Starling House

Braving the cold, 26-year-old Opal walks home from her job at Tractor Supply after a particularly hard day. She worries that poverty will keep her and her brother, Jasper, stuck in Eden. Passing Starling House, she sees a light in the upstairs window and inexplicably wishes that she could go inside. When she approaches the gate of the house, she sees someone on the other side and assumes it is Arthur Starling, the reclusive heir of Starling House. Many rumors circulate around Arthur and his deceased parents, so Opal is surprised to observe that he is a normal-looking man around her age. Opal approaches him bravely, but after a moment of trying to act nonchalant, she realizes that the man is shaking with rage. He tells her to run.

As Opal runs from Starling House, the narrative switches to a third-person perspective that focuses on Arthur and his knowledge that the house wants Opal. He speaks to the house as if it has a mind of its own. Arthur has promised to be the last “Warden” of the house. (This role is later revealed to be the duty of all Starling House’s inhabitants. The Warden must protect the house from the mythical beasts that lie beneath it.) Arthur hopes that Opal will never return.

Opal is terrified as she runs back to her room at the Garden of Eden Motel and vows never to return to Starling House. That night, however, she has a nightmare about the house and returns a few days later. At the gate, Opal feels an inexplicable connection to the house. She notices that it is covered in mysterious symbols. When Arthur opens the door, Opal lies, telling him that she wants to take a few pictures of the house for an architecture class. Although Arthur initially refuses her entry, he soon surprises her by offering her a job.

The third-person narrator describes Arthur’s immediate regret over his decision to offer Opal a job. He realizes that he recognizes Opal. (The novel later reveals that he saved Opal from the accident that killed her mother.) Now, after some bargaining, Opal agrees to work as Arthur’s housekeeper, starting the following day. Arthur gives her a key that reminds her of The Underland.

Back at Tractor Supply, Opal’s coworker, Lacey, tells her about the rumors that the Starling House is inhabited by satanists. At home, fueled by ambitions to write a story of her own, Opal researches Starling House and the author of The Underland, E. Starling. Although The Underland was not well received upon its publication, a Wikipedia page mentions that the book has since influenced many other children’s picture books and Gothic works. It has also been adapted for the stage and the screen.

When Opal goes to Starling House the next morning, Arthur seems as morose as ever, and he quickly leaves her alone to wander the house. Opal sees several old portraits of the past owners, all of which feature a sword. The paintings’ eyes seem to watch her as she begins the impossible task of cleaning the house. Once she is gone for the day, Arthur thinks of his mother, remembering a time that his father stitched up his mother’s wounds after she returned from an unspecified battle.

Bev, the owner of the motel, argues with Opal about living at the motel for free. The exchange reveals that Opal’s mother struck an unknown deal with Bev before she died, and Bev also mentions that Gravely Power, a company that started locally, has since grown exponentially and is expanding once again. When Opal asks about the Starlings, Bev tells a story that her grandfather once told her. The rumor in Eden is that Eleanor Starling, the original owner of Starling House, killed all three of the Gravely brothers, one of whom she had married only the day before. Eleanor also disappeared just after the third brother was killed. The house is rumored to be haunted, but locals disagree about the manner of Eleanor’s death and the nature of the forces that supposedly haunt the house.

Opal stays up late to write down Bev’s story, including the fact that Arthur delayed calling the police for days after his own parents were found dead. Opal briefly contemplates staying away from Starling House, but she knows that working there is the only way she can afford to pay for Jasper’s asthma medication and his tuition to the elite Stonewood Academy. Her ultimate goal is to enable him to leave Eden and find a better life elsewhere. Throughout the remainder of the week, she discovers a variety of peculiarities such as secret doors and mysterious passageways. One day, she runs into Arthur in the library; he is researching something mysterious and refuses to answer any of Opal’s questions. After several weeks of working at the house, Opal finally begins to feel that she has made the first floor livable, and despite the property’s many mysteries, she starts to feel like she belongs there.

Arthur continues to behave coldly toward Opal. One day, he inadvertently locks her out in the cold weather, and she finally snaps at him and explains that she has given the only coat she owns to her brother. That night, Arthur leaves Opal a coat along with her wages. After Opal leaves, Arthur continues his unusual and mysterious activities, which include practicing his swordsmanship, adding information to a bestiary that features research from generations of Starlings, and tattooing images from the bestiary onto his own skin.

One morning, a representative from Gravely Power, Elizabeth Baine, approaches Opal in the parking lot of Bev’s motel. (Gravely Power is owned by Don Gravely, who lives just outside Eden’s city limits.) Elizabeth tries to convince Opal to arrange an introduction with Arthur, but Opal refuses. From Elizabeth, Opal learns that Don Gravely knows about her and Jasper’s living situation and wants to help. However, Elizabeth’s tone insinuates that she is making a threat. Opal does not tell Arthur about this encounter.