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The Wicker Tree
A black comedy of religious sexuality and pagan murder, which inhabits the same territory as The Wicker Man. If I am a Rabbi, Jehova is my God. If I am a Mullah, Allah the merciful is He. If a Christian, Jesus is my Lord. Millions of people worldwide worship the sun. Here in Tressock I believe the old religion of the Celts fits our needs at this time. Isn't that all you can ask of a religion? Gospel singer Beth and her cowboy boyfriend Steve, two virgins promised to each other through 'the Silver Ring Thing', set off from Texas to enlighten the Scottish heathens in the ways of Christ. When, after initial hostility, they are welcomed with joy and elation to the village of Tressock, they assume their hosts simply want to hear more about Jesus. How innocent and wrong they are.
- GenresHorror
256 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2006
2 people are currently reading
114 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 15, 2012
"Cowboys for Christ" is a spiritual companion to Hardy's previous work "The Wicker Man" and is also now a film entitled "The Wicker Tree". It has a great ending, and it is quite clear early on that things are going to become pear-shaped quickly, but Hardy's writing fluctuates in quality and depth throughout. It was a genuinely eerie novel, but I have a feeling that the film will be far more terrifying and disturbing. Bring it on!
April 13, 2024
A young, beautiful, singer goes on an evangelical mission to the Scottish Borders with her fiance and finds herself entangled with a pagan festival.
Creepy? Definitely. Funny? In parts. Hardy's 'The Wicker Tree' (formerly 'Cowboys for Christ') follows a reenactment of the Great Hunt. Is this really a spiritual successor to 'The Wicker Man'? I think not, since whilst this novel is clever, it is not as fundamentally slick as 'The Wicker Man', where every scene builds towards the clever climax. Here, the ending is telegraphed from the start and it is simply a matter of watching everything unfold. Nevertheless, it is a good example of Celtic folk horror.
Creepy? Definitely. Funny? In parts. Hardy's 'The Wicker Tree' (formerly 'Cowboys for Christ') follows a reenactment of the Great Hunt. Is this really a spiritual successor to 'The Wicker Man'? I think not, since whilst this novel is clever, it is not as fundamentally slick as 'The Wicker Man', where every scene builds towards the clever climax. Here, the ending is telegraphed from the start and it is simply a matter of watching everything unfold. Nevertheless, it is a good example of Celtic folk horror.
April 15, 2024
Surprisingly much better than the film adaptation, The Wicker Tree (sequel to The Wicker Man). The film sticks pretty close to the text, but it’s also hindered by the low-budget atrocious acting, low-budget digital cinematography and the low-budget crappy music.
The book is Hardy’s vision as it was intended, unhampered by the limitations of filmmaking.
The writing isn’t bad. It’s fairly engaging. The main issue is that it largely just sort of pisses about for 180 pages before abruptly rehashing The Wicker Man for the ending. In that original film, there’s a constant sense of dread and inevitability. The film is forever building towards its conclusion. Here, however, it really does just feel like Hardy wanted to make a sexy soap opera that ended with some gore. It feels like running out the clock only to pay off the folk-horror promised upfront.
It’s not terrible. Surprisingly so if you’ve seen the film. But it’s not good either. Worth checking out for Wicker Man completionists.
5/10
The book is Hardy’s vision as it was intended, unhampered by the limitations of filmmaking.
The writing isn’t bad. It’s fairly engaging. The main issue is that it largely just sort of pisses about for 180 pages before abruptly rehashing The Wicker Man for the ending. In that original film, there’s a constant sense of dread and inevitability. The film is forever building towards its conclusion. Here, however, it really does just feel like Hardy wanted to make a sexy soap opera that ended with some gore. It feels like running out the clock only to pay off the folk-horror promised upfront.
It’s not terrible. Surprisingly so if you’ve seen the film. But it’s not good either. Worth checking out for Wicker Man completionists.
5/10
February 8, 2024
As a horror author myself, I found the plot to be genuinely creepy, the story of two Christian missionaries going to spread the word of God to a seemingly quiet pagan community, not realizing they are about to become victims of a sinister festival.
It has all the things I enjoy in this kind of story, creepy rituals and festivals, a delving into pagan customs that have been twisted and of course gore and creepiness to boot.
The reason I gave it three stars however is that the book can be boring at times and the book only truly gets frightening near the end, which means you have to endure slow pacing and questionable actions by the main protagonists to get there.
Nothing spectacular, but something that will definitely creep you out
It has all the things I enjoy in this kind of story, creepy rituals and festivals, a delving into pagan customs that have been twisted and of course gore and creepiness to boot.
The reason I gave it three stars however is that the book can be boring at times and the book only truly gets frightening near the end, which means you have to endure slow pacing and questionable actions by the main protagonists to get there.
Nothing spectacular, but something that will definitely creep you out
September 4, 2021
First off, we should clarify, this is NOT a sequel to The Wicker Man. This book was originally called Cowboys For Christ and only had its title changed to try to connect to the author's most famous work after poor sales.
The thing that makes The Wicker Man so good is the environment we get swallowed by as soon as we start reading. It's of this world, but very much it's own place with it's own rules and they have little to no interest what goes on in the wider world. The Wicker Man is set in Scotland and lacks any subtlety. It whacks you over the head with its views on religion and nuclear power.
I got very bored being preached at.
The thing that makes The Wicker Man so good is the environment we get swallowed by as soon as we start reading. It's of this world, but very much it's own place with it's own rules and they have little to no interest what goes on in the wider world. The Wicker Man is set in Scotland and lacks any subtlety. It whacks you over the head with its views on religion and nuclear power.
I got very bored being preached at.
March 11, 2012
I couldn't finish reading it. Poorly written and it's coming to me with a lot of baggage.
May 23, 2012
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11146202
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11146202
July 29, 2012
better than the movie but inferior to the wicker man
January 2, 2011
Not quite as good as The Wicker Man in some ways, but better in others.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews