The Immaculate [Hardcover]

Mark Morris (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1992

Jack writes works of dark and tortured fantasy, but despite his celebrity status he is a lonely man, until he meets Gail. When news arrives of a death in his family, Jack is forced to return to the horror and a startling revelation. The author also wrote "Stitch" and "Toady".

Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Piatkus Books; 1st ed/1st printing edition (May 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0749901241
• ISBN-13: 978-0749901240
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,662,486 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A different kind of ghost story, April 22, 2002

By 

G. Van Der Bent "Gerb" (Katwijk, The Netherlands) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: *OP Immaculate (Paperback)

I always thought of Mark Morris as a good, if not what secondrate British horrorwriter. I don't mean that in a negative way, but he always had the footsteps of people like Clive Barker, Ramsey Campbell and James Herbert in which to follow... and that's not an easy task!
It's perhaps ironic that those writers also seem to have had a big influence on him. I remember his book 'The Secret of Anatomy'to be an entertaining Barkeresque romp and his 'Doctor Who' novels were lighthearted, not all too serious fun.

The Immaculate changed all that...

I can't help but have the feeling that the story is strongly autobiographical (the parts about the writer anyway, offcourse not the supernatural bits...I hope).
The book is about a writer who returns to his hometown after his abusive father passed away. When he starts having bad dreams and hears his father's voice through the phone I just knew it was going to be THAT kind of story.

I was wrong.

I couldn't for the life off me have expected where this story'd wind up. I won't spoil it for you, but it was brilliant, and much more mature than similar efforts from someone like Herbert, who always likes to have the blood and guts flying. You wont find that in this novel.

The Immaculate is by far Mark Morris' best work. I am an aspiring writer myself (aren't we all?) and I totally got pulled in by the world in which the main character lives. For example, I loved it when he pulled found this old case in his attic and started flipping through the pages of all the books he so adored during his childhood. Marvelous!

Like I said before, this doesn't go for the gross-out, but it's good supernatural horror, with strong psychological and social overtones.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A horror that plays on all our fears...or memories!!!,, August 31, 2006

By 

Helen Simpson (Leeds, England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Immaculate (Mass Market Paperback)

I really enjoy the way Morris writes (having read 'Toady' and 'Mr Bad Face') and this book was no exception. He cleverly makes you care about one of the characters in this book and feel compassion and horror like the other one.

He succeeded in horrifying me on the simplest level without the need for blood and gore.

It was one of those books that you just have to keep reading even though you're shattered and know you need to sleep, just to find out what happens. The ending was an interesting idea and wasn't at all what I expected.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The prodigal son with a twist..., September 2, 2007

By 

- Kasia S. (New York City) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Immaculate (Mass Market Paperback)

I have mainly enjoyed this ghost thriller like story for the writing. The author does a great job of breathing life into his characters, using their background as constant filler in his chapters, and he writes with natural ease making the reader feels as if he was roaming through their head. I have thoroughly enjoyed the book related aspect of this tale, the main hero is also a writer and Mark Morris does a great job shining some light on this mysterious profession.

When Jack Stone finds out that his father has passed away, he feels a rush of relief and a sense of dread at the thought of going back to his childhood birthplace for the funeral. The scabs his memories left on his soul of neglect and child abuse have made him weak with fear but relentlessly he felt that going back would be healing. With the support and a gentle push from his girlfriend Gail, he ventures out to the country side, four hours away from London to burry the past behind once and for all. Little did he know, but his father has his own secrets and the deed of finding them would be forever changing on Jack. The visit back would have been positive if it wasn't for dark shapes creeping around the woods and strange encounters with ghost like apparitions that resemble his father. Worse yet, the local bully who had it for Jack is still heated and ready to strike, using whatever means necessary to wreck havoc on Jacks life and sanity.

I loved the buildup, the creepiness of the house and reading about Jack's time there but I also felt all his work was not getting to a high enough climax. The ending was interesting but I felt a bit angry at how it turned out. The fantasy aspect seemed to have swept my off my feet and delivered me in from of an answer that I simply had to take.

For those who enjoy subtlety in action but like imaginative and descriptive writing, this is not a ride of their lives but will be a pleasant experience never the less.

- Kasia S.