The Man in the Dark

 

The Man in the Dark / Susan Scarlett 
London: Dean Street Press, 2022, c1940.
210 p.

I read this in ebook form recently, as I was returning home from a trip. It whiled away an entire flight quite enjoyably! 

Susan Scarlett is the pen name of Noel Streatfeild; she wrote 12 romances under this name, in and around wartime as reading meant to distract, and Dean Street Press has reissued them all. They are generally light and charming, although I am beginning to detect patterns: there is always a rival to our heroine who is self-centred and duplicitious, but what surprises me is how often it is a sister or cousin who is so mean spirited. 

In this book, Marda Mayne is hired as a companion of sorts for the young 17 year old goddaughter of James Longford. James was in an accident a few years before and lost his sight, and he's been a recluse ever since. But his best friend has died and he's now responsible for Shirley. So the charming and optimistic Marda enters his dark and dour household, and after their first meeting, you will know where this is going. 

However, there are stumbling blocks in the way. The housekeeper is dead set against Marda and the changes she wants to make. James' sister is poisonous, not wanting any young woman coming between James' money and the inheritance she plans on for her young son. And even 17 yr old Shirley tries to vamp James once she sees Marda is interested (Marda does not have a poker face). There are often very young girls acting romantically in her books, I find.  

In any case, Marda ultimately triumphs, as you know she will before you even open the book. But it was a circuitous route, with lots of entertaining brouhahas to read about, and some romantic subplots that are both amusing and charming. This one felt more light-hearted and optimistic than some of the other ones I've read, there is no true antagonist plotting seriously against Marda here. I found it a delightful, easy read and it put me in the mood for more of her books.