Feet Foremost

by L.P. Hartley

The basis of the popular British paranormal thriller, "Feet Foremost" is a classic and riveting gothic tale of murder that you will never forget. A wealthy industrialist and his wife renovate a 14th century mansion that has been empty for 150 years only to learn about the legend of a ghost who haunts the grounds. But this is not your ordinary ghost. It is that of a teenage girl who was murdered by her husband before her 17th birthday. This restless young spirit selects her unsuspecting victims by who is closest to death and then takes possession of their bodies until they also die, killing them from the inside out. When a wealthy man falls prey to the spirit, his fiancee works desperately against time hoping to save him.

Genres: Horror

42 pages, Paperback

Published November 5, 2012

About the author

Leslie Poles Hartley (1895-1972) was born in Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, and educated at Harrow and Balliol College, Oxford. For more than thirty years from 1923 he was an indefatigable fiction reviewer for periodicals including the Spectator and Saturday Review. His first book, Night Fears (1924) was a collection of short stories; but it was not until the publication of Eustace and Hilda (1947), which won the James Tait Black prize, that Hartley gained widespread recognition as an author. His other novels include The Go-Between (1953), which was adapted into an internationally-successful film starring Julie Christie and Alan Bates, and The Hireling (1957), the film version of which won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

Reviews

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

The house is haunted by Lady Elinor who was murdered in the 15th century by her cruel brute of a husband. However, for the ghost to gain entrance to the house she must be carried over the threshold. But once she is in, someone in the house will die. A group assembles for the housewarming of the newly renovated Low Threshold Hall. The house had sat unoccupied for the previous hundred and fifty years. A young woman and her fiancée arrive at separate times, which proves unfortunate for the prospective groom who was not present to hear the legend of the malicious ghost that haunts the hall. It’s said the ill-treated ghost tries to gain entry across the threshold of her former residence, and if successful, she will possess and eventually kill the person who carries her through the front doors. Legend says she arrives at the front doors looking like a normal, flesh and blood woman who is somewhat lame and asks to be carried inside across the threshold. If someone agrees, she possesses and eventually kills them. Once that person is dead, she will leave the hall within their body, carried out of the house feet first. The reason the house has a low threshold is to help identify the ghost, as she looks normal when she arrives at the front door seeking admittance. If a woman appears and asks for assistance inside, they will know she’s the vengeful specter. She’s seeking retribution against anyone who takes her inside no matter their connection to the descendants of the cruel husband who crippled and later killed her. The groom Fairfield carries a lame girl in, and death is expected, but there is a strange escape clause.


FYI TIDBIT
The phrase “carried out feet first” or foremost is derived from a funeral superstition that has a very practical application. It is frequently used to describe people who are so devoted to something that they will only give up when they die, as in the popular practice of putting their feet first before anything else. Carrying a coffin foot first is a symbolic gesture that honors the deceased and is a sign of respect for the dead. It also reflects the belief that the deceased will be walking forward in the afterlife and is often seen as an act of farewell. By carrying the coffin feet first, it is believed that the deceased will be able to find their way in the afterlife and make their way to their final resting place.

[Sam Crossland · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent short story, well written and eerie.