The author taught my daughter in the university quite a few years ago. I am grateful for the fact that she gave each of her four books to my daughter recently.
In this book I would vote Wild Duck Inn as the best story. Part of the outskirt of Ipoh was exactly like Wong wrote it, at least thirteen years ago. Perhaps it is nostalgia for what I was used to in the yesteryears. I particularly like the fact that Wong pitched it from the angle of a foreign visitor.
My daughter was very taken with the fact that story number 5 and 6 seemed to be linked with a peacock feather. It was sad that a loving owner who enjoyed living in her little house had to die and everything would have to be vacated for viewing and then new ownership. But, well, no one lives forever and houses often can last a few generations.
My favourite neighbour decided to downsize from a three room house to one room in her daughter's home. I have been there in the old abode, chatting and lending a hand here and there. It is almost hard to believe that there were so much stuff in that neat and tidy house. You could hardly believe how much had to be given away. More so if the owner passes on and the only daughter has to go through the effects as in between story 5 and 6.
The first story is the same as the name of the book is a story that I would not read after sunset. From that fact I have to bow to the author for she successfully engineered suspense and sneaked in tinges of fear into my heart. Generally I am not afraid of ghost stories, used to clamour for others to tell them during camp fires and on overnight trips.
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