Book Review: The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer: My Life at Rose Red by Joyce Reardon

As a huge Stephen King fan I have of course watched 'Rose Red' and 'The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer', and have both in my DVD collection. I didn't know this book existed until I saw it at a boot fair and immediately snapped it up! And I have to say, it's a great little book, written in the form of a diary belonging to the titular mistress of Rose Red. It's got that Victorian ghost story vibe, where the narrator is making a written record and the reader is addressed directly as either the diary, the correspondent, etc. and which was done so famously with Bram Stoker's 'Dracula' (one of my favourites). It's a wonderful read, puts you firmly in poor Ellen's shoes, and illustrates the strange goings-on in the house known as Rose Red in a much more personal light than the two movies can. It's also fun reading it from the perspective of a person who's seen 'Rose Red' and knows what happens to the 'editor', Joyce Reardon! In fact it's really made me want to go back and watch the two movies again (but I can't because they're in storage *sob*).

The hardcover edition is an extra joy thanks to its lovely photos and illustrations, including a map of the ground floor of Rose Red inside the cover, which really shows how bonkers large the house was!

A great treat for fans who are familiar with the story, and a lovely traditional spooky read for those who aren't.

(I presume it's written by King because I know Reardon is a character in 'Rose Red' but I don't actually know!)