Dr Faraday
The protagonist of the novel, we see the action through the eyes of this first-person narrator. However, questions about Faraday’s reliability are questionable; he is looking back on events years later and is clearly influenced by his own bias - most notably the ‘chip-on-his-shoulder’ surrounding his working class background. Financing his medical degree ultimately contributed to his parents’ early deaths due to financial problems. Important to note is Faraday’s position as a doctor, a respectable member of society, meaning he can gain access to private affairs of the family that we wouldn’t otherwise see. The main premise of the novel regards Faraday’s obsession with and desire to “possess” a piece of Hundreds: this manifests into a form of unconscious energy that, arguably, haunts Hundreds and the Ayreses. Dr Faraday is never directly described, so the reader is left to create an image of him based on his own expression, such as his “bachelor” lifestyle that he so despises.
Caroline
Caroline is the middle child of the Ayres family, who becomes Dr Faraday’s love interest despite a large age gap. Described as a hardy, independent woman (unlike traditional images of women in this era), Caroline lives at home still, unmarried, and happy with the company of her dog, Gyp. Waters describes Caroline as “plain”, never beautiful or stereotypically feminine. We learn that she went to work during wartime and was called back to Hundreds to look after her brother when he was injured- a career that she despises as taking her freedom. We see Caroline as a strong-willed character, even calling off her wedding to Faraday in order to follow her own dreams.
Roderick
Roderick, after the death of his father, is left as the man in charge of the family estate - a burden that contributes to his mental failings. Having been a pilot in WW2, Rod, in the opinion of Faraday, experiences what we now know as PTSD. On top of this, his leg was badly injured and gives him trouble often. Rod is presented as a protective, self-blaming character who feels responsible for ensuring his family escape the “haunting” he is subject to. He drinks heavily and is eventually committed to a mental hospital after reverting to a childlike state of shock, where he spends the rest of the novel.
Mrs Ayres
Mrs Ayres is the mother of the Ayres family, living at Hundreds with her two living children. Initially, she appears eccentric but welcoming to Faraday, and concerned for Betty’s health (she calls the doctor out). It becomes clear, however, that the death of her first daughter, Susan, is a source of distress for Mrs Ayres, and her crucial weakness. As the novel progresses, Mrs Ayres withdraws further into her own mind and similarly to Rod, displays childlike tendencies, as well as a distinctly maternal affection for Betty, rather than her own children.
Betty
Betty is the young maid who has been brought to live at Hundreds and care for the house. It is Betty who initially causes Faraday to come to Hundreds, as well as introduces the supernatural theme of “ghosts” and “bad thing(s)” that she senses in the house. Forming a close bond with Mrs Ayres, Betty lives in the house until all the family have left- arguably the only survivor of the house’s curse, perhaps as she’s not exactly family. Appearing again at the end of the novel, Betty follows traditional roles for a woman, meeting a man and eventually working in a factory.
Dr Seeley
Dr Seeley is a friend and colleague of Faraday, the original doctor for the Ayreses. He brushes off any supernatural mention with scientific reason, seeming to blame women’s hormones and energy as the root of any unexplained goings on. He appears as a stereotypical ‘mans man’, displaying almost sexist attitudes to Caroline at the dance - encouraging Faraday to wed her. Waters doesn’t present Seeley as a particularly likable character, although he does provide respite for Faraday.
