The Pale Horse

The location around which the narrative revolves is the former inn, turned private residence, the Pale Horse. Giving the novel its title, the name is taken from the sixth chapter of the biblical Book of Revelation: “And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beast of the earth.” The Pale Horse in the Bible represents the power of death, the perfect symbol for the inn that harbors such wicked and malevolent persons.

As distinct from the other four horses in the same biblical chapter—the white horse (a symbol of military victory), the red horse (a symbol of war), and the black horse (a symbol of judgment)—the pale horse represents pestilence, death, and suffering, even being associated with hell. The women who live at the Pale Horse are associated with witchcraft and evil, a very stark contrast to the ideals of a biblical perspective that condemns witchcraft. There is even a nod to ancient historical literature in naming the inn after a horse, calling to mind the ancient Trojan horse that wasn’t what it seemed from the outside—much like the Pale Horse created a diversion from the real activity of the criminal mastermind.