Gwen, in Green

By: Hugh Zachary

Narrated by: Joe Hempel

Length: 5 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

After receiving a large insurance settlement, young couple Gwen and George fulfill a dream by buying their own little island, a secluded, private paradise surrounded by a lush green landscape of plants.

What the real estate man didn't tell them was that a tragedy took place years earlier in the cool, clear pool near the house. And the waters still hold a terrifying centuries-old secret.

Soon George begins to notice strange changes in his wife. Always so reserved and demure, suddenly Gwen has become passionate and insatiable. And then there are the people who have mysteriously started to disappear....

©1974 Estate of Hugh Zachary (P)2022 Valancourt Books LLC

Psychosexual Eco-Horror From The 70s

An intriguing psychosexual eco-horror novel about a woman who becomes something of a human Venus fly trap. Gwen is a deeply repressed housewife and her cheerful, sexually bullying husband balances out her timid frigidity with his frequent demands of her wifely duties. He controls her entire world, not particularly cruel but an oblivious and pushy breadwinner. But when they move into a lush new area, something begins to infest her. And as deforestation begins for a new industrial plant, she finds herself more and more compelled to seduce the workmen to their deaths. The story explores the idea of a rebellion against the masculine rapacity of industrialization with feminine seduction and connection to nature. The atmosphere is very 1970s and is a bit Freudian for modern tastes. Still, there's something compelling in the green witchcraft and sexual empowerment of a meek housewife as she becomes a murderous plant-communing sexpot. There isn't much of a third act, however, and even though I thought it held up pretty well, it's still a bit dated. A short, interesting green witch succubus thing with paisley wallpaper and shag carpets; fun in its way.

An enjoyable story with excellent narration

Valancourt Books is putting out some pretty great older obscure titles out there and I have enjoyed every single one I have read. Most of them I probably would have never run across on my own.

An enjoyable story with well drawn characters and a very interesting premise. Joe Hempel did a great job with the narration as well. He has a great cadence and tone.

I received a complimentary copy of the audiobook of this title. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Plus, the cover kicks some serious butt.

Incredibly Strange and Engaging

This is possibly the strangest book I have consumed on Audible. The narrative involves a smash-up of myriad genre tropes--space aliens, ghosts, possession--and somehow forges them into a coherent and entertaining whole. It's very much a product of its time--some of the 1970s-era erotica might come across as a bit dated--but this works in its favor.