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ceratopsians's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
carola's review against another edition
3.0
Getwijfeld tussen 2 en 3 sterren, maar omdat ik op een zeker punt het boek niet weg kon leggen, op 3 uitgekomen.
Het is een traag boek, waar ik op zich wel van hou, maar de vele omschrijvingen begonnen me tegen te staan. Het is absoluut mooi geschreven en weergegeven, maar het was gewoon teveel.
Toch werd het spannend en interessant, iets over de helft. Maar waar het boek zo traag begon, eindigde het erg snel, het voelde afgeraffeld. Jammer, de spanning was in één klap weer verdwenen.
Het is een traag boek, waar ik op zich wel van hou, maar de vele omschrijvingen begonnen me tegen te staan. Het is absoluut mooi geschreven en weergegeven, maar het was gewoon teveel.
Toch werd het spannend en interessant, iets over de helft. Maar waar het boek zo traag begon, eindigde het erg snel, het voelde afgeraffeld. Jammer, de spanning was in één klap weer verdwenen.
micrummey's review against another edition
2.0
The Prentecost family return to rural Lancashire from Suffolk following the death of the family head. There are plenty of strands in this book, but not all are resolved. The book is full of superstition and folklore centered around the devil, including how the devil itself moves from animal to animal.
There were good descriptions about farming life and the hazardous conditions which can occur when looking after sheep. You could feel the miserable weather.
Quite confused at the start of the book as to where we were in the world as it jumped rapidly around between Suffolk and Lancashire.
Decently written but there wasn't enough real tension or jeopardy to feel for the characters.
There were good descriptions about farming life and the hazardous conditions which can occur when looking after sheep. You could feel the miserable weather.
Quite confused at the start of the book as to where we were in the world as it jumped rapidly around between Suffolk and Lancashire.
Decently written but there wasn't enough real tension or jeopardy to feel for the characters.
renstokes's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
kit0's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
shellshellyshellshell's review against another edition
4.0
I received a copy of this book via NetGalley.
This book is incredibly atmospheric and at times unsettling. It is not a thriller but more a slow burning, creeping tale about the superstitions and secrets of a small community of families who have lived in a valley by the Lancashire moors for many generations. Life is a constant challenge and struggle against the bleak, unforgiving land and the unrelenting elements. And maybe something even darker.
I enjoyed this story more than the author's first book, The Loney, and with an almost surreal or fairy tale quality, Devil's Day is the perfect read for lengthening Autumn evenings.
This book is incredibly atmospheric and at times unsettling. It is not a thriller but more a slow burning, creeping tale about the superstitions and secrets of a small community of families who have lived in a valley by the Lancashire moors for many generations. Life is a constant challenge and struggle against the bleak, unforgiving land and the unrelenting elements. And maybe something even darker.
I enjoyed this story more than the author's first book, The Loney, and with an almost surreal or fairy tale quality, Devil's Day is the perfect read for lengthening Autumn evenings.
amalia1985's review against another edition
4.0
''Oh, the day is done, the harvest's won-
The apples and the hay,
The leaves will wither on the bough,
And all will fall by Devil's Day.''
Decades ago, the Endlands were attacked by the Blizzard. Livestock and residents fell to its wrath. But that was no ordinary blizzard. It was an attack orchestrated by the Devil.
Now, Devil's Day commemorates the survival of the community. Now, it is a day for gathering and remembering. An autumn ritual of golden leaves, acorns, and mossy branches. A chance for the children to sing songs and light bonfires. A day to satisfy the Devil, then keep him away. Because ''all stories in the valley have to begin with the Devil.''
''All we ever saw were stories.''
John and his wife, Kat, return to Lancashire for Devil's Day and the funeral of John's grandfather. Once in the village, the couple realizes that the past hasn't died, secrets are gradually surfacing and danger comes from all sides. How can you cope with expectations and obligations? How can you obey customs that seem too threatening to be considered mere ''legends''?
''A vixen yelped in the trees by the Beasley's bridge, hollow with hunger. And further away, I thought I heard the moaning of the stags on the moor.''
Hurley's writing is exquisite when it comes to the depiction of the moors and the influence of the beautiful, untamed, mystical landscape. Hard for a story not to ''bathe'' in the unique atmosphere of the moorlands. In this novel, the land isn't just vaguely strange. It is downright threatening. Its residents have created a claustrophobic society glued to a distorted notion of tradition, unwilling to change, unrelenting towards the strangers, like Kat, who cannot ''understand'' the passion of following dubious customs and the obsession with continuity.
''It was hard to describe the noises that were there behind them as they made their way along the Corpse Road, the Gaffer said. Like crows calling and yet like children crying too. And every so often, the sound seemed to fly over their heads, low enough to make them duck, a hard, loud scraping like metal on stone.''
Lancashire has an abundance of myths and folk tales associated with the darkest elements of Folklore, like witchcraft and the Devil. The heart of the story brings to mind the well-known incident of the Devil's Footsteps that took place in Devon in 1855. In Lancashire there are tales of school children unwittingly raising the Devil in Burnley and Clitheroe, there are sites rumoured to have been built with the intervention of Old Jack and, of course, let us not forget the infamous Pendle Witches. Apart from the Devil stories, the county is a land where the pagan past found ways to infiltrate Christianity, something that can easily be observed in the harvest and solstice rituals of the British countryside. So, folklore related to Death and the Devil is very prominent in this novel. In addition, Hurley enters the field of Contemporary Folk Horror, reminiscing cult British films of the 60s and 70s, making use of the motif of the expectant mother who becomes more and more sensitive to anything unusual and dangerous.
So, as far as the atmosphere and the story are concerned, Hurley's novel is exceptional. The problem I faced had to do with the characters. With the exception of Kat whom I wanted to comfort since the beginning of the story, the rest of the cast is beyond irritating. Especially the female characters from Liz to Grace and anyone else were the epitome of horrible characterization and the most negative portrayal of female camaraderie and motherhood. Everyone is utterly bonkers and poor Kat has to put up with a squad of barbarian fanatics and the most pathetic husband imaginable. This was an issue I encountered in Starve Acre as well, my introduction to Hurley's work. His skills in creating interesting characters seem to be extremely limited…
Starve Acre was a whooping disaster for me. Devil's Day was far better in terms of atmosphere, dialogue and plot but the characters were impossibly weak. My fondness for Folklore and the moorlands along with the beautiful writing made me rate this novel with 4 stars. I reserve judgement on Hurley, though, until I read The Loney.
''Rise, Devil, rise;
Open your eyes.
Wake, Devil, wake;
Eat up all your cake.
Come, Devil, come;
Whiskey, wine and rum.''
My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/
The apples and the hay,
The leaves will wither on the bough,
And all will fall by Devil's Day.''
Decades ago, the Endlands were attacked by the Blizzard. Livestock and residents fell to its wrath. But that was no ordinary blizzard. It was an attack orchestrated by the Devil.
Now, Devil's Day commemorates the survival of the community. Now, it is a day for gathering and remembering. An autumn ritual of golden leaves, acorns, and mossy branches. A chance for the children to sing songs and light bonfires. A day to satisfy the Devil, then keep him away. Because ''all stories in the valley have to begin with the Devil.''
''All we ever saw were stories.''
John and his wife, Kat, return to Lancashire for Devil's Day and the funeral of John's grandfather. Once in the village, the couple realizes that the past hasn't died, secrets are gradually surfacing and danger comes from all sides. How can you cope with expectations and obligations? How can you obey customs that seem too threatening to be considered mere ''legends''?
''A vixen yelped in the trees by the Beasley's bridge, hollow with hunger. And further away, I thought I heard the moaning of the stags on the moor.''
Hurley's writing is exquisite when it comes to the depiction of the moors and the influence of the beautiful, untamed, mystical landscape. Hard for a story not to ''bathe'' in the unique atmosphere of the moorlands. In this novel, the land isn't just vaguely strange. It is downright threatening. Its residents have created a claustrophobic society glued to a distorted notion of tradition, unwilling to change, unrelenting towards the strangers, like Kat, who cannot ''understand'' the passion of following dubious customs and the obsession with continuity.
''It was hard to describe the noises that were there behind them as they made their way along the Corpse Road, the Gaffer said. Like crows calling and yet like children crying too. And every so often, the sound seemed to fly over their heads, low enough to make them duck, a hard, loud scraping like metal on stone.''
Lancashire has an abundance of myths and folk tales associated with the darkest elements of Folklore, like witchcraft and the Devil. The heart of the story brings to mind the well-known incident of the Devil's Footsteps that took place in Devon in 1855. In Lancashire there are tales of school children unwittingly raising the Devil in Burnley and Clitheroe, there are sites rumoured to have been built with the intervention of Old Jack and, of course, let us not forget the infamous Pendle Witches. Apart from the Devil stories, the county is a land where the pagan past found ways to infiltrate Christianity, something that can easily be observed in the harvest and solstice rituals of the British countryside. So, folklore related to Death and the Devil is very prominent in this novel. In addition, Hurley enters the field of Contemporary Folk Horror, reminiscing cult British films of the 60s and 70s, making use of the motif of the expectant mother who becomes more and more sensitive to anything unusual and dangerous.
So, as far as the atmosphere and the story are concerned, Hurley's novel is exceptional. The problem I faced had to do with the characters. With the exception of Kat whom I wanted to comfort since the beginning of the story, the rest of the cast is beyond irritating. Especially the female characters from Liz to Grace and anyone else were the epitome of horrible characterization and the most negative portrayal of female camaraderie and motherhood. Everyone is utterly bonkers and poor Kat has to put up with a squad of barbarian fanatics and the most pathetic husband imaginable. This was an issue I encountered in Starve Acre as well, my introduction to Hurley's work. His skills in creating interesting characters seem to be extremely limited…
Starve Acre was a whooping disaster for me. Devil's Day was far better in terms of atmosphere, dialogue and plot but the characters were impossibly weak. My fondness for Folklore and the moorlands along with the beautiful writing made me rate this novel with 4 stars. I reserve judgement on Hurley, though, until I read The Loney.
''Rise, Devil, rise;
Open your eyes.
Wake, Devil, wake;
Eat up all your cake.
Come, Devil, come;
Whiskey, wine and rum.''
My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/
brittneyreadsbooks's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
Devil’s Day.
So much potential, and even more disappointment.
In recent years I’ve noticed some sizeable shifts in my reading habits. As someone who was, for such a long time, drawn primarily to thrillers and all things twisty and turny, I used to have a deep need for action and a fast pace to keep me intrigued. Thankfully, that is no longer the case and I am well and truly leaning into my new love of the slow burn. Give me a dark, eerie setting, a slow unravelling of events and throw in a couple of shady characters for good measure and I. Am. In.
This is what I was hoping to get with Devil’s Day and initially, what I thought I’d found. There was something so deeply unnerving about the way the Endlands were referenced – the idea of a baby belonging to a place and the need to preserve a lineage, honouring this little corner of the world – that drew me in and held fast.
Initially.
Then things just…didn’t go anywhere. Like, nowhere. There is slow, and then there is this book. The isolated, dreary setting was fantastic, and a truly unnerving story about family, loyalty and traditions could’ve been set there, but this wasn’t it.
The intrigue I felt for the present-day narrative fell away quickly and was soon lost within a myriad of weirdly intertwined flash-forwards and pages and pages of flashbacks to history and backstory surrounding the setting itself. Unable to really find a groove with all the chopping and changing, paired with the pretty major problem of feeling like nothing was actually happening to progress the story along, Devil’s Day lands as my biggest disappointment of the year so far.
becca_woolston's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
fictionophile's review against another edition
3.0
In rural Lancashire, almost on the Yorkshire border, there is a place called the 'Endlands". A place where generations of the same families have eked out an existence from farming. An insular place riven with superstition and long-standing family feuds.
"The Endlands are remote, not secluded; watchful rather than peaceful."
We arrive in the Endlands with John and Kat Pentecost. John left the farm when he went off to university. Now he works as a schoolteacher. He met his wife Kat and they now live in Suffolk. Since their wedding, this is the first visit home for John. It is a somber occasion as his beloved 'Gaffer', his grandfather has died.
Endlands is a dreary and very eerie place. It is late autumn and the land is bleak, cold, damp, and unwelcoming. In addition to The Gaffer's funeral, the Endlands residents are preparing for the annual 'Devil's Day' celebration. Devil's Day has its roots in ancient superstition, yet some of the residents still believe... Some families accredit a recent spate of bad luck to the Devil, or "Owd Feller' as they call him. They believe that the Owd Feller lives up high on the moors.
John feels a keen sense of belonging to the Endlands. He feels a familial responsibility to stay and help his father with the arduous work on the farm. Meanwhile, newly pregnant Kat assumes that they will return to their home in Suffolk...
Then, a burdensome and alarming revelation is made...
MY THOUGHTS
The setting of "Devil's Day" is every much a character as are the people who inhabit the Endlands. Very well described, the sense of place pervades the entire story. It is a place where children are raised to continue on in the footsteps of their forefathers. A place where little changes over the generations and neighbours are constants in your life, sometimes helpful and sometimes not so much...
This is a very slow-paced novel. Also, it seems to have several characters that are on the periphery of the action who aren't fleshed out enough to be distinguishable. That being said, the main characters are quite vividly rendered and the atmosphere is chilling. There is a lot of village history throughout the book, which some readers might not like, while others will relish. I enjoyed the history, but it had little to do with the actual plot of the story. Also, there was a lot of description in the book. So much so that despite it being beautifully rendered, I felt it distracted the reader from the story itself.
Some scenes are very vivid and quite unsettling, in particular the one where Kat dances blindfolded on Devil's Day.
The author's knowledge of the Lancashire area and its folkloric traditions is very evident.
An unsettling, beautifully written, perturbing novel, that I'm of mixed feelings about... Now, I think I'll have to read "The Loney", the author's debut...
3.5 STARS rounded down
I received a complimentary digital copy of "Devil's Day" from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt via Edelweiss.
"The Endlands are remote, not secluded; watchful rather than peaceful."
We arrive in the Endlands with John and Kat Pentecost. John left the farm when he went off to university. Now he works as a schoolteacher. He met his wife Kat and they now live in Suffolk. Since their wedding, this is the first visit home for John. It is a somber occasion as his beloved 'Gaffer', his grandfather has died.
Endlands is a dreary and very eerie place. It is late autumn and the land is bleak, cold, damp, and unwelcoming. In addition to The Gaffer's funeral, the Endlands residents are preparing for the annual 'Devil's Day' celebration. Devil's Day has its roots in ancient superstition, yet some of the residents still believe... Some families accredit a recent spate of bad luck to the Devil, or "Owd Feller' as they call him. They believe that the Owd Feller lives up high on the moors.
John feels a keen sense of belonging to the Endlands. He feels a familial responsibility to stay and help his father with the arduous work on the farm. Meanwhile, newly pregnant Kat assumes that they will return to their home in Suffolk...
Then, a burdensome and alarming revelation is made...
MY THOUGHTS
The setting of "Devil's Day" is every much a character as are the people who inhabit the Endlands. Very well described, the sense of place pervades the entire story. It is a place where children are raised to continue on in the footsteps of their forefathers. A place where little changes over the generations and neighbours are constants in your life, sometimes helpful and sometimes not so much...
This is a very slow-paced novel. Also, it seems to have several characters that are on the periphery of the action who aren't fleshed out enough to be distinguishable. That being said, the main characters are quite vividly rendered and the atmosphere is chilling. There is a lot of village history throughout the book, which some readers might not like, while others will relish. I enjoyed the history, but it had little to do with the actual plot of the story. Also, there was a lot of description in the book. So much so that despite it being beautifully rendered, I felt it distracted the reader from the story itself.
Some scenes are very vivid and quite unsettling, in particular the one where Kat dances blindfolded on Devil's Day.
The author's knowledge of the Lancashire area and its folkloric traditions is very evident.
An unsettling, beautifully written, perturbing novel, that I'm of mixed feelings about... Now, I think I'll have to read "The Loney", the author's debut...
3.5 STARS rounded down
I received a complimentary digital copy of "Devil's Day" from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt via Edelweiss.