Customer Reviews

Devil on Lammas Night

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Here's an example of how an author can take a genre like gothic horror/romance and come up with a book that breaks some rules and shocks the reader. The identity of the person in the book who is able to break the spell of the man who believes (or is) the Devil is very shocking indeed.

This book was very entertaining and the sexual innuendos are unusual in this genre of books in which the heroine is usually a virgin who saves herself somehow, despite the male romantic figure's efforts to save her.

"The Devil on Lammas Night" was a titilating read, making one wonder about the power of suggestion.

This is a one-of-a-kind book. The story is just so fantastic and well told. Tristan Poole is not your average idea of a devil personified. He seems more like a pop star cum beatnik. Fans of Susan Howatch will be pleasantly surprised at how different this book is from her usual style. Unputdownable!

This is a well-written book of romantic suspense that revolves around witchcraft. When an attractive man named Tristan Poole and his followers arrive in the village of Colwyn in South Wales, they move into Colwyn Court, an estate in which Walter Colwyn and his daughter, Gwyneth, a nineteen year old hypochondriac live, after they are led to believe that Gwyneth was brought back from death's door by Tristan and his herbalist healing powers.

When Walter's son, Evan, who is practicing tropical medicine in Africa, returns to South Wales, he is shocked at what he finds at Colwyn Court. Moreover, he is not the only one. His former fiancée's father has a run in with Tristan that involves his wife, and it does not bode well for him or his wife.

Evan also tries to woo back his former fiancée, Nicola, but when she arrives at Colwyn Court and meets Tristan, she undergoes a complete transformation. Evan, with a little help from some unexpected sources, is determined to get to the bottom of the madness and tragedies that seemed to grip Colwyn Court and its inhabitants. The only question is whether or not he will live to tell the tale.

Those who enjoy the romantic suspense genre, laced with a touch of the paranormal, will find this book enjoyable.

"Poole did something unprintable to both the contents of the chalice and the plates of bread. Several females in the congregation screamed in ecstasy.".

I think the ridiculous quote above pretty much sums up the book. Not enough description of the nasties to actually titillate the reader and not actually coherent enough to scare any of the thrill seekers. There was one part later on in the book where it's implied the main villain is about to ceremonially rape a 9 year old girl in front of his "congregation" that disgusted me, but even that was described in such a tame and boring way as to make it somewhat unremarkable.

And for the plot. Oh the plot. What can one say? There's a whole host of characters we have to deal with in the story before we can even get back to the main beta couple who are introduced to us in the first chapter. Everyone here gets the chance to be the subject of the narration. And when I say everyone I do mean everyone - even the cat gets a chance to tell the story. Not really achingly bad, but not great by any stretch of the imagination, it's definitely a product of it's time. Don't expect to see this one get a reprint any time soon.

Even though the book is categorized as gothic genre, in reality it is a work of fiction which totally revolves around witchcraft -- imitative magic with waxen images, pentagrams, Sator formulas, covens, black mass, clairvoyants, animal sacrifices, incantations, possessed animals (attendant demons). Only because a reading group had chosen this book did I persevere and finish. This book was my first Susan Howatch; will probably be my last.

This book that is guaranteed to keep you spellbound.