Ritual: 1 (Jack Caffery/Walking Man) - Softcover

Hayder, Mo

Softcover

ISBN 10: 080212092X ISBN 13: 9780802120922

Publisher: Grove Press / Atlantic Monthly Press, 2012

Synopsis

"Hayder . . . outdoes herself, flip-flopping the supernatural and the explainable like a cycle of poison and antidote that will remain with the reader long after the final page."--Booklist (starred review) Just after lunch on a Tuesday in April, nine feet underwater, police diver Flea Marley closes her gloved fingers around a human hand. No body is attached. Even more disturbing is the discovery, a day later, of the matching hand--recently amputated, and removed while the victim was still alive. Detective Jack Caffery of the Major Crime Investigation Unit in Bristol is called in to investigate, and he and Marley soon establish that the hands belong to a young man who has recently disappeared. Their search for him--and for his abductor--lead them into the darkest recesses of Bristol's underworld, where street-kids sell themselves for a hit, and where one of Africa's most disturbing rituals may be making an unexpected appearance. The first novel to feature the investigative team of Flea and Jack, Ritual is a masterpiece of suspense that will keep readers guessing until the last breath. "Hayder . . . moves to another level in this spellbinder. With characters so complex, so fascinating that they could populate a dozen novels, she sends readers into a demimonde of ritual magic, desperation, guilt, and death, all exquisitely composed. . . . Ritual is brilliant, dense, scary; definitely one of the best crime novels of [the year]."--The Globe and Mail "Ritual moves from the eerie and dangerous to the downright ferocious as steadily as an oncoming train. . . . This is one you'll hate to put down and hate to finish. But you're going to love the ride."--Jack Ketchum, author of The Lost and The Girl Next Door

About this title

Review

When it comes to crime novels designed to chill the blood in their unblinking treatment of the darkest recesses of human behaviour, Mo Hayder is unquestionably in the forefront of British practitioners in the field. What is even more striking is the fact that more than any other female writer, she is moving comfortably in the bloody territory that has long been the traditional prerogative of male writers, and never for a second allows her writing to be any less disturbing than that of her male confrères.

Ritual is par for a course where this writer is concerned: a tough, scarifying novel, delivered with maximum narrative rigour. A police diver discovers a severed human hand in Bristol's floating harbour. Shortly afterwards, another hand -- from the same victim -- is found buried underneath a restaurant. The severed hands are those of a young heroin addict who has recently gone missing from the Bristol drugs scene. A police diver, Flea Marley, finds herself joining forces with DI Jack Caffrey, recently seconded to the Major Crime Investigation unit. Jack is attempting to come to terms with the murder of his brother, but finds himself more than occupied with the details of the death of Mossy, the young heroin addict. It appears that the latter has become embroiled in a sinister black market trade stemming from Africa, where the value of human life is held at less than nothing. Jack and Flea form an uneasy alliance, tackling together a world steeped in the most appalling torture and abuse of human life. Those who have read the powerful predecessors to this novel (such as Birdman and The Treatment) will know what to expect. Mo Hayder is always reliable in delivering riveting (if deeply uncomfortable) reads. --Barry Forshaw

Review

"Mo Hayder is inimitable. She surpasses even Ruth Rendell in her ability to find horror in everyday things... Intensely enthralling" (OBSERVER)

"A vivid and thorough exploration of the clash between ancient superstition and modern science, with plenty of thrills and chills along the way" (GUARDIAN)

"A combination of irresistible prose and hateful subjects makes Hayder's books not-to-be-missed bestsellers" (LITERARY REVIEW)

"Expect plenty of blood, gore and black magic" (DAILY MIRROR)

"If it's real terror you're after, Mo Hayder is your woman... Hayder is a brave writer and she requires brave readers" (DAILY MAIL)

Edition details

• Publisher: Grove Press / Atlantic Monthly Press
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 080212092X
• ISBN 13: 9780802120922
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 432