While the plot may recall other allegorical crossings (such as the one that the Knight, theSquire and the circus family undertake in Ingmar Bergman's film "The Seventh Seal"), the power of Blackburn's book lies in her language and in her ability to conjure images that are at once spooky and heart-rending.
Families should consider the combinable Hillside Terrace Rooms, like nos. 67 and 112, and privacy lovers the country-squire-esque, decked Estate Suites secreted at the far end of the property.