The case of the curse of the fly revolves around a mysterious and disturbing incident that took place in a secluded mansion with a dark history. The mansion had been rumored to be haunted for generations, with stories of strange occurrences and unexplainable phenomena swirling around it. The protagonist, a young investigator named Jessica, received an anonymous tip about a curse that had been placed on the mansion. Intrigued by the possibility of uncovering the truth behind the supernatural claims, Jessica embarked on a journey to the mansion to investigate the alleged curse. Upon arrival, Jessica was greeted by the current owner of the mansion, Mrs. Johnson.
Both a brilliant narrative device—seeing the story told in Black Leopard, Red Wolf from the perspective of an adversary and a woman—as well as a fascinating battle between different versions of empire, Moon Witch, Spider King delves into Sogolon’s world as she fights to tell her own story. Part adventure tale, part chronicle of an indomitable woman who bows to no man, it is a fascinating novel that explores power, personality, and the places where they overlap.
An Instant New York Times Bestseller and NPR Best Book of 2022 pick From Marlon James, author of the bestselling National Book Award finalist Black Leopard, Red Wolf , the second book in the Dark Star trilogy. Part adventure tale, part chronicle of an indomitable woman who bows to no man, it is a fascinating novel that explores power, personality, and the places where they overlap.
Johnson. A frail and timid woman, Mrs. Johnson seemed to be a believer in the curse, constantly living in fear and paranoia.
Moon Witch, Spider King by Marlon James review – the lion, the witch and the lost child
W hat do you write after winning the Booker prize? A fine problem to have, to be sure, yet the question of how to follow success – of whether to stick or twist, creatively speaking – hardly seems simple, at least to judge by the number of writers yet to publish another novel since winning.
Post-Booker paralysis hasn’t been an issue for the Jamaican novelist Marlon James, now more than 1,000 pages deep into an ongoing trilogy. After winning in 2015 with his third book, A Brief History of Seven Killings, about the attempted assassination of Bob Marley, he thought of writing a “quiet, literary” narrative about Jamaicans in New York; instead came 2019’s Black Leopard, Red Wolf, a gore-slathered fantasy epic in a mythical ancient Africa of warring kingdoms, roamed by a ragtag band of superpower-boosted antiheroes, including a 300-year-old witch, Sogolon, hunting down a swarm of child-murdering demons.
A gruelling, invigorating reading experience rife with contradictions, it widened the horizons of swords-and-sorcery narratives while presenting a lurid vision of Africa to rival anything in the imperialist make-believe of H Rider Haggard. It was hard not to wonder if the fluid sexuality of the central characters, combined with the story’s late-arriving anti-patriarchal thrust, somehow served to green light the excesses of its expletive-laden, groin-fixated splatterfest. Hard not to suspect, too, that the relentless chopping-and-fucking emphasis served as counterweight to a literary artist’s anxiety about writing a book whose ambitions lay not only in decolonising the fantasy genre but also in recapturing the heady rush of devouring Star Wars novelisations and X-Men comics in his youth.
Like its predecessor, this is a long book, scaled to satisfy the genre’s typically pig-out portions
Moon Witch, Spider King, the second instalment, dials down, just a touch, the gut-clenching grotesquerie that characterised the first book. For the most part, it’s an origin story fleshing out Sogolon’s emotional stake in the search for a dead child with which the earlier book began. The action unfolds as a kind of nomadic picaresque centred on her flight from her downtrodden girlhood, in which salvation repeatedly heralds a new form of captivity, whether she’s on the run from her abusive brothers or the royal court where, as a servant, she gets a backstairs view of a succession drama she unwittingly fuels thanks to her lethal telekinetic ability to blow people up from inside, used inadvertently to fend off the predatory head of the household she’s taken into after escaping a brothel.
Like its predecessor, this is a long book, scaled to satisfy the genre’s typically pig-out portions, yet with an uncompromising prose style that shuns easy-reading propulsion. Despite the unglossed vocabulary, the novel’s diction tends to be relatively straightforward: in a childbirth scene, for instance, we read that “everything is wet wet wet and red red red” (typically, we’re also shown “the afterbirth in the corner luring flies”). The difficulty lies more in the book’s enviable confidence that we’ll be able to grasp, say, who’s speaking without the narrative making it crystal-clear, or James’s relaxed attitude to (for example) using three different names for the same character in a single paragraph.
The result is that a chronic fog, strobe-lit by regular flashes of sex and violence, overlays the big picture weirdness, tricky enough in itself to keep track of, with dreams and occasional interludes in an airborne city mixing with a ground-floor reality that isn’t exactly humdrum, to say the least. In that childbirth scene – a mid-book swerve into domestic marital drama – Sogolon gives birth to “lion cubs”, and she’s not talking figuratively; as she points out, in this world “a shape shifter is nothing strange. and anyway my middle brother used to fuck a snake”.
In short, there’s a huge amount going on, and yet the novel’s habit of never staying any place long, combined with its studied indeterminacy about what’s actually happening – Sogolon might be 170 years old, not 300, and isn’t, it turns out, even called Sogolon – serves as an extreme test of stamina. Repeated boss-level clashes with a memory-wiping demigod, the Aesi, don’t come clearly enough into definition to generate real suspense, and despite a lengthy dramatis personae, the book’s only substantial relationship involves Keme, the half-lion father of Sogolon’s aforementioned cubs. By far the most impactful scene involves the frenzied bouts of coupling that ensue after one of their brood is felled in a raid by demons; when Keme wildly beckons a surviving child to come and watch him and Sogolon in the act of making another sibling, it’s a troublingly strange moment with an authentic psychological frisson, rare in a novel intent on baser thrills.
All the same, anyone who stays the course through all this probably won’t want to miss the final instalment to come: a swerve into horror, apparently. On the basis of what’s already been published, that ought to make us shudder in more ways than one – perhaps with a tinge of anticipation, too, for that peaceful novel about Jamaicans in New York.
Moon Witch, Spider King by Marlon James is published by Hamish Hamilton (£20). To support the Guardian and Observer order your copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply
An Instant New York Times Bestseller and NPR Best Book of 2022 pick
From Marlon James, author of the bestselling National Book Award finalist Black Leopard, Red Wolf, the second book in the Dark Star trilogy.
She recounted tales of unexplained noises, apparitions, and sudden disappearances that had plagued her family for years. Jessica decided to conduct a thorough investigation of the mansion and its surroundings. She meticulously examined every room, documenting any anomalies or signs of supernatural activity. As the days went by, Jessica started experiencing strange occurrences herself. She would hear disembodied whispers and see fleeting figures out of the corner of her eye. The turning point came when Jessica discovered an old diary hidden in a forgotten corner of the mansion. The diary belonged to a former occupant of the mansion who had also been plagued by the curse. In the diary, the former occupant detailed a ritual that was believed to lift the curse. Driven by her determination to help Mrs. Johnson and unravel the mystery surrounding the curse, Jessica decided to perform the ritual. Gathering the necessary materials and following the instructions meticulously, she performed the ancient ceremony in the heart of the mansion. Suddenly, a gust of wind swept through the room, extinguishing all the candles. It was as if an invisible force had taken control of the situation. Jessica felt an overpowering presence and a sense of dread enveloped her. She knew she had awakened something far more sinister and powerful than she had anticipated. As days turned into nights and nights turned into weeks, Jessica found herself trapped in a terrifying battle with an ancient evil. The curse seemed to have taken on a life of its own, tormenting her every step of the way. The once-innocent mansion became a dark and foreboding place, filled with malevolent energy and sinister whispers. Despite the mounting odds against her, Jessica refused to give up. She sought out the help of paranormal experts and researched ancient texts to find a way to break the curse. Days turned into nights, and nights turned into weeks. The battle between Jessica and the curse intensified. Finally, after months of sleepless nights and countless encounters with the supernatural, Jessica discovered a way to weaken the curse. With the help of a powerful artifact, she was able to bind the malevolent energy and temporarily contain it. The mansion and its inhabitants were saved from the clutches of the curse. The case of the curse of the fly serves as a reminder of the importance of courage, perseverance, and determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. It also highlights the belief that sometimes the most powerful forces in the world can be overcome with the strength of the human spirit..
Reviews for "The Curse of the Fly: Unexplained Phenomena and Supernatural Causes"
1. James - 1/5 stars - "Case of Curse of the Fly" was a complete disappointment for me. The plot was poorly developed, with so many loose ends that were never resolved. The characters felt one-dimensional and lacked depth, making it hard to connect with any of them. The pacing was also way off, with slow and tedious scenes dragging on for far too long, while important moments were rushed through. Overall, I found this film to be a waste of time and it failed to deliver the thrills and suspense it promised."
2. Sarah - 2/5 stars - I had high hopes for "Case of Curse of the Fly," but unfortunately, it fell flat for me. The special effects were outdated and laughable, making it impossible to take the supposed horror elements seriously. The dialogue was cringe-worthy, with cheesy and uninspired lines that made the characters seem more like caricatures than real individuals. The story was confusing and lacked coherence, with too many subplots that only added to the already convoluted mess. While I appreciate the effort put into making this film, it just didn't deliver on any level for me.
3. Michael - 1/5 stars - I regret sitting through "Case of Curse of the Fly". The acting was subpar, with wooden performances that failed to engage me emotionally. The cinematography was sloppy, with shaky camera work that made it difficult to follow the action. The editing was also poorly done, with abrupt cuts that made the film disjointed and confusing. The overall production value was low, and it felt like a cheap B-movie that didn't live up to its potential. I would recommend avoiding this film unless you are a die-hard fan of the genre.
4. Emily - 2/5 stars - "Case of Curse of the Fly" had an intriguing premise, but it failed to deliver on its promise. The pacing was slow, with long stretches of nothing happening that left me bored and uninterested. The characters were unlikable and lacked development, making it hard for me to invest in their journey. The storyline had potential, but it lacked coherence and failed to tie up loose ends. I was left feeling underwhelmed and unsatisfied by the end. While this film had its moments, it ultimately fell short and didn't live up to my expectations.