Lake Klöntal, Edward Gorey Scents, Isle of Wight, Manor House Ghosts & More: Endnotes 26 September

Every Friday, we celebrate the weekend — and all the reading and relaxing and daydreaming time ahead — with Melissa's favorite book- and travel-related links of the week. Why work when you can read fun stuff?!

This post is part of our Endnotes series.

Despite its somewhat forbidding appearance above, Klöntalersee (Lake Klöntal) in Glarus, Switzerland, is not haunted (as far as we know). When it’s not spooky season, the lake is a cheery contrast of bright blue and green with the surface of the lake shimmering like a mirror; photographic evidence here — and a stunning video here. In the winter, the lake is a popular place to go ice diving (!), and the rest of the time, you can swim, canoe, windsurf, and fish in its waters. The surrounding area is an excellent place for hikes. Here’s a lovely 10-minute video tour of the region.

• How Grady Hendrix Came to Love Horror. Grady Hendrix writes gleefully sinister horror novels; they’re excellent reads for people who can see the darkly funny side of scary situations. This essay is from the new book Why I Love Horror: Essays on Horror Literature, which I will be acquiring immediately.

• I couldn’t click fast enough when I learned about the Murder, She Wrote Festival in Mendocino, California, next May.

• A new book from Maureen Johnson is always cause for celebration:

• Two pieces of very exciting news for Agatha Christie fans: (1) The British Library is launching a major exhibition on Dame Agatha next October (October 2026-June 2027). It will include, among many other things, her 1937 Remington typewriter, notebooks and manuscripts, family photos from her travels, and a letter she wrote to her second husband about her experiences on the Orient Express. Tickets aren’t on sale yet, but you can join their mailing list to be notified when they’re available. (2) The novel The Seven Dials Mystery is being adapted for Netflix. The story will be adapted by the writer behind Broadchurch and will star Helena Bonham-Carter and Martin Freeman.

• Take a peek inside David Lynch’s house.

• Aw. This is so nice. A new literary prize has been established in Hilary Mantel’s name. ‘A panel of five judges, chaired by Maggie O’Farrell, will assess 15,000 words of a novel in progress, and both winner and runner-up will receive not only money, but mentoring from Mantel’s literary agency.’

• A poignant love letter to a shuttered dive bar in NYC. ‘I’ve heard it said that the key to loving New York is learning to live with perpetual loss… New York giveth and New York taketh away. I get it. And usually I, too, get over it eventually. But losing Dirty Precious just cut too deep.’

• I need these Edward Gorey-inspired fragrances immediately. Delightful example: Grumblotch’s Salts Perfume Oil smells like ‘Pale crystals poured from a chipped glass jar, emitting a brittle whiff of bitter almond and cinnabar, swirling, undissolved, into sugar-clotted lemonade.’

• For more things that smell nice: Organic bar soaps that pay tribute to classic novels including Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, Little Women, and A Room with a View. The packaging resembles Penguin book covers!

• A Wildlife Lover’s Guide to The Isle of Wight. ‘[M]ost of the island’s many visitors don’t even know about the eagles, let alone about the Isle of Wight’s status as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Yet nature lovers will find plenty to admire here, including a diverse array of habitats, from chalk downland to forest to wetlands. The island is a stronghold for red squirrels too — there are no greys here — and it is home to many butterflies, including the rare glanville fritillary.’

• This is so cool! A 23-year-old player in the Netherlands is using Minecraft to build landscapes and architecture inspired by Dutch Golden Age paintings.

• Bookmark it for future travel: The English Country Pubs With Rooms You Must Visit.

• DELIGHTFUL and INTERESTING:

• No lies detected: The Best Movie Genre is One Where a Party at an Estate Goes Horribly Wrong.

• Related: Upstairs’ Downfall: The Decline, Death and Afterlife of the English Country House in Five Ghost Stories.

New Podcast Episode — Manor House: The Fall of the House of… Almost Everyone, Really

https://unsplash.com/photos/a-large-building-with-a-clock-tower-on-top-of-it-WqbnPJSHaxs

For most people, home represents comfort, safety, maybe family. It’s the place where you can be yourself — and where you find all your stuff.

For the wealthy, the right home can mean status, reputation, and legacy — especially in the UK. For hundreds of years, the traditional English manor was more than simply a big house staffed with servants. It was a grand home situated on farmland owned by the family. In addition to being a showpiece, it was a responsibility.

The US equivalent is a Gilded Age mansion, minus the need to worry about the welfare of tenants. Those 20th-century robber barons could simply count their money and throw lavish dinner parties. And in Europe, the history and luxurious accommodations come in the form of palaces, chateaux, castles, palazzos, and other opulent estates.

In this episode, we explore the houses-as-characters described by iconic authors, including Jane Austen, the Brontë sisters, Nancy Mitford, and a gaggle of Gothic writers. We also delve into the real secrets of the Winchester Mystery House and meet the various ghosts haunting British country houses. Then we recommend many books we love set in notable manor homes, including a classic whodunnit, an atmospheric post-WWII ghost story, a fresh story inspired by a real-life Victorian court case, an all-American take on the classic Gothic novel, and a dark family story set on the edge of the Fens.

Get the show notes and transcript.

Parts of the Strong Sense of Place podcast are produced in udio. Some effects are provided by soundly.

Treat yourself to a nice cuppa today.

Top image courtesy of Yannick Pulver/Unsplash.