The Wine of Angels (Merrily Watkins Series #1)

by Phil Rickman

Overview

The first in the historically rich, atmospheric mystery series featuring female exorcist Reverend Merrily Watkins

The new vicar had never wanted a picture-postcard parish—or a huge and haunted vicarage. Nor had she wanted to walk into a dispute over a controversial play about a 17th-century clergyman accused of witchcraft, a story that certain long-established families would rather remained obscure. But this is Ledwardine, steeped in cider and secrets. A paradise of cobbled streets and timber-framed houses. And also—as Merrily Watkins and her teenage daughter, Jane, discover—a village where horrific murder is a tradition that spans centuries.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780857890092
Publisher:	Atlantic Books
Publication date:	04/01/2011
Series:	Merrily Watkins Series , #1
Pages:	608
Sales rank:	990,141
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.70(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

Phil Rickman is the author of the Merrily Watkins Mystery series, which includes The Remains of an Altar, The Fabric of Sin, and To Dream of the Dead.

Editorial Reviews

In the U.S. release of Rickman's first title featuring Rev. Merrily Watkis and her teenage daughter, Jane, Rickman (Midwinter of the Spirit) moves farther away from the traditional horror genre to craft a first-rate thriller with supernatural overtones. When Merrily takes up residence as the newly appointed priest-in-charge in the picture-perfect community of Ledwardine, she discovers a pagan influence lurking beneath the town's sunny surface that links the community to a horrific, centuries-old murder. In resurrecting the 17th-century murder in the form of a play, tensions between the townsfolk come to a head, and it's up to Merrily to resolve their issues. Rickman deftly illuminates the intrigues of village life and the conflicts between new residents and well-established families; teenagers and older generations; and Merrily and the town's more conservative members. Throughout the story, apples and cider, which is "the wine of angels," is the prevailing image, and it ties in nicely with the pagan traditions and superstitions that plague Ledwardine's past. Although this hefty novel trundles off to a slow start, quirky characters, an abundance of plot twists and an exhilarating conclusion ensure that readers will enjoy this tale. (Apr. 15) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly