What’s The Gold-Bug all about?:
Believing William Legrand to have gone insane following an insect bite, his friend initially decries his quest for gold as the ramblings of a madman. Yet when Legrand’s conviction fails to waiver, they set off on a bizarre journey, accompanied by Jupiter, Legrand’s loyal and equally skeptical servant. What follows is a strange tale of coded messages, hidden treasure, and uncanny prophecy that will both enthrall and baffle even the most perceptive readers.Part horror story, part detective fiction, The Gold Bug is an ingenious tale bearing all the hallmarks of Poe’s extraordinary narrative skill.
What did I think?:
Welcome to the first story in a new collection in my Short Stories Challenge after I completed a previous collection. I’ve always been curious about the work of Edgar Allan Poe, especially after reading his story The Tell Tale Heart many years ago and loving it. It actually forms part of this collection so I will be reviewing it once I’ve read it again and am excited to discover what I think of it as an adult. Unfortunately, The Gold-Bug was a slightly disappointing story for me and I sincerely hope that doesn’t set the tone for the rest of the collection. There were some good bits sure, but at times it felt quite long-winded and unnecessary, which I’ll get into a bit later.
We are told the story from the point of view of an unnamed however seemingly reliable narrator who is quite concerned about a reclusive friend of his, Will Legrand. When he goes to visit him, Will has become obsessed with a golden bug that he and his black servant, Jupiter found when out one day. Our narrator seems to think he has gone quite mad, especially when Jupiter confirms his suspicions and says he is quite worried for his master. Well, as it turns out, Will has found a bit of parchment from a previous shipwreck that leads him to the location of some buried treasure on the island. However, he must crack the code before he can hope to find where the treasure lies.
Okay so at first I have to admit I was intrigued. Yet I thought a lot more would be made of the gold-bug than what actually happened which was slightly disappointing. That wasn’t what irked me about this book however. The first was the outrageous racist attitude towards Jupiter and the way he was written as a character. The language he uses is awful, the way he is presented is shameful and the way he is treated is deplorable! Yes, I know, this story was written an age ago when attitudes were different (unfortunately) but I can’t help the way I feel about that sort of thing and sadly, it will affect my enjoyment of a story.
Secondly, I was expecting a bit more out of the ending. Edgar Allan Poe’s character Legrand, rabbits on for far too many pages about how he manages to crack the code on the parchment and while some people may find it interesting, I just found it dull and had to force myself to finish. What would have made it interesting is how the men chose to divide the treasure amongst themselves (if that did indeed happen – maybe something could have gone horrifically wrong, maybe someone could have been murdered?). I believe that would have made a more interesting story and a better ending as a result. This story is a great piece of detective fiction if that’s what you were expecting but as it was classed as part “horror” story I have to admit to wanting a bit more.
Would I recommend it?:
Not sure.
Star rating (out of 5):
NEXT SHORT STORY: Gallowberries by Angela Slatter from the collection Sourdough And Other Stories
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