The Lamp of the Wicked
Phil Rickman
Merrily must unearth the mysteries of the decaying village of Underhowle, and tackle a particularly stubborn Detective Inspector who strays off course...
'Few writers blend the ancient and supernatural with the modern and criminal better than Rickman.' - Guardian
'You're looking at his inspiration. These are ones he wishes he'd done, the ones he wishes he'd got to first.'
After half a century of decay, the village of Underhowle looked to be on the brink of a new prosperity. Now, instead, it seems destined for notoriety as the home of a psychotic serial killer.
DI Frannie Bliss, of Hereford CID, is convinced he knows where the bodies are buried, but Merrily Watkins wonders if Bliss isn't blinkered by personal ambition. Are the Underhowle deaths really linked to the legacy of Fred West and the most sickening cycle of killings in British criminal history?
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About Phil Rickman
Reviews for The Lamp of the Wicked
Eurocrime
The good thing about Merrily Watkins is that she's not full of righteous certainty and intuitive detective skills, she is flawed and filled with doubts. A reminder that good fiction based on unsettling ideas can be as illuminating as any number of earnest documentaries.
Sunday Mercury
Monumentally ambitious . . . Merrily links criminal, psychological, moral, sociological, spiritual and supernatural realms to dig deeper into evildoing just when most fictional sleuths would be calling it quits.
Kirkus Reviews, USA
Few writers blend the ancient and supernatural with the modern and criminal better than Rickman.
Guardian
Phil Rickman is one of my all-time favourites. I love everything he's done, from horror to mystery to supernatural thriller - often all in the same book.
Diana Gabaldon