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mh_books's review against another edition
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
tessisreading2's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyably spooky, although the ending felt like a bit of a let-down - but I usually get that feeling from horror novels, which is one reason I read them so rarely. Really good spooky atmospheric set-up, though.
jamieh2024's review against another edition
4.0
Like all of Rickmans books, this one deals with local legends and mores.
This time it's in a small town in Wales called Y Groes. I found it interesting to read
about the druidic ritual lore and corpse candles as well as hearing more about some
of the Welsh legends, i.e. Owain Glyndwyr. While not as fast paced as his other works or nearly as bloody this one has its merits.
This time it's in a small town in Wales called Y Groes. I found it interesting to read
about the druidic ritual lore and corpse candles as well as hearing more about some
of the Welsh legends, i.e. Owain Glyndwyr. While not as fast paced as his other works or nearly as bloody this one has its merits.
lakecake's review against another edition
2.0
Meh...this got really good reviews and I wanted to like it, but it wasn't actually scary. At first, I was hoping for a ghost story and I was really excited and then...not so much. Disappointing.
kailadan's review against another edition
3.0
Though I liked the characters and the plot I found that this book did not grab me. I felt that the story was a little underdeveloped or developed in the wrong places maybe. I think it would make a great movie - that's what it read like to me moreso a script than a full on novel. I also found it a bit confusing in places - the end of the scene was told first and then they went back and explained what happened. Overall still a good read and I never felt like I wanted to put it down.
jch2022's review against another edition
4.0
Like all of Rickmans books, this one deals with local legends and mores.
This time it's in a small town in Wales called Y Groes. I found it interesting to read
about the druidic ritual lore and corpse candles as well as hearing more about some
of the Welsh legends, i.e. Owain Glyndwyr. While not as fast paced as his other works or nearly as bloody this one has its merits.
This time it's in a small town in Wales called Y Groes. I found it interesting to read
about the druidic ritual lore and corpse candles as well as hearing more about some
of the Welsh legends, i.e. Owain Glyndwyr. While not as fast paced as his other works or nearly as bloody this one has its merits.
jasminewolfe's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I was completely engrossed in this book! From the vast array of characters and the small plot lines that followed each of them, I would finish a chapter and be yearning to know more about that particular person's story, but then it would switch to another character and I would be enveloped in their plot all over again. I loved learning some Welsh as I read this dark, spooky mystery as well. I plan to read much more of his books in the future!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs
There are two slurs in this book, one for Romani people (it's used a few times) and one used for native Canadian Inuit people.acknud's review against another edition
4.0
I'm not sure I can classify this as horror. This is more of a supernatural suspense novel. It was entertaining and kept my attention. I think it left way for a sequel though as it was unclear what happened to Claire.
octavia_cade's review against another edition
4.0
Three and a half stars, rounding up to four. I came across this book on a list of haunted house stories I'm reading my way through, and that was a grossly inaccurate listing I can tell you. This isn't a haunted house story at all, but it is a horror, and a very entertaining one at that. Sort of rural Gothic, but Welsh rural Gothic of all things, with myth and history and murder all tied up in a remote village that's positively seething with nationalism. That was the really interesting thing about this book, for me - the underlying hostility the Welsh have for the English. Living on the other side of the world as I do, the Welsh-English relationship is not something that often crosses my radar, though I'm aware of course, at least vaguely, of the fraught relationship between them, the history of conflict and violence. It doesn't surprise me that resentment remains (although I'm hoping not to the level depicted here!). It does make it a particularly interesting angle for a horror story to take, however... and it also makes me want to find some good basic books on Welsh history to fill in the gaps. Oh well, even more to add to my tottering to-read pile...