Roald Dahl frequently creates a unique tone in his work using a surprising mixture of humor and horror, and “The Landlady” is a prime example of this.  Despite a few early disquieting details, the tone at the beginning of “The Landlady” is a light and humorous one. Billy Weaver’s inner monologue about the briskness of successful businessmen sets this tone and at first it seems the story might be an easy and funny one. Billy appears to have a bit of English dry wit about him when he describes the odd food and people he usually associates with bed and breakfasts. His comparison of the landlady’s appearance at the door to a jack-in-the-box is also meant to be funny. 

However, as the plot moves forward, humor gives way to suspense and finally horror. The appearance of the landlady marks a turning point in the tone of the story. Her distracted manner, her pale lips, and the way she eyes Billy from head to toe is unsettling, if not yet scary. Billy continues to use humor, admitting to himself that the old lady is “off her rocker,” which tempers the shift in tone. However, when Billy reads the guestbook, something begins to bother him, and the story takes on a tone of suspicion and menace. By the time Billy finds himself in the company of dead animals, holding a cup of poisonous tea, the tone is decidedly dark and ominous. In the final moments, when it becomes clear that Billy is doomed, “The Landlady” takes on the tone of a horror story.