Terror en el ataúd

About this issue

This Spanish serial novel by Ada Coretti, published 1981, follows Charlotte, a governess in the Mamppos household who awakens paralyzed and presumed dead. Discovering she consumed only partial poison meant to kill her, she finds herself trapped in a coffin destined for burial. Trapped in a cemetery niche with dwindling air, Charlotte uses a dagger hidden by sympathetic servant Katty to break free from the casket. Simultaneously entering labor—her seven-month pregnancy concealed throughout her employment—she becomes her own midwife in desperate circumstances, delivering her child within the sealed tomb. Severely hemorrhaging and weakening, she manages to dislodge the marble covering before death claims her, ensuring her infant reaches the surface. The mystery of her poisoning implicates household members: her employer Oliver Mamppos (who loved her), his wife Sabina (who hated her), or members of the domestic staff.