The graffiti spread through London that summer like
wildfire. Its population carried on with life as usual in one of the richest
cities on the planet. But beneath the surface there is change. Men and women are
going missing without trace. What has the old African preacher seen emerging
from undergrowth near the river? Is this the essence of evil encountered long
ago? Ben Ashton is an investigative writer. When he's commissioned to find out
who is responsible for the 'Vampire Sharkz' graffiti he thinks his luck has
changed for the better. Little does he guess how wrong he is?
***
From Publishers Weekly
Clark's efforts at an original variation on the vampire
theme yield a novel whose plot is farfetched even by the standards of
supernatural fiction. Journalist Ben Ashton is researching the origins of a
graffiti tag scrawled around London warning of "Vampire Sharkz" when he
encounters a real vampire in the person of unrequited flame April Connor. April
is one of a rapidly growing pack of vampirized mortals doing the bidding of
Edshu, an African trickster god who, for reasons murkily elaborated, is using
London, and his antagonism of Ben specifically, as a means of testing the moral
mettle of all humanity. Much mayhem ensues before Ben discovers that the only
effective way to eliminate the vampire scourge is through the power of positive
thinking. Clark (Darkness Demands) keeps the action brisk and the gore
pulsing, but the novel's events are so contrived that they have to be explained
for the reader's benefit in windy oratory passages from an eccentric displaced
African preacher, who's the only one who can make any sense out of them. This is
passable pulp, but anemic fare as far as vampire fiction goes.
***
From Booklist
Here's a treat for horror fans. When mysterious graffiti
starts appearing all over London, magazine writer Ben Ashton is hired to write a
story about the person behind it. Little does Ben know that the graffiti
("Vampire Sharkz. They're coming to get you") isn't just pointless vandalism.
Like Anne Rice in her early vampire novels, Clark really gets under the skin of
the modern vampire; rarely has the psychological trauma of transforming from
mortal to immortal been rendered so movingly, and rarely has the vampire
bloodlust been so vividly described. Clark, familiar to some fans of horror
fiction but largely unknown by everybody else, deserves a much wider audience.
This thrilling, terrifying, and deeply affecting story might just be the one
that captures it for him.
***
From Kirkus Reviews
A rapacious breed of vampire inundates London under the
direction of an African trickster god in this horrorfest set against an urban
backdrop.
Some smart-alecky graffiti artist is marking London with
the creepy message, "Vampire Sharkz: They're coming to get you," and bright
young writer Ben Ashton's editor at glossy Click This magazine gives him 11 days
to get to the bottom of what seems to be a hot story. His research takes Ben to
visit the apparently nutty old African preacher Elmo Kigoma, who's seated in a
boat perched on top of a pole along the Thames. The end of the world is coming,
Elmo warns passersby: From his vantage point during the night, he has witnessed
raving gangs of savage creatures emerging from the river, attacking bikers and
pedestrians at random, sucking their blood greedily, then regurgitating their
feast back into the victims, who in turn become vampires. Ben doesn't believe a
word of it… until he sees for himself. Elmo tells him the vampires are acting on
the mischievous prodding of African trickster god Edshu, who tests humans
periodically by pitting them against each other. When Ben hears of the attack on
his old friend (and unrequited love) April Connor, who then disappears, he moves
into action. He enlists the help of both Elmo and April's fiance, wealthy
shipping scion Trajan, to identify the vampires and locate the island in the
Thames where they find shelter. Clark dramatizes April's ghastly plight on the
vampire island; eventually, she and another bloodsucker decide they have to
return to London proper and spread the news of the amazing benefits of drinking
blood. Descriptions of ripping flesh and dripping liquids become repetitive,
though Elmo's resolution of the vampire crisis through New Age-y visualization
techniques is clever, even endearing.
Plenty of gore, but pretty routine.
***
"Without doubt the best horror author the UK can
currently claim as its own."
-SFX
"Simon Clark has what it takes to be another Stephen
King."
-Hellnotes Views: 112
This was the most popular novel of Radcliffe's time and Radcliffe's portrayal of her heroine's inner life raised the Gothic romance to a new level. The atmosphere of fear and the gripping plot continue to thrill today. This is the story of the orphaned Emily St Aubert who finds herself separated from the man she loves and confined within the Castle of Udolpho by her aunt's new husband, Montoni. Here she must cope with an unwanted suitor, Montoni's threats, and the wild imaginings and terrors which threaten to overwhelm her. Views: 112
“Who could argue with the message the authors draw from the Bible’s Christmas stories? Light in the darkest time of the year, hope in a period of creeping despair—these are powerful and universal themes that can give everyone a stake in Christmas.”—USA TodayIn The First Christmas Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan—top Jesus scholars and authors of The Last Week—help us see the real Christmas story buried in the familiar Bible accounts. Basing their interpretations on the two nativity narratives in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Borg and Crossan focus on the literal story—the inner truth rather than the historical facts—to offer a clear and uplifting message of hope and peace. With The First Christmas readers get a fresh, deep, and new understanding of the nativity story, enabling us to better appreciate the powerful message of the Gospels.Review“With meticulous scholarship and accessible language, “The first Christmas”... uncover(s) the genuine meaning of...the Birth of Jesus.” From the Back CoverIn The First Christmas, two of today's top Jesus scholars, Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan, join forces to show how history has biased our reading of the nativity story as it appears in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. As they did for Easter in their previous book, The Last Week, here they explore the beginning of the life of Christ, peeling away the sentimentalism that has built up over the last two thousand years around this most well known of all stories to reveal the truth of what the gospels actually say. Borg and Crossan help us to see this well-known narrative afresh by answering the question, "What do these stories mean?" in the context of both the first century and the twenty-first century. They successfully show that the Christmas story, read in its original context, is far richer and more challenging than people imagine. Views: 112
H. K. Shackleford wrote this popular book that continues to be widely read today despite its age. Views: 112
Sixteen-year-old Robert lies anaesthetized. A routine operation has just gone wrong.'What the hell is that?''That, Mr Ryan, is the inside of this boy.''Christ . . . It looks like some kind of plastic.'As Robert slowly wakes, he can hear, he can feel, but he can't scream. The operation isn't over. But life, as Robert knows it, is.Robert goes on the run, terrified and desperate for answers. But what if the answers are too terrifying to face?This is Kevin Brooks at his very best - powerful, intense, page-turning reading for teenage readers and beyond. Views: 111
The Danger Guys head to the jungle on a quest to find an ancient treasureIt's Noodle and Zeek's greatest adventure yet! The boys are excited to learn that they are going on a quest for the mysterious Golden Lizard with the Emersons, the famous husband-and-wife explorer team. What could be more daring and fun than a treasure hunt in the jungle? But as the group soon discovers, they aren't the only ones after the Golden Lizard. When the Emersons are kidnapped, Noodle and Zeek know it is up to them to save the day.The boys must rescue the Emersons, fight off ninja linebackers, and find the Golden Lizard before the bad guys can. But the truth about the legendary Golden Lizard is something that Noodle and Zeek could never have imagined. Views: 111
During a trip to a nearby village, the proudly unmarried Sir Ashleigh Carruthers attends an evening service in the small local church. There, he finds himself seated next to the alluring and hypnotically beautiful Woman in Black and is instantly enraptured. But when the vicar collapses mid-sermon after looking upon the Woman's face, Carruthers is left to wonder: Who is this mysterious woman? And should he be worried about her pointed ears, her pointed teeth, and her ability to vanish into thin air? Featuring a bewitching and depraved antiheroine who leaves a pile of bloody bodies in her wake, The Woman in Black is the not-quite-living embodiment of every Victorian man's worst nightmare. Views: 111
Dealing with the first anniversary of her husband's death would be much easier for Whiskey Mattimoe if the newly-crowned Miss Blossom wasn't scheduled to die on the very same day. It seems everybody in Magnet Springs knew about the not-so-secret curse of the Miss Blossom pageant except for Whiskey–full-time real estate agent, part-time sleuth, long-suffering owner of Abra, her willful and sometimes felonious Afghan hound, and reluctant guardian for the soon-to-be-deceased Miss Blossom.Any hope that Abra has reformed her purse-snatching ways is dashed when the dog disappears with the emerald-laden Miss Blossom tiara, a priceless—albeit horrendously ugly and gawdy—heirloom insured for more than Whiskey's net worth. Suddenly Whiskey finds herself tangled in a web of deceit and murder that spans centuries and involves her dearly departed husband, for better or worse.When the new Miss Blossom lands in the hospital and the former Miss Blossom turns up dead, Whiskey's got to catch a cold-blooded killer before another generation of Magnet Springs' royalty succumbs to a fate worse than wearing the Miss Blossom tiara. Views: 110
THE WRECK OF A FEAST. What a sad sight it is to see a young child who does not know how to keep a check on the wish that tempts him to do wrong. The first rule that they who love a child should teach him, is the rule of self. It is the want of this self-rule that is the cause of so much that is bad in the world. It is this that makes girls and boys think more of what they want to do, than of what they ought to do; and each time they give way to it, they find it more hard not to yield the next time; and thus they go on till they are grown-up folks. They who would not like to grow up in this bad way must take great care while they are young not to think so much of self. The sense of taste is the sense that a child likes best to use. It would be strange to see a child who did not like cake, or tart, or fruit, or most sweet things. But a child should know when it is right to eat, and when it is right not to eat: he should know that he ought not to touch nice things that are not meant for him. The tale we have to tell is of a young girl who had not this sense of right so strong as it ought to have been. She knew what it was right to do, and she knew what it was wrong to do, but yet the sense of right was not at all times quite strong. The name of this girl was Ruth Grey. RUTH GREY.Page 4. Now there was a room in Mr. Grey\'s house known by the name of the green-house room, and here were put a few choice plants that could not bear the cold air. In this room too there was a large stand, on which were set out all the sweet things when Mrs. Grey had friends to dine or take tea with her. Here they were all put, to be brought out at the right time. The door of this room was kept shut, and made fast with a lock and key. Ruth had seen some of these nice things put on the stand, but she had not seen all, and she had a great wish to see them. She thought, if the door should not be shut, she would just peep in. She went twice to the door, but she found it fast. When she went a third time she found the key left in, and as she thought she could turn the key, she did, and went in. Now it was wrong in Ruth to want to go near this room, as she knew quite well that Mrs. Grey did not wish her to go in. Once when she was near the door she thought she heard some one, and then she ran off as fast as she could. This she would not have done if she had not felt sure it was wrong to go in that room. But now she was in! and what did she see there? Why, she saw the stand quite full of all sorts of nice sweet things. There were sponge cakes, and plum cakes, and queen cakes; there were two turn-outs, and whips and creams of all sorts; and there was a cake hid in red jam, with small thin white things put all up and down it, which stuck out. What could this be? She was sure it was jam, and yet she was sure jam was too soft to stand up in that way: she would just touch it. She did touch it, and she felt there was some hard thing in it: that could not be jam! It was strange! She would just like to know what it was: she must taste a small bit of the top—that could not spoil it, and she did so much want to know.... Views: 109
