‘Twilight Hour’ by Carol Smith
Published by Sphere, October 2008.
ISBN: 978-0-7515-4065-9

"Someone was still on the loose,  slaughtering the locals one by one.  Which wasn’t a joke in such a sheltered enclave?"  (p.352-3).  Twilight Hour  has a familiar pattern, namely a limited number of people in a confined space,  apparently being targeted for killing one by one.  The sheltered enclave is a modern jerry-built group of houses constructed on an enclosed site where an ancient manor house,  now in ruins,  once stood.  The builder,  Oliver Swann, a real go-getter,  has taken advantage of a shortage of deeds which had been lost in a fire on the site many years before,  to claim the land.  The locals  are a mixture of new settlers,  "a disparate group" recently moved in and a few original inhabitants.  The group consists of a couple who have taken early retirement for suspicious reasons,  a recently married couple,  an Irish journalist and a n artist,  but all have secrets to hide which are gradually revealed to the reader and to one another.  The original inhabitants, generally associated with the ancient manor house are Crazy Betty who has lived in a caravan in the woods for as long as anyone can remember,  and Commander Pires Compagne who has returned to the area after years abroad.  Peter,  who is "blonde and gorgeous like a Greek God"  is the local postman.  Two of the company are horrifically murdered and a beautiful dog is shot.  What adds to their terror is the fact that they are an isolated community on the edge of Dart moor.

The background,  in my opinion,  is described in a way that gives identity and character to the book.  The people don't quite come to life but the Moor does.  It is described in Summer,  Autumn and Winter with its mists,  thunderstorms,  wind and rain.  Strange beasts with tiger-like eyes wander around,  a hooded,  cloaked and faceless figure walks along the paths at dusk and seances are held which seem to bring the dead back to life.  All of these seem to be possible.  The reasons for the murders and the characters involved may not be entirely convincing,  but the book is well-worth reading for its creation and atmosphere of the Moor.
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Rosemary Brown