The Withered Arm by Thomas Hardy

twaBlurb: The road from Anglebury to Holmstoke is in general level; but there is one place where a sharp ascent breaks its monotony. Farmers homeward-bound from the former market-town, who trot all the rest of the way, walk their horses up this short incline. The next evening, while the sun was yet bright, a handsome new gig, with a lemon-coloured body and red wheels, was spinning westward along the level highway at the heels of a powerful mare. The driver was a yeoman in the prime of life, cleanly shaven like an actor, his face being toned to that bluish-vermilion hue which so often graces a thriving farmer’s features when returning home after successful dealings in the town. Beside him sat a woman, many years his junior—almost, indeed, a girl. Her face too was fresh in colour, but it was of a totally different quality—soft and evanescent, like the light under a heap of rose-petals

Price: £1.00 or free on the kindle

Age: 13+

This book is a short story by a very well respected author. The book is creepy and weird, but not so much scary (I don’t know if I was meant to find it scary, so watch out) yet it still comes into the horror category. It is a victorian so some readers may struggle with the language, but I didn’t find it very difficult so you probably won’t either. I got this book for my birthday and it took me about 45 mins to read it, it is very short and definetly worth reading. It is about a woman who accidently curses her ex-husbands new wife. Hence the title, it’s about a woman with a withered arm and lots of odd things happen along the way. This book is absolutely amazing and I highly reccommmend it to anyone who is into short but intruiging stories. This is aimed at both girls and boys and I hope you enjoy the book.