The Devil's Door-Bell [Paperback]

Anthony Horowitz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1986

Thirteen-year-old Martin's new life with a foster mother on a Yorkshire farm quickly becomes a nightmare where evil and unbelievable happenings seem to threaten his life.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Berkley Pub Group (Mm) (June 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 042508891X
• ISBN-13: 978-0425088913
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,147,442 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Anthony Horowitz's life might have been copied from the pages of Charles Dickens or the Brothers Grimm. Born in 1956 in Stanmore, Middlesex, to a family of wealth and status, Anthony was raised by nannies, surrounded by servants and chauffeurs. His father, a wealthy businessman, was, says Mr. Horowitz, "a fixer for Harold Wilson." What that means exactly is unclear -- "My father was a very secretive man," he says-- so an aura of suspicion and mystery surrounds both the word and the man. As unlikely as it might seem, Anthony's father, threatened with bankruptcy, withdrew all of his money from Swiss bank accounts in Zurich and deposited it in another account under a false name and then promptly died. His mother searched unsuccessfully for years in attempt to find the money, but it was never found. That too shaped Anthony's view of things. Today he says, "I think the only thing to do with money is spend it." His mother, whom he adored, eccentrically gave him a human skull for his 13th birthday. His grandmother, another Dickensian character, was mean-spirited and malevolent, a destructive force in his life. She was, he says, "a truly evil person", his first and worst arch villain. "My sister and I danced on her grave when she died," he now recalls.
A miserably unhappy and overweight child, Anthony had nowhere to turn for solace. "Family meals," he recalls, "had calories running into the thousands&. I was an astoundingly large, round child&." At the age of eight he was sent off to boarding school, a standard practice of the times and class in which he was raised. While being away from home came as an enormous relief, the school itself, Orley Farm, was a grand guignol horror with a headmaster who flogged the boys till they bled. "Once the headmaster told me to stand up in assembly and in front of the whole school said, 'This boy is so stupid he will not be coming to Christmas games tomorrow.' I have never totally recovered." To relieve his misery and that of the other boys, he not unsurprisingly made up tales of astounding revenge and retribution.


Anthony Horowitz is perhaps the busiest writer in England. He has been writing since the age of eight, and professionally since the age of twenty. He writes in a comfortable shed in his garden for up to ten hours per day. In addition to the highly successful Alex Rider books, he has also written episodes of several popular TV crime series, including Poirot, Murder in Mind, Midsomer Murders and Murder Most Horrid. He has written a television series Foyle's War, which recently aired in the United States, and he has written the libretto of a Broadway musical adapted from Dr. Seuss's book, The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T. His film script The Gathering has just finished production. And&oh yes&there are more Alex Rider novels in the works. Anthony has also written the Diamond Brothers series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nuclear reactors and Black Witchcraft, April 8, 2000

By 

James (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Devil's Door-Bell (Hardcover)

Martin, a 13 year old English boy has just been orphaned, his parents hit by lightning. He is sent to the depths of Yorkshire to be looked after by the sinister Elvira, Veronica, Irene, Lavinia Crow. When Martin discovers the bizarre rituals going on in the depths of the forest, at the site of a closed down nuclear reactor, not even the police believe him. It seems that the entire village in in the conspiracy. The few people that believe him place themselves in deadly danger as Martin must face the dark powers of his foes until a dramatic conclusion. In the depths of the reactor, Martin discovers his destiny as the first of the Five, the heroes who once saved the world from the Old Ones and must do so again. For the devil's doorbell, a gate to the Old Ones prison is about to open, releasing these demonic forces.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars fun horror-fantasy, May 11, 2002

By 

"kallah" (Springfield, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Devil's Door-Bell (Hardcover)

A young adult horror-fantasy, well-characterized, with unexpected but welcome bursts of humor, a tight, fast-moving plot and excellent writing.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mysteriously Outrageous!, October 16, 2005

By 

Outraged Teen "Jen" (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Devil's Doorbell Pb (Paperback)

I am a huge fan of the Alex Rider series so I was more than eager to read this new explosive series when I heard of it's release. I bought and read the book all in one day so I got all the action at once, therefore my head is still reeling.

Contrary to popular belief Devil's Doorbell isn't very much Alex Rider at all. In true Horrwitz style the Hero is good looking, strong and very likeable but different and mysterious.
It tells the story of an orphan boy called Martin who was caught up in the wrong crowd and found in the wrong place. As a result instead of being thrown into juvy was placed in a new project called LEAF (basically where you are sent to a remote foster home and made to work to get rid of your attitude). It is here that Martin finds himself under the rule of most twisted and corrupt villan I've ever read. In his new and highly strange country life, Martin finds himself thrown into darkness and mystery as the strange village and its inhabitants take an uncanny interest in him. From here Martin finds himself on a rollercoaster of action, dark magic, mystery, darkness and evil.

In a brilliantly written, intriguing, action packed plot, Horrwitz unveals the secrets of the Raven's Gate and the power Martin never knew he had. Through stranges dreams, unexplained deaths and a sense of unease Martin discovers the secrets behind his strange new town and the people inside it.

From the very first chapter you are hooked and the fast paced aaction of the book keeps you reading to the last page.

Although I loved the book and would certainly recommend it I must warn you that it does contain some dark content. This isn't your average 'Harry Potter' it is dark magic and at times you could describe it as satanic. I personally would never normally read such a book but it is written well and the plot is so good that by the end you don't care about it.

I would recommend this book to teenagers and adults who don't mind the main character being a kid. It is suited to any sex that loves a good adventure but I assume that it is aimed more towards boys than girls (even though I personally loved it). All in all it is a fantastic adventure story with unbelieveable twists that make you keep reading. Once again Horrwitz has created a series that leaves you pining for the next book. Two thumbs up!!