M.G. MASON’S GHOST STORY 'ALL QUIET ON THE TERRACES' IS MOVING TRIBUTE TO TIMES PAST

Letting go can be difficult. The heartache of a failed romantic relationship, the loss of a beloved pet, the death of a friend or family member, even something as seemingly trivial as the cancellation of a favorite television show can lead to feelings of bereavement. Cherished memories can be a powerful anesthetic during hard times, but if we’re not mindful we can become haunted by the ghosts of our pasts, unable to move on towards other rewarding prospects.

M.G. Mason is one author who knows ghosts. The Swindon-born British writer’s self-proclaimed literary hero is legendary sprite-spinner M.R. James, and Mason’s own back catalog is rife with spirits: the multi-book Salmonweird series, about a seaside Cornish village with a lively incorporeal population, and the complimentary one-off works Angel’s Mass, The Small Bronze Carriage on the Mantelpiece, and The Residents of James Hotel, are thought-provoking takes on the classic ghost story. Adding to that roster now is Mason’s newest release (due November 20th), All Quiet on the Terraces.

Natasha Black is a third-generation U.K. football fan. Her grandfather, Willie, was a celebrated player with the Gladstone club, and a significant bulk of Natasha’s childhood and teenage memories are enshrined at the local football stadium that’s set for imminent demolition. Natasha has worked long and hard to ensure that the stadium’s history is honored at the new park that will take it’s place, and has returned to the crumbling, overgrown grounds for one last sentimental stroll down memory lane alongside Darren, one of the proposed park’s developers. Wandering deep into the recesses of the old stadium unearths a trove of remembrances for Natasha, both good and painful, but things take a turn for the spooky once she meets Georgie Combes, a one-time Gladstone player who’s been dead since the Second World War. This sweet-natured spirit has stalked the stadium grounds for eighty years, and is as reluctant as Natasha to let go of its comforting presence. Together, they face their respective pasts and lay their fears of an uncertain future to rest.

As with his previous ghostly works, Mason demonstrates an impressive knack for highlighting the natural within the supernatural. Save for their lack of flesh-and-blood bodies, his apparitions are ordinary people, with the same loves, hates, passions, and everyday concerns as anyone with a pulse. It’s a skill that makes characters like Georgie intimately relatable and instantly likable. As the audience’s point-of-view figure, Natasha’s attachment for the stadium and loyalty to her local club will be readily recognizable to any sports fan; indeed, on one level All Quiet on the Terraces can be interpreted as an affectionate ode to football culture, with all its pride and pitfalls, and the story itself is separated into four sections—‘Kick Off’, ‘Half Time’, ‘Second Half’, and ‘Injury Time’—that reinforce the game day theme. In that respect, Mason’s tale will have particular resonance to U.K. readers, for whom football (soccer to the American lads and lassies out there) isn’t merely a pastime, but a way of life ingrained into the very foundation of their communities.

At a scant 54 pages, All Quiet on the Terraces is easily finished in a single sitting, yet has the complete, satisfying feel of a much longer work, which only shows how masterful the author has become at crafting his phantom yarns. Those seeking jump scares in The Shining vein will have to look elsewhere, but the moving poignancy in Mason’s latest will likely linger with readers long after this particular match has finished, and for that reason I give it a well-earned 4 (out of 5) on my Fang Scale. Don’t let go of this one.