Product Description

Called in secretly to investigate an allegedly haunted house with royal connections, Merrily Watkins, Deliverance Consultant for the Diocese of Hereford, is exposed to a real and tangible evil. A hidden valley on the border of England and Wales preserves a long-time feud between two old border families and an ancient Templar church with a secret that may be linked to a famous ghost story by M R James. On her own and under pressure, with the nights drawing in, the hesitant Merrily has never been less sure of her ground. Meanwhile, her closest friend, songwriter Lol Robinson, is drawn into the history of his biggest musical influence, the tragic Nick Drake.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #288481 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 448 pages

Review
First rate. A passionate, flawed modern woman, every bit as concerned with the intricacies of crime as with demons that go bump in the night - Daily Mail Compassionate, original and sharply contemporary. Rickman's crime series is one of the best around - SpectatorMerrily is a most original sleuth and an interesting sparky woman of emotional and spiritual depth and Rickman is an excellent writer, terrific on atmosphere...The best so far - The TimesAnother cracking thriller from Wales' leading crime writer - Western Mail

Daily Mail
First rate. A passionate, flawed modern woman, every bit as
concerned with the intricacies of crime as with demons that go bump in the
night

The Times
Merrily is a most original sleuth...and Rickman is an excellent writer, terrific on atmosphere...The best so far

Customer Reviews

Horror with a difference
I've read all the Merrily Watkins series and thoroughly enjoyed all of them. This one is no exception. Merrily is asked to find out what is going on when a builder announces he is giving up a lucrative contract to restore an old house for a powerful organisation. At first it seems as though there could just be someone a little unbalanced with a vivid imagination and a knowledge of M R James ghost stories at work. But a murder and apparent suicide soon makes it clear to Merrily that there is a lot more at stake. She is warned from several directions to stay away and starts to wonder if she can trust anyone including herself. Aided by her daughter Jane and lover Lol, she eventually solves at least some of the problems in Garwood, only to find that not all problems from the past can be neatly labelled and put away.
If you enjoy something a bit different from run of the mill horror or crime then try this for well rounded and interesting characters and enthralling historical background.

Seamless addition to a masterly series
A classic series - something that will live on beyond our time - is unfolding before us. Merrily Watkins may be 'only' a literary' creation of Mr Rickman's mind, but she seems more like real-life flesh and blood to me. Not only that, but Rickman (or Merrily...) is dealing with 'big issues' here: theology, philosophy, the nature of human interaction with this imperfect world - all included organically within an fantastic story. In short, I unreservedly recommended this book - and all its suberb predecessors.

Thrilling reading!!
If you like to held on the end of every page, learn something that you hadn't realised before about everyday things (the Prince of Wales, the Welsh Border),feel empathy and concern for characters who are 'realer' than your average crime or thriller novel then Rickman is for you!!
This new Merrily Watkins book captures all the excitement and mystery of the other novels (read them!) and takes the characters you end up loving on a new journey into themselevs and the mysteries of the countryside and the people who live there. It seems to develop seamlessly, with a building atmosphere of suspense and danger, into a gripping and intriguing ending. Brilliant!!! Write some more Mr Rickman!!