to read it again.

In the 1970s, there was a television series in the UK with 45-minute horror stories, and this particular story would have made a great script for one of them. The novel, arguably, is a little too long for its storyline. There is perhaps an excessive amount of aficionado talk about porcelain and pottery, rather than focusing on the sinister haunting of the main female character. It seems as if the book is attempting to be a ghost story but doesn't quite succeed.

Nonetheless, I think it offers a good distraction for long waits at airport terminals. It's not an insult to intelligence or sensibility like what passes for "airport literature" or what the French call a "roman de gare". It's high-standard light reading that pretends to be a bit more than it actually is. But I don't want to be too hard on this book; it is definitely worth the read.

Great writing but a really weird story.

It had such unique language and style that it was truly captivating to read. However, the plot was rather convoluted and I have to admit I couldn't really follow it easily.

I found myself getting confused as to how it ended. I guess I might have skipped too many paragraphs along the way, but at that point, I didn't care enough to re-read and try to figure it all out.

The story seemed to take so many unexpected turns that it was a challenge to keep up. Maybe with a more careful reading, I would have been able to understand it better, but as it stands, it remains a bit of a mystery to me.

Despite the confusion, I still appreciate the author's talent for creating such an interesting and engaging piece of writing.

A gripping, twisting, erotic horror novel awaits you. The character development is truly fascinating, drawing you in and making you care about each and every one. Even though there are still questions lingering at the end of the book, it only adds to the allure and mystery. The story is completely unpredictable, at least for me. It takes you on a wild ride that you never saw coming.

This is a significant departure from most of what people are familiar with when it comes to Richard Adams' work. It's like a complex tapestry, weaving together various horror and supernatural themes. These are then wound around an erotic love story, the rich history of ceramics, and the headlong journey of two star-crossed lovers. The combination of these elements creates a unique and unforgettable reading experience that will keep you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end.

Well, let's start with the bad first.

This book was an extremely dense read. In my opinion, when a writer tries to be overly "literary" while penning a piece of genre fiction, it often doesn't quite hit the mark. And this novel, in my view, was teetering on that fine line. It could have easily been 100 pages shorter. I don't say that lightly as I have a penchant for big books. However, it took an inordinately long time to really get going, and the ambiguous and vague ending simply didn't make up for all the arduous trudging through the pages.

Now for the good.

The book is beautifully written! It contains some of the most exquisite passages I think I've ever had the pleasure of reading. This, in fact, was the sole reason I persevered with reading it. The romance between Alan and Kathe was wonderfully developed, although both of them were incredibly stupid and annoying at times. Their story was heartfelt, but the fact that Kathe refused to talk about her history and Alan didn't seem eager to know became a bit more than tedious as the pages wore on.

The horror/ghost/supernatural elements were extremely, extremely, extremely subtle. After having read so much, I felt a bit cheated at not having a more definitive ending. The blurbs on the book claimed it was erotic, but it wasn't. They also said it was scary, but that wasn't the case either. But all things considered, I would still recommend it, solely because the writing, despite being a bit overdone, is superb.

I have loved this book for years. It holds a special place in my heart, and every time I think about it, a sense of warmth and nostalgia washes over me.

Recently, I felt that it was time to read it again and revisit the great love story that is The Girl in the Swing. This book is truly timeless and forever.

The story unfolds in a beautiful and captivating way, drawing the reader in from the very first page. The characters are vividly portrayed, and their emotions are palpable.

As I reread the book, I found myself getting lost in the world of the story once again. I laughed with the characters, cried with them, and felt their joys and sorrows as if they were my own.

The Girl in the Swing is not just a book; it is an experience. It is a reminder of the power of love and the importance of following our hearts.

I know that I will continue to love this book for many years to come, and I will always cherish the memories that it has given me.

So, if you haven't read The Girl in the Swing yet, I highly recommend that you do. It is a book that will touch your heart and stay with you forever.

The Girl in a Swing is in no way similar to Watership Down. There are no talking animals here at all.

Instead, it presents a story that delves deep into the realms of love, obsession, and ghosts, and it is truly a spectacular read.

The protagonist is a young man from a stable family who has taken over his father's fine china business in a small town in England. He has a hint of extrasensory perception, which only surfaces rarely during his boyhood and young adulthood.

While traveling on business to Scandinavia, he encounters a beautiful woman and instantly falls in love. She is bright, funny, and has an air of mystery that is both alluring and disturbing. In a matter of weeks, they decide to marry. She quits her secretarial job and joins him in England. Their marriage takes place in the spring, and the remainder of the novel unfolds over the summer.

This is a truly frightening and yet sad story, and it is also extremely well-written. There are multiple layers of events happening simultaneously, making it a complex and engaging read. I had to read the book three times before I felt I had grasped most of the subtle interwoven connections.

I highly recommend this book, unless you have an aversion to being scared. There is no gore or violence shown directly; such events occur off-stage and are only approached from an angle, after the fact.

Oh, and this is one of the few novels set in contemporary England where I felt a sense of familiarity. It felt as real to me as my husband's hometown, his friends, and the extended family, in the way people interact (or don't). Also, this book has sparked a minor obsession with the history of fine china and porcelain in me. And if you're wondering who the girl in the swing is, that's a great question. I've thought about it a lot, and I'm still not entirely sure.

I truly loved it. After reading Sarah Waters' remarkable haunted house novel "The Little Stranger," I found myself constantly thinking about it.

The plots of this story and others may differ in various ways, but there are common threads that I can't disclose without giving away spoilers.

The hero is a shy and sexually naive young man who falls in love almost at first sight with a beautiful German woman he meets during a business trip abroad. Their courtship lasts approximately five days before they get engaged to be married. However, there is something distinctly strange about this courtship. She never allows him to escort her home; instead, she always says goodbye at a bus stop. She refuses to tell him anything about herself, her life, her family, or her background. Additionally, she won't marry him in a church.

This not only puzzles our hero, who is a devout believer and comes from a small town where people gossip about such matters, but it also creates significant problems in planning the wedding. Since she has to establish legal residency before they can have a civil ceremony, they solve the problem by eloping to the U.S., where all that is needed is a blood test and a three-day waiting period.

The honeymoon gets off to a rocky start, but after a terrifying experience that helps strengthen their relationship, they embark on a sexual marathon that would exhaust all but the most passionate newlyweds. Then they return home to England, and strange things begin to happen. For our hero, the worst part is that deep down in the recesses of his subconscious that he refuses to listen to, he knows why and what it's all about. Eventually, we'll figure it out too, by the final chapters, and by then we're as scared as he is. If you want to know the rest, as we used to say in grade school book reports, "read the book and find out."