by Peter Laws (@revpeterlaws)
Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)
“When the wind roared David knew it was the devil, sighing with contented achievement…”
It’s been a rough few books for Matt Hunter, the ex-Minister turned professor of sociology who is now established as the ‘go-to-guy’ for the police when they stumble upon murders that might have a religious or satanic slant.
Everywhere the poor atheist goes, there is sure to follow a Midsomer sized body count and the deaths you can be sure will be gory and unsettling. So, when during a communion service at a village church, the teenage son of a vicar brutally tries to decapitate his father with an axe, all hell breaks loose.
The horrified congregation, police and family suspect devil worship, but there might be something else, equally dark at work… The fact that there is a crazy cult up the road who worship Jesus but hate God the Father and who believe that the world is filled with demons called Hollows may not be a coincidence.
Before you can say ‘religious nutters’ Matt Hunter and his scene-stealing cool wife Wren are once again up to their necks in bizarre murders and frightening religious mania.
Severed is the third crime-em-up by Rev Peter Laws and it is a cracking thriller, shot through with serious horror elements. The fast-paced narrative drags the reader kicking and screaming into a world of madness and death, encompassing some hot button topics along the way such as the bigotry of many Christians’ attitudes to gay folk and the manic lengths fundamentalists will go to.
This is a trip of scrambled theology, murder-most-foul and a great building sense of voodoo threat that will leave you shaken and stirred. The characters really work (although Hunter might need to possibly reign in his goofy quirks as he’s at risk of becoming a bit Mr Bean at times in this adventure).
By the time you hit the last few chapters, it’s virtually impossible to put down and if there isn’t a Netflix series of these books I’m going to complain!
Severed is very much worthy of a read – whatever your religious persuasion. And much like films such as Natural Born Killers, it will leave you nervous of those around you… Enjoyable religious-themed hokum doesn’t come much better!!
Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:
öööö
(4 - hits like a twisted theological axe to the back of the head)...
BUY YOURSELF A COPY HERE
Read the Darkmatters review of Purged (Matt Hunter book 1)
Read the Darkmatters review of Unleashed (Matt Hunter book 2)
No comments:
Post a Comment