Ash

by James Herbert

Overview

They were miscreants with black souls, roaming the corridors and passageways. Infamous people thought long-deceased. Hiding and nurturing their evil in a basement full of secrets so shocking they would shake the world if they were ever revealed. David Ash, ghost hunter and parapychologist, arrives at Comraich Castle—a desolate, ancient place with a dark heart—to investigate a series of disturbing events. An incorporeal power has been ignited by a long-ago curse, fed and now unleashed by the evil of those who once inhabited this supposed sanctuary—and by some who still do. Yet their hour of retribution is at hand.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781509816019
Publisher:	Pan Macmillan
Publication date:	05/01/2018
Series:	David Ash
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	704
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.50(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

James Herbert was Britain's number one bestselling writer of chiller fiction, with 23 novels having sold more than 54 million copies worldwide.

Editorial Reviews

"A big, thrilling, pull-all-the-stops novel featuring David Ash, the skeptical psychic investigator who was introduced in Haunted (1988) and made his second appearance in The Ghosts of Sleath (1994). It’s been awhile since fans have seen Ash, but they’ll be pleased to note that he’s lost none of his straight-shooting attitude and keen ability to distinguish between fear and paranoia and genuine otherworldly goings-on. . . . a gripping mixture of paranormal and traditional thriller elements. Imagine Herbert channeling Dan Brown and you’ll have some idea of what he’s up to here." —Booklist starred review

From the Publisher

Parapsychologist David Ash (Haunted; The Ghosts of Sleath) is assigned to discover the source of the unusual occurrences at Comraich Castle, a super-secret hideaway in Scotland for the less-than-ethical but extremely wealthy citizens of the world. Although plagued by the ghosts of his past, Ash takes the job, both to satisfy his curiosity about the secrecy surrounding Comraich and to collect the substantial fee that his company has been promised should he succeed. Upon arriving at the castle, however, Ash realizes that the situation is much worse than he has been led to believe, and he must quickly unravel the mysteries of Comraich Castle if he wants to leave alive. VERDICT A haunted castle, a secret society, evil forces fueled by past and present atrocities, and lots of explosions—this book has it all. Readers will find it difficult to put down this fast-paced new novel from Britain's top horror writer. Fans and newcomers alike will find this book irresistible. It is classic horror writing at its best.—Elisabeth Clark, West Florida P.L., Pensacola

Library Journal

Curious blend of supernatural horror and conspiracy theory, from the veteran ghost-chaser (The Secret of Crickley Hall, 2006, etc.). In his latest adventure, absinthe-swilling, deeply conflicted paranormal investigator David Ash tackles Comraich Castle in Scotland, an ancient, isolated pile whose sponsors, the Inner Court, comprise a secret organization of British royals and other superrich, shadowy movers and shakers. What's going on at Comraich? Well, it turns out to be a sanctuary for war criminals, mass murderers, child molesters, insane dictators and others whose public presence might prove embarrassing or dangerous and who desire to vanish utterly (in some cases, involuntarily). Their sole common characteristic is that they are wealthy enough to afford the astronomical fees. Comraich's problem, as Ash learns, is that an enormously powerful and hostile psychic presence has manifested itself in the dungeons where insane inmates are housed--so powerful, indeed, that it threatens to destroy the castle itself. Herbert pulls in a laundry list of real-life characters (used fictitiously, of course) who disappeared mysteriously or whose deaths gave rise to conspiracy theories (no Elvis, but there is the requisite Hitlerian connection). Tasteful, however, it isn't. The book opens with the thoughts of a dying Princess Diana--her connection to Comraich isn't revealed until near the end--and trundles rapidly downhill into mayhem punctuated with bouts of sex and swathes of irrelevant detail. Plot and dialogue often verge on the ludicrous. Readers end up in the peculiar position of knowing what's to come and actually approving it: Yes, many of the people here are that unpleasant. Herbert clearly intended to channel public anger at the way the superrich insulate themselves from reality, and in this, he succeeds, especially given the recent revelations about how the British royals meddle in politics to their own benefit. A yarn that has almost everything wrong with it, yet still reveals a compelling truth.

Kirkus Reviews