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195th out of 343 books
—
109 voters
The Prayer of the Night Shepherd (Merrily Watkins #6)
by
Phil Rickman
At Stanner Hall, a Victorian mansion-turned-hotel, Ben Foley hosts murder-mystery weekends and strives to prove that his hotel is the house on which Arthur Conan Doyle based his immortal Baskerville Hall. As the days shorten and the weather worsens, Foley’s dabbling uncovers more than he can handle. For the history of Stanner Hall is linked not only to the Victorian fascin...more
Paperback, 630 pages
Published
October 1st 2004
by Macmillan U.K.
(first published 2004)
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May 10, 2012
Victoria
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
books-in-a-series,
mystery-thriller
After taking a small break from this series, when I picked up this sixth weighty volume, I almost prolonged the break. I have a hard cover copy, and it really isn’t conducive to lugging it around, but once I started reading it, I immediately was sucked back into Merrily’s life. This may not be a flashy series, with non-stop action, but the characters are so realistic and the plots are so meticulously revealed that it’s hard not to be engulfed in the series. Even after a break, it’s like catching...more
The Prayer of the Night Shepherd is the sixth entry in the Merrily Watkins series. As is the case with any novel based on a set of recurring characters, this could either be a cause for celebration or a cookie-cutter rehash of previous novels. For some authors, this would be just another paint-by-the-numbers exercise that would build on previous successes but fail to break new ground. Thankfully, this isn't the case with Rickman and his most recent work. He gives faithful readers all of the susp...more
I've been reading the Watkins series in order, and I think this is the best one yet. The use of the perennial interest in and controversy surrounding Conan Doyle's "The Hound of the Baskervilles" as part of the plot in this book is not only interesting, but brilliant: a mystery about a Sherlock Holmes' mystery.
The aspect that has bothered me most about the other Watkins novels is that the plots beggar credulity. That's obviously an endemic problem with mysteries--maybe especially mysteries invol...more
The aspect that has bothered me most about the other Watkins novels is that the plots beggar credulity. That's obviously an endemic problem with mysteries--maybe especially mysteries invol...more
This book was a little slow and hard to get into at first. This was the first Phil Rickman book I've read, so perhaps it is easier to follow the characters if you've read previous books. Once the plot got underway it picked up. It's a good mystery and crime novel. I was a little lost when they kept trying to link the Sherlock Holmes story with this one because I'm not a Sherlock Holmes fan - therefore I knew NOTHING about the Hound of Baskerville. As the pace of the book quickened, I began to li...more
I am a little behind in the Merrily Watkins series, this one being no.6 of 11. It took me ages to find a copy as it had gone out of print. I have all the ones that come after it but couldn't read those as I didn't want to read any of them out of order. However, according to Phil Rickman - who I met recently at a book signing - it doesn't matter which one you start with.
Anyway, this book featured all the usual suspects from Ledwardine's finest, with new characters in the centre of the story. Ambe...more
Anyway, this book featured all the usual suspects from Ledwardine's finest, with new characters in the centre of the story. Ambe...more
Wow. Really, WOW. I liked the previous books in this series, but came to accept that I would always care for the characters more than the events (plots) that happened around them. Until this story. Phil Rickman finally found the perfect balance of blending a pre-existing idea (Sherlock Holmes, The Hound of the Baskervilles in particular) into this adventure, giving this mystery a greater depth. As always, the cast of characters continues to be literary platinum.
Phil Rickman is one of my favourite authors. He develops great characters and knows how to crank up the suspense during his plots. If that isn't enough he has a fantastic ear for dialogue too which makes his books compelling right from the beginning. I also like the way he handles the supernatural part of his plots. Is the supernatural involved or is it superstition and overactive imaginations? You'll have to read the books yourself to answer that question.
Another of the Merrily Watkins series. I really haven't found a book in this series that I haven't enjoyed. This one involves a family curse of sorts, and Jane and Merrily are as usual, working at cross purposes. Gomer Parry and Lol Robinson are around as well, and there are as always some new characters to meet and determine which, if any are red herrings and which are the true troublemakers.
I am excited to read the next book in the series!
I am excited to read the next book in the series!
I had really loved this series for the first several books - original, great characters, and they developed and progressed as the novels did, for first 4. but 5 and 6 started to slow down, and I feared growing to hate the books and the characters, so I haven't gone back to the rest of the series. Maybe I will some day...but there are lots of others to read in the meantime.
Its been some time since I last read a Phil Rickman, but I am happy to be catching up on his work, particularly the Merrily watkins series which i particularly enjoy. This book was an excellent delve into Conan Doyle, Dark Hounds and Border country showing that the evil that lives on is often more to do with people than anything else and how the past can haunt us in so many differemt ways.
Possibly my favourite in the Merrily Watkins series so far and not helping in my aim not to read the books back to back until I am up to the most recent one! I love the mix of murder mystery / supernatural / legends of old and I enjoy the afterword at the end, which is always interesting.
Sixth in the Merrily Watkins series: another complex and absorbing clerical mystery set in an English countryside that is far from cozy with just enough romantic and domestic detail to lighten the atmosphere of inherited evil.
The book got off to a slow start, I thought, as we were introduced to the new characters. I really liked the themes as it picked up though- the rural isolation, the hereditary evil, the modern tourism and murder mystery nights, schizoprenia of people and places. The end was awesome! I could not put it down. It was great that Lol had such an integral part in the end and I appreciate that Jane is growing up and possibly not as immature and annoying as before. My one complaint is that we did not se...more
Another excellent novel with such meticulous detail - the amount of research must be staggering as he melds Conan Doyle' Hound of the Baskervilles with a darker tale from the Welsh Borders.
I liked this book. I liked the characters which is important to me but it did not move fast. It took me longer than normal to read this book but I would read more by this author.
Phil Rickman has been sanctioned by the Church of England to have access to their records on exorcism. The books aren't always about exorcism, there are other explanations to what's happening. Very well-written and informative.
I really like Phil Rickman. I liked this story because it referenced "The Hound of the Baskervilles" and Arthur Conan Doyle. Interesting plot. A little slow getting going . . . but I'm not British, so maybe that's just my American taste coming through.
Oct 15, 2012
Zara KillingRomance1112
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
thriller
Es bekommt drei Sterne, weil mir das Ende gefallen hat,
aber man sollte bei diesem Buch bedenken. Will ich mich durch 300 Seiten quälen um zum guten Teil zu gelangen?
Es verläuft nämlich nur so:
verwirrend + bruchstückhaft ----> sprunghaft + spannend
aber man sollte bei diesem Buch bedenken. Will ich mich durch 300 Seiten quälen um zum guten Teil zu gelangen?
Es verläuft nämlich nur so:
verwirrend + bruchstückhaft ----> sprunghaft + spannend
Beautifully written, atmospheric tale of murder, families and mystery in the Welsh borders. Merrily Watkins an her friends are perceptively portrayed as usual.
Loved this book - wonderful characters, genuine spookiness and the Hound of the Baskervilles. Who could ask for more?
view all 5 comments
If you think evil is an abstract concept, read one of Rickman's books.
Still my all time favourite Merrily, never tire of it.
May 14, 2013
Bridget
marked it as to-read
May 06, 2013
Daisy
marked it as to-read
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aka Will Kingdom, Thom Madley.
Phil Rickman, born in Lancashire, has won awards for his TV and radio journalism. After five acclaimed novels, he introduced the fascinating Merrily Watkins series with The Wine of Angels. He is married and lives on the Welsh Border.
More about Phil Rickman...
Phil Rickman, born in Lancashire, has won awards for his TV and radio journalism. After five acclaimed novels, he introduced the fascinating Merrily Watkins series with The Wine of Angels. He is married and lives on the Welsh Border.
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