Solar Labyrinth's Sinister Element

Jason V. having asked: "One question though: what do you suppose is the "sinister element" that Wolfe claims to have "kept so far in the background that few readers notice it at all"? (Introduction to STOREYS OF THE OLD HOTEL)" I thought it was pretty much how tv insidiously takes over some people's lives; i.e., we become so enchanted by the maze, we're reluctant to leave and thus will always be vicarious "armchair adventurers" rather than actual participants in life. I find this notion scary, anyway. Then again, my maze-of-choice is reading. scolex/Robert Borski