Description
By Eleanor Bourg Nicholson
When Father Michael Walsh, a Jesuit priest on the western coast of Ireland, faces a charge of embezzlement, a London newspaper sends expatriate Irish reporter Hugh Buckley home to deliver a story—or else. Buckley and his photographer colleague Frederick Jones arrive in the village of Doolin to find themselves embroiled in a tangled mess of parish politics, occult practices, and bloody murder. By night, as wicked things rise from the earth, Buckley faces his own long-repressed struggles with his country, his abandoned faith, and his dead family. By day, he finds help, both professional and personal, from English Dominican friar Father Thomas Edmund Gilroy, OP, who has come to Doolin to support his friend Father Michael and to aid in the spiritual battle against the occult.
Can Hugh and Freddie save their employment—and their skins—as the grotesque violence intensifies? Or will they and the rest of the village of Doolin be consumed by dark powers lurking within the mysterious landscape of Ireland?
Emily Hanlon –
Wake of Malice is a merry-go-round of a mystery that will sweep you off to turn of the last century Ireland in a paranormal adventure featuring Nicholson’s unlikely hero, the unassuming exorcist, Father Thomas Edmund Gilroy. This time the Dominican priest faces a chilling assortment of revenants, demons, banshees, puca, and little folk…and a real live, flesh and blood murderer.
Nicholson shows a talent for creating entertaining characters as unique and as brightly drawn as the animals on a carousel. The story is told in the delightfully Irish voice of Hugh Buckley, an expat reporter. He and Freddie Jones, a photographer, are sent by a London newspaper to investigate a murder with occult and bloody overtones. The assignment raises the ghost of Hugh’s repressed childhood struggles, together with Freddy’s abhorrence of all things Irish. Both are slowly transformed as they meet the quirky inhabitants of the small village of Doolin…and Father Thomas Edmund Gilroy.
Irish folklore, superstition, pagan practices, and mysterious deaths all swirl around, until finally grounded by Father Thomas Edmund. It’s a wild ride till the end! Highly recommended.
Gema Guevara –
Eleanor Bourg Nicholson does it again: not only has she proven to be an adroit storyteller, but she is heading the renaissance of Catholic horror. What sets her apart from mainstream Catholic horror is that she doesn’t sacrifice the sacramental reality for the thrill of cheap entertainment. She acknowledges that we live alongside a spiritual realm that we do not necessarily understand but that we nonetheless encounter.
In the Wake of Malice, reporter Hugh Buckley and his photographer colleague Frederick Jones travel to the small Irish village of Doolin to investigate a papist controversy: a priest who is the prime suspect in a double embezzlement-murder case. In the village, Hugh and Freddie encounter a series of lively characters whom they come to admire and respect, but beneath the idyllic front of Doolin lurks an ancient pagan evil that is just biding its time — and wreaking havoc in the meantime — before it is fully resurrected.
I loved every second of this story. I devoured it in four days (I’m a slow reader), and it made me reconnect with my mystical Irish side. I too believe that the pagan stories of old may not be so fictional, after all. Indeed, Nicholson demonstrates this as well: that the supernatural forces of good and evil are forever locked in battle, and only faith—and the help from a little bespectacled Dominican friar—will save us.
The story is well-paced, the characters well-developed, and the writing excellent. I was already a fan of A Bloody Habit, and I cannot wait to read more of Nicholson’s works. You can’t help but fall in love with the characters and root for them!
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of the novel in exchange for my honest review.
Megan –
I really enjoyed this book! This is the first book I’ve read from this author and I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect as its genre is part horror/part historical Christian fiction. After having finished the book I can gladly say it was excellently done. I loved how it immersed me in early 20th century Ireland. The characters were all so well done, I especially loved good old Hugh Buckley. He’s a wonderful character, and his side-kick Freddie is equally wonderful.
I appreciated how the author never strayed from the horror elements that are required in this kind of story that deals with malevolent supernatural type happenings. Anchoring with the Catholic/Christian faith gave it real hope that evil would not win in the end. Father Thomas Edmund and Father Michael were such charming characters too. The whole cast of characters, really, was wonderfully done.
This book is reminiscent of an Agatha Christie or Sherlock Holmes style of writing, its rather like a lovely warm cup of tea. It’s soothing and yet draws you in, leaving you always wanting more.
The highest recommendation I can give a book is when, after I’ve finished it, I want to go and read other things by this author. This book is one of those types. I didn’t want it to end, but when it did I’d be more than happy to enter this authors works again. I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys a good mystery with a touch of the supernatural, while keeping it in check by recognizing that its God alone who can expel such evil deed.
I received a free advanced copy of this book from the publisher/author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.
Suzanna Linton –
I really enjoyed Wake of Malice. It is a beautiful blend of humor and horror. The characters are believable and I liked how she blended Irish myth and customs with the Catholic faith. Also, I was on the edge of my seat in the latter third of the book!