jimbowen0306's review against another edition
4.0
This is an interesting book. I'm a bit of a fan of of Phil Rickman. I particularly enjoy his books about Merrily Watkins, the diocesan exorcist for the Anglican bishopric of Hereford (though I wonder if those stories have petered out of late).
This book is set in the same back country Welsh borderland as the Watkins books, with Gomer Parry, one of Rickman's more memorable characters, making his first appearance here (it was written before the Watkins books). It sees mystical goings on in the fictional town of Crybbe, dating back to Elizabethan times, when the locals decide to ring the church bells every evening, after the local squire dies in mysterious circumstances.
It goes a little pear shaped when "New Age Travelers" arrive in in Crybbe and (with the best of intentions) undo the defences that the locals had been erected against the evil dead squire. The heart of the book follows what happens after the traveller arrive.
The book is a good read. It rattles along quickly, and is enjoyable, if a little dark in places.
This book is set in the same back country Welsh borderland as the Watkins books, with Gomer Parry, one of Rickman's more memorable characters, making his first appearance here (it was written before the Watkins books). It sees mystical goings on in the fictional town of Crybbe, dating back to Elizabethan times, when the locals decide to ring the church bells every evening, after the local squire dies in mysterious circumstances.
It goes a little pear shaped when "New Age Travelers" arrive in in Crybbe and (with the best of intentions) undo the defences that the locals had been erected against the evil dead squire. The heart of the book follows what happens after the traveller arrive.
The book is a good read. It rattles along quickly, and is enjoyable, if a little dark in places.
ciannait76's review
4.0
I read his Merrily Watkins series first then looked for his other books. This one gave glimpses of how Gomer met his later wife Minnie. The story was creepy and awesome too though as I read it I realised that this was his first book and I've met at least one other character before (Fay Morrison).
alexauthorshay's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
2.0
How long this book took me to read is indicator enough to me how I felt about it. I only bothered to finish this at all because it was a buddy read and I was intrigued just enough to keep reading. Which didn't stop me from putting it down and reading several other books in between (twice); the writing style itself was so off-putting I needed a break from that more than the story.
This is definitely the traditional 90's horror novel; large cast of characters, a lot of head hopping, very shallow character development and no depth to any characters, lots of stated feelings and -ly adverbs. Rickman's book bothered me more than most I've read from this era because he used probably 10 adverbs per page and many of them made no sense, ex. "fell massively into the crowd", and the similes and metaphors he used didn't really make much sense either. I actively disliked or was disinterested in every single character put on the page, couldn't get into any of their heads enough to understand anything they did (though I had several moments of 'this feels OOC for this person'), and could hardly keep track of who was who because it's a small town where several people have the same last name because they're related. Trying to keep track of what generation each character was from and how they were related to the other characters was harder to follow than The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. Each character also sounded the same beyond the accent/no accent and the similes used in both narration and dialogue were the same regardless of the POV character/character that was speaking.
Rickman has a habit of writing sentences without a subject, ex "Slinking down the walls." I used to do this but always got corrected by anyone who read my work, and it actually kind of throws me off to read it from other writers now. He also uses very short segments such that a single chapter might have 10-15 sections from 6 - 8 different characters and each section is less than a page, which didn't make it feel fast paced like a thriller, but rather like I wasn't allowed to settle in with any one character, to the point that I honestly can't tell you who the protagonist was.
Maybe because I took so many breaks and they were quite long but it felt like 80% or more of the real paranormal stuff happened in the last 50 pages (my copy was 625 pages) and at least 50% of the book could have been chopped out with no detrimental effects. Horror books generally take a while to build up but this felt like a total flatline until 50%, then a small spike, and then out the cieling at 80%. Too much was figured out/put together at last minute to make it satisfying. Maybe I timed my second break very badly but it seemed they went from knowing nothing in one chapter to figuring out everything in the next.And I think Warren needed way more page time to be the real villain of the book. It felt like ‘here’s this demonic little shit disturber joker for ambiance’ and then 20 pages from the end ‘jk he’s the bad guy’.
I'm only not giving it one star because some of the elements of Crybbe itself and the paranormal happenings that occur there were things I haven't encountered in that form/way in a horror novel before (which is not to say I liked them or though they were done well, but I have to give points for originality that I haven't found copied by other authors since then).
This is definitely the traditional 90's horror novel; large cast of characters, a lot of head hopping, very shallow character development and no depth to any characters, lots of stated feelings and -ly adverbs. Rickman's book bothered me more than most I've read from this era because he used probably 10 adverbs per page and many of them made no sense, ex. "fell massively into the crowd", and the similes and metaphors he used didn't really make much sense either. I actively disliked or was disinterested in every single character put on the page, couldn't get into any of their heads enough to understand anything they did (though I had several moments of 'this feels OOC for this person'), and could hardly keep track of who was who because it's a small town where several people have the same last name because they're related. Trying to keep track of what generation each character was from and how they were related to the other characters was harder to follow than The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. Each character also sounded the same beyond the accent/no accent and the similes used in both narration and dialogue were the same regardless of the POV character/character that was speaking.
Rickman has a habit of writing sentences without a subject, ex "Slinking down the walls." I used to do this but always got corrected by anyone who read my work, and it actually kind of throws me off to read it from other writers now. He also uses very short segments such that a single chapter might have 10-15 sections from 6 - 8 different characters and each section is less than a page, which didn't make it feel fast paced like a thriller, but rather like I wasn't allowed to settle in with any one character, to the point that I honestly can't tell you who the protagonist was.
Maybe because I took so many breaks and they were quite long but it felt like 80% or more of the real paranormal stuff happened in the last 50 pages (my copy was 625 pages) and at least 50% of the book could have been chopped out with no detrimental effects. Horror books generally take a while to build up but this felt like a total flatline until 50%, then a small spike, and then out the cieling at 80%. Too much was figured out/put together at last minute to make it satisfying. Maybe I timed my second break very badly but it seemed they went from knowing nothing in one chapter to figuring out everything in the next.
I'm only not giving it one star because some of the elements of Crybbe itself and the paranormal happenings that occur there were things I haven't encountered in that form/way in a horror novel before (which is not to say I liked them or though they were done well, but I have to give points for originality that I haven't found copied by other authors since then).
anne_seebach's review against another edition
3.0
This is the first time I've read this author, and I'll definitely be trying some more. Reminds me of Dean Koontz or maybe James Herbert, both of whom I'm more familiar with and enjoy (most of time). I think I would have liked a little more depth to the characters - they were easy enough to enjoy, but just a touch formulaic to feel 'real'. I would probably prefer to give it 3.5 stars, but as that's not an option I'll err in favour and give it four for now.
.....later update: a little time has passed, and the retrospective rating is now "I liked it" but not "really liked it". Three stars.
.....later update: a little time has passed, and the retrospective rating is now "I liked it" but not "really liked it". Three stars.
judenoseinabook's review against another edition
3.0
A tale.of supernatural goings on rural, borderlands, Herefordshire.
Very atmospheric and creepy. Good interesting story, but very long. Would have been better two thirds of the length. That is an issue with reading on a kindle, you have no idea how long a book is without digging a bit.
Very atmospheric and creepy. Good interesting story, but very long. Would have been better two thirds of the length. That is an issue with reading on a kindle, you have no idea how long a book is without digging a bit.
jimbowen0306's review against another edition
4.0
This is an interesting book. I'm a bit of a fan of of Phil Rickman. I particularly enjoy his books about Merrily Watkins, the diocesan exorcist for the Anglican bishopric of Hereford (though I wonder if those stories have petered out of late).
This book is set in the same back country Welsh borderland as the Watkins books, with Gomer Parry, one of Rickman's more memorable characters, making his first appearance here (it was written before the Watkins books). It sees mystical goings on in the fictional town of Crybbe, dating back to Elizabethan times, when the locals decide to ring the church bells every evening, after the local squire dies in mysterious circumstances.
It goes a little pear shaped when "New Age Travelers" arrive in in Crybbe and (with the best of intentions) undo the defences that the locals had been erected against the evil dead squire. The heart of the book follows what happens after the traveller arrive.
The book is a good read. It rattles along quickly, and is enjoyable, if a little dark in places.
This book is set in the same back country Welsh borderland as the Watkins books, with Gomer Parry, one of Rickman's more memorable characters, making his first appearance here (it was written before the Watkins books). It sees mystical goings on in the fictional town of Crybbe, dating back to Elizabethan times, when the locals decide to ring the church bells every evening, after the local squire dies in mysterious circumstances.
It goes a little pear shaped when "New Age Travelers" arrive in in Crybbe and (with the best of intentions) undo the defences that the locals had been erected against the evil dead squire. The heart of the book follows what happens after the traveller arrive.
The book is a good read. It rattles along quickly, and is enjoyable, if a little dark in places.
hayesstw's review against another edition
4.0
I just got a new Phil Rickman book for my birthday, called [b:Curfew|9888365|The Curfew|Jesse Ball|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320557971s/9888365.jpg|14780366]. I was looking forward to reading a new [a:Phil Rickman|182452|Phil Rickman|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1292252234p2/182452.jpg] book, but when I opened it I discovered it was one we already had, but just sneakily published under a different title to con the public into thinking it was a new book, and so getting people to buy it twice.
Boo! Hiss! to Corvus for this dishonest and fraudulent practice.
And Boo! Hiss! to [a:Phil Rickman|182452|Phil Rickman|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1292252234p2/182452.jpg] for letting them do it.
As The Byrds used to sing:
As through this life you travel\
You meet some funny men
Some rob you with a six gun
And some with a fountain pen.
Boo! Hiss! to Corvus for this dishonest and fraudulent practice.
And Boo! Hiss! to [a:Phil Rickman|182452|Phil Rickman|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1292252234p2/182452.jpg] for letting them do it.
As The Byrds used to sing:
As through this life you travel\
You meet some funny men
Some rob you with a six gun
And some with a fountain pen.
minnietimperley's review against another edition
4.0
I picked Curfew up from the library after coming it across it on a thread on Facebook where people had posted on their scariest reads. It's a long time since I've read a book that really petrified me and love watching films through my fingers. I admit to binging on Shaun Hutson in my teenage years. Then got into a bit of a silly snobby phase of reading "literature." So left the horror genre behind and never really got back to it.
Now I've read that Rickman doesn't like his early books - of which "Curfew" (originally published as "Crybbe") was his second offering - being caterogised as horror. So he may be happy to read that I wouldn't class it as a horror either. It is a certainly a story with supernatural elements; creepy but not terrifying; violent deaths abound but descriptions aren't playing for shock value gore. What makes it engaging is that Rickman draws his inspiration from British folklore and ritual; you get a sense of the eerie atmosphere of historic and sometimes ancient towns and villages. You certainly get a realistic experience of the distrustful and exclusionary nature of locals towards people from 'off'.
The novel moves with the pace of visiting tourist. It's almost 700 pages but I enjoyed every page. The multiple characters are well drawn and distinct. They are believable and have to be for the reader to accept the supernatural events that slowly build to a crescendo.
Rickman is an author I will certainly read again.
Now I've read that Rickman doesn't like his early books - of which "Curfew" (originally published as "Crybbe") was his second offering - being caterogised as horror. So he may be happy to read that I wouldn't class it as a horror either. It is a certainly a story with supernatural elements; creepy but not terrifying; violent deaths abound but descriptions aren't playing for shock value gore. What makes it engaging is that Rickman draws his inspiration from British folklore and ritual; you get a sense of the eerie atmosphere of historic and sometimes ancient towns and villages. You certainly get a realistic experience of the distrustful and exclusionary nature of locals towards people from 'off'.
The novel moves with the pace of visiting tourist. It's almost 700 pages but I enjoyed every page. The multiple characters are well drawn and distinct. They are believable and have to be for the reader to accept the supernatural events that slowly build to a crescendo.
Rickman is an author I will certainly read again.
melstern's review against another edition
4.0
More like 4.5 stars, really. I seriously enjoyed this book. I'm not really much for writing reviews, so let me just say this. I wasn't sure how interested I was in this book. It looked decent, and it got some pretty good reviews. But I've never heard of this author, and it was just such a long book.
So I started it. Figured I'd just read a chapter, see what I thought, see if it took. But the chapter was so short, obviously I'd try another one. Then, next thing I knew, I'd almost read the first 100 pages in one sitting. So hey- we'll see how I feel then, right? It snuck up on me, and before I knew it, I'd almost finished reading the book and I couldn't put it down......
So I started it. Figured I'd just read a chapter, see what I thought, see if it took. But the chapter was so short, obviously I'd try another one. Then, next thing I knew, I'd almost read the first 100 pages in one sitting. So hey- we'll see how I feel then, right? It snuck up on me, and before I knew it, I'd almost finished reading the book and I couldn't put it down......