"The Spiral Staircase" is of a different order, truly a lapidary masterpiece. Even as I began it, the story sent me off on associative journeys--Borges "Library of Babel," Bartok's Bluebeard's Castle. And then the story brought me back to its own intention, which I believe to be an intensely lyrical exploration of presence and absence, in this case not only psychological but also metaphysical. Marvelous.
