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The Taken
She's a beautiful little girl, only ten years old with pretty blond curls. Why, then, does she strike such terror into all who see her? Because she died thirty years ago—a horrible, agonizing death in the middle of a raging thunderstorm. Tonight the storm has returned… and so has she.
She has returned from a shadowy realm unseen by the living to exact revenge on those responsible for her death. One by one she will make them pay. There is nowhere to hide, no way to escape. It is only a matter of time before her ghastly vengeance is complete…
She has returned from a shadowy realm unseen by the living to exact revenge on those responsible for her death. One by one she will make them pay. There is nowhere to hide, no way to escape. It is only a matter of time before her ghastly vengeance is complete…
323 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2007
7 people are currently reading
807 people want to read
About the author
Sarah Pinborough
84 books8,056 followersSarah Pinborough is a New York Times bestselling and Sunday Times Number one and Internationally bestselling author who is published in over 30 territories worldwide. Having published more than 25 novels across various genres, her recent books include Behind Her Eyes, now a smash hit Netflix limited series, Dead To Her, now in development with Amazon Studios, and 13 Minutes and The Death House in development with Compelling Pictures. Sarah lives in the historic town of Stony Stratford, the home of the Cock and Bull story, with her dog Ted. Her next novel, Insomnia, is out in 2022. You can follow Sarah on Twitter at @sarahpinborough.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
January 4, 2022
In a small village in Somerset, England, thirty years ago, ten-year-old Melanie Parr met a horrible fate during a storm. She was a very bad, evil child. Now she is back and she wants revenge on those she holds responsible...
At first, I was enjoying this book, it was creepy with good atmosphere. The young girl Melanie was horrible. But I really disliked how things turned out at the end.
A disappointing read.
At first, I was enjoying this book, it was creepy with good atmosphere. The young girl Melanie was horrible. But I really disliked how things turned out at the end.
A disappointing read.
August 14, 2014
This review is going to be completely different than every other view I've done and possible will do after this one. I struggled with trying to figure out how to write it. Why? Because for me to talk about the writing of the book as as both a reader and a writer, it would mean I would have to get incredibly personal. Now, I have no qualms talking about myself in a conversation with a person who asks intimate questions about who I am. But there is difference in my mind when a person posts those same personal details on an impersonal web page for any passerby to read. It makes it seem needy and attention seeking. And that's not what I want this review to be about, because this book is an amazing accomplishment by a brilliant writer and it deserves all the attention. But if I don't talk about those personal aspects of myself, no words I write will do justice to the work or the writer. So, when you read this, please remember that I'm talking about the book and it just happens that my history adds a layer of Technicolor in my experience that I can't separate. Remember that this is a conversation between you and I, not myself and the whole of the internet.
When you read The Taken, I would be willing to bet many seasoned horror literature fans could see this as simply a interesting take of the classic ghost story. And on the surface, they are right. Pinborough takes the convention and makes it her own. A trait as important to any writer of any genre as the ability to craft ordinary words in new and exotic ways. But there is so much more to that. In this book, she reveals to us why, of the horror stories that can be written, only "ghost story" is ever paired with "classic."
Horror is a genre of fear. While you may be quick to quote Lovecraft and is "greatest fear" line from "Call of Cthulhu," I ask you to wait. Yes, the unknown is greatest fear, but that isn't the point. The point is, "what is the greatest unknown?"
Death.
In a way, that is why zombies and vampires will never have "classic" pegged next to them. They are undead; they have a get out of jail free from that great unknown. And that is why they will be so popular. We live in a world that doesn't want to look at death anymore. And that is a shame because at some point we all end. Horror, as a genre, can talk about all kinds of fear, but what most people have forgotten is that all fears stem for the fact that we fear death because we know nothing of the moment after we draw that last breath.
That is where Sarah Pinborough and The Taken are in a class from so much of what constitute horror literature today, if not in a class of it's own.
The main character of the novel, Alex, is a woman dying of ovarian cancer with only six months left to live. I have read many books and watched many movies with other characters with terminal illnesses and, to be honest, none them were as real as Alex. So many of them are either used as inspirational symbols of the power of the human spirit or give this "fatal flaw" to add a realism to the character. But as Pinborough so astutely weaves through the plot, themes, and symbolism through out the book, it is not just one or the other, but something in between.
I know that feeling all too well. I was born with a genetic disease called Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency. Not only born with it, but born with the worst possible gene pairing of the disease. Back in 1982, when I was born, no doctor Knew of the disease. The few years of my life was only life in the base definition of the word. And for any other child at that time with severity of the case of the disease, I should have died by the time I was two. And most doctor's thought I was in fact going to die at that age for, at that time, unknown reasons. But somehow, I didn't. And for the next eleven years, I was blissfully unaware of that fact. It wasn't until I was thirteen and a doctor ran a blood test to that showed I had this disease that I was let in to that in between world. I can remember when I walked through that door into it. When that same doctor said, "You should be dead," but was really saying "You can't be alive, yet you are." Since then, every day I have live the fact that I never know when my time will be up. That every day I wake up is one more day of borrowed time. Life changes when you know that you may not many tomorrows left, but that there are enough that you have to live with a wasting condition. People like to say they live as if there is no tomorrow. And that is good for them, but I bet if you quizzed them enough, they would admit to knowing they still have a tomorrow. But tell some one they have forty, a hundred fifty, a thousand tomorrows, and see if they can be as carefree. I doubt it. I think they will become just as Alex is, just as I am. Everyday is a fight with the realization that there is one less tomorrow.
It is funny existence, one I still struggle with. And that is where the true brilliance of The Taken resides. In every moment that Alex exists on the page, Pinborough describes the existence just as it feels to live it. All that Alex feels and believes are the same ones I have grown into living in that existence. As Pinborough wrote, "Unmeant to be." And it is that visceral and emotional truth few understand that not only drives Alex through the plot, but also is essential to story itself. Because this in not just any ghost story. What Pinborough does is use the ghost story to tell a secondary story: the creation of the ghost story.
As I said before, the ghost story will be called "classic" because it it makes us face that ultimate fear of death. The Taken takes us on Alex's journey towards death and on that journey, Pinborough shows doesn't just make use face death and the afterlife, but experience it without having to die ourselves. In Alex, she recreates the first ghost of the horror genre, and possibly of humanity. With The Taken, she records the first ghost story for every generation after her to read and experience. Sarah Pinborough accomplishes the goal of every writer of the horror genre: Make us face our greatest fear and help us learn not to be afraid.
At the end of the story, Alex is able to help children who have been lost in the "in between" world of not alive or not dead find their eternal peace, to no be afraid to die. As a person who knows his time is shorter than everyone he knows, by everything from years to days, that is a fear that no matter how much you fight against, you never defeat. It no matter how much you beat it back, there is always a small molecule of it left, waiting to propagate and attack you when you least expect it. I have always envied those that can believe in a religion so much that death, while still a fearful time, has a joyous purpose in the end. But now I sort of understand it now, because The Taken, and to an extent Sarah Pinborough herself, have become Alex at the end of the book for me. I know that someone understands what I live with and this story has taken some of that fear away for me and for once I can say the words that Alex says in the middle of the story, "I'm alive. Here and now, I'm alive and that's all that matters."
For that I will be eternally grateful I read this book and to Sarah Pinborough for writing it.
This book is an exmplar of horror. Read it. Live in the story. Learn what horror truly is because you won't find many examples as pure as this
When you read The Taken, I would be willing to bet many seasoned horror literature fans could see this as simply a interesting take of the classic ghost story. And on the surface, they are right. Pinborough takes the convention and makes it her own. A trait as important to any writer of any genre as the ability to craft ordinary words in new and exotic ways. But there is so much more to that. In this book, she reveals to us why, of the horror stories that can be written, only "ghost story" is ever paired with "classic."
Horror is a genre of fear. While you may be quick to quote Lovecraft and is "greatest fear" line from "Call of Cthulhu," I ask you to wait. Yes, the unknown is greatest fear, but that isn't the point. The point is, "what is the greatest unknown?"
Death.
In a way, that is why zombies and vampires will never have "classic" pegged next to them. They are undead; they have a get out of jail free from that great unknown. And that is why they will be so popular. We live in a world that doesn't want to look at death anymore. And that is a shame because at some point we all end. Horror, as a genre, can talk about all kinds of fear, but what most people have forgotten is that all fears stem for the fact that we fear death because we know nothing of the moment after we draw that last breath.
That is where Sarah Pinborough and The Taken are in a class from so much of what constitute horror literature today, if not in a class of it's own.
The main character of the novel, Alex, is a woman dying of ovarian cancer with only six months left to live. I have read many books and watched many movies with other characters with terminal illnesses and, to be honest, none them were as real as Alex. So many of them are either used as inspirational symbols of the power of the human spirit or give this "fatal flaw" to add a realism to the character. But as Pinborough so astutely weaves through the plot, themes, and symbolism through out the book, it is not just one or the other, but something in between.
I know that feeling all too well. I was born with a genetic disease called Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency. Not only born with it, but born with the worst possible gene pairing of the disease. Back in 1982, when I was born, no doctor Knew of the disease. The few years of my life was only life in the base definition of the word. And for any other child at that time with severity of the case of the disease, I should have died by the time I was two. And most doctor's thought I was in fact going to die at that age for, at that time, unknown reasons. But somehow, I didn't. And for the next eleven years, I was blissfully unaware of that fact. It wasn't until I was thirteen and a doctor ran a blood test to that showed I had this disease that I was let in to that in between world. I can remember when I walked through that door into it. When that same doctor said, "You should be dead," but was really saying "You can't be alive, yet you are." Since then, every day I have live the fact that I never know when my time will be up. That every day I wake up is one more day of borrowed time. Life changes when you know that you may not many tomorrows left, but that there are enough that you have to live with a wasting condition. People like to say they live as if there is no tomorrow. And that is good for them, but I bet if you quizzed them enough, they would admit to knowing they still have a tomorrow. But tell some one they have forty, a hundred fifty, a thousand tomorrows, and see if they can be as carefree. I doubt it. I think they will become just as Alex is, just as I am. Everyday is a fight with the realization that there is one less tomorrow.
It is funny existence, one I still struggle with. And that is where the true brilliance of The Taken resides. In every moment that Alex exists on the page, Pinborough describes the existence just as it feels to live it. All that Alex feels and believes are the same ones I have grown into living in that existence. As Pinborough wrote, "Unmeant to be." And it is that visceral and emotional truth few understand that not only drives Alex through the plot, but also is essential to story itself. Because this in not just any ghost story. What Pinborough does is use the ghost story to tell a secondary story: the creation of the ghost story.
As I said before, the ghost story will be called "classic" because it it makes us face that ultimate fear of death. The Taken takes us on Alex's journey towards death and on that journey, Pinborough shows doesn't just make use face death and the afterlife, but experience it without having to die ourselves. In Alex, she recreates the first ghost of the horror genre, and possibly of humanity. With The Taken, she records the first ghost story for every generation after her to read and experience. Sarah Pinborough accomplishes the goal of every writer of the horror genre: Make us face our greatest fear and help us learn not to be afraid.
At the end of the story, Alex is able to help children who have been lost in the "in between" world of not alive or not dead find their eternal peace, to no be afraid to die. As a person who knows his time is shorter than everyone he knows, by everything from years to days, that is a fear that no matter how much you fight against, you never defeat. It no matter how much you beat it back, there is always a small molecule of it left, waiting to propagate and attack you when you least expect it. I have always envied those that can believe in a religion so much that death, while still a fearful time, has a joyous purpose in the end. But now I sort of understand it now, because The Taken, and to an extent Sarah Pinborough herself, have become Alex at the end of the book for me. I know that someone understands what I live with and this story has taken some of that fear away for me and for once I can say the words that Alex says in the middle of the story, "I'm alive. Here and now, I'm alive and that's all that matters."
For that I will be eternally grateful I read this book and to Sarah Pinborough for writing it.
This book is an exmplar of horror. Read it. Live in the story. Learn what horror truly is because you won't find many examples as pure as this
June 20, 2015
While not as ambitious or structurally impressive as The Hidden, the pacing in this one is perfect, and it's got atmosphere in spades. There are a couple of very effective gory bits, but for the most part it's a quiet, slow burn kind of story that goes in some interesting and unexpected directions. Endings can make or break a book for me, and the ending to this one couldn't be better. So sad, yet so hopeful. This is the second book I've read by Pinborough, and it certainly won't be the last.
May 30, 2011
After reading three of Pinbrough's horror novels I get a sense of her comfort laying in small village or town settings. Her strengths are apparent in the well placed sense of dread and creepiness woven from the beginning, she builds up good characters, places them in an interesting setting, makes the reader involved in their life and then sneaks in something malevolent, waiting to break it all apart. It's almost hard to read but I guess that's how authors get us to care.
Small rural town of Watterrow, England, has been nestled in a peaceful cloud lasting thirty years, but with an approach of a huge storms something dark and cruel has decided to come along and stir trouble for elders and their grown children. Thirty years ago, a small girl, Melanie Parr, has mysteriously disappeared; she simply vanished of the face of Earth in a great storm. Her short life was not filled spreading joy, she was a nasty, cruel child who played mean tricks and turned her friends against each other. She was someone that nobody liked and never really mourned even when no one knew what happened to her; in people's minds she was best forgotten. Forgotten that is until she appeared again in the storm, stirring childhood fears into reality for few who knew her. Now she is back and hungry for revenge, something has happened to her and she will make everyone involved pay for her early demise. Adults are now in the mercy of a child, and a mean one who isn't ruled by logic but hate and anger.
The book was a fast read; I inhaled it in two sittings while my boyfriend caught up on his weekend naps - best time to read! I liked the main character of Alex a lot, I thought she was well crafted even if we didn't get to know her well or too long but she made the book enjoyable for me. Overall it wasn't super scary, but it had plenty of chills and the concept was intriguing even if not extremely strong. It was a nice way to spend an afternoon or two but it's not something that will stand out to me in the long run. I think the book lost a little momentum at the end and couldn't have been stronger but it wasn't bad. The concept was interesting but was a little flaky, I think all the layers of the book added up to make a book but they didn't make it solid, therefore the three stars. I'm still happy I read it though and I will read more of her in the future. So far after reading "The Taken", "Breeding Ground" and "Tower Hill" by Pinborough, I definitely think "Tower Hill" has been her best yet, the other books were more of a platform for her wings to grow so she can spread them in the future because I think she had plenty of ideas left in her.
- Kasia S.
Small rural town of Watterrow, England, has been nestled in a peaceful cloud lasting thirty years, but with an approach of a huge storms something dark and cruel has decided to come along and stir trouble for elders and their grown children. Thirty years ago, a small girl, Melanie Parr, has mysteriously disappeared; she simply vanished of the face of Earth in a great storm. Her short life was not filled spreading joy, she was a nasty, cruel child who played mean tricks and turned her friends against each other. She was someone that nobody liked and never really mourned even when no one knew what happened to her; in people's minds she was best forgotten. Forgotten that is until she appeared again in the storm, stirring childhood fears into reality for few who knew her. Now she is back and hungry for revenge, something has happened to her and she will make everyone involved pay for her early demise. Adults are now in the mercy of a child, and a mean one who isn't ruled by logic but hate and anger.
The book was a fast read; I inhaled it in two sittings while my boyfriend caught up on his weekend naps - best time to read! I liked the main character of Alex a lot, I thought she was well crafted even if we didn't get to know her well or too long but she made the book enjoyable for me. Overall it wasn't super scary, but it had plenty of chills and the concept was intriguing even if not extremely strong. It was a nice way to spend an afternoon or two but it's not something that will stand out to me in the long run. I think the book lost a little momentum at the end and couldn't have been stronger but it wasn't bad. The concept was interesting but was a little flaky, I think all the layers of the book added up to make a book but they didn't make it solid, therefore the three stars. I'm still happy I read it though and I will read more of her in the future. So far after reading "The Taken", "Breeding Ground" and "Tower Hill" by Pinborough, I definitely think "Tower Hill" has been her best yet, the other books were more of a platform for her wings to grow so she can spread them in the future because I think she had plenty of ideas left in her.
- Kasia S.
May 24, 2011
I really enjoyed this book, my second read by Pinborough. She's such a talented writer, I very much enjoyed the creepy claustrophobic atmosphere of a small village cut off from the world by a downpour and her characters are very well written, especially the main one of Alex. Very quick good read, I highly recommend this one.
November 9, 2008
I love this book! It's about a ghost that comes back in a storm bent on revenge for what happened 30 years ago in a thunderstorm. It's full of suspense, and a light gore factor. I highly recommend this book and this author!
July 12, 2020
The setting, characters, revenge - they all add up to the overall sense of dread and creepiness.
I liked this book, it kept me up at nights.
The only thing I couldn't swallow was describing child abuse. Just made me sick to my stomach.
I liked this book, it kept me up at nights.
The only thing I couldn't swallow was describing child abuse. Just made me sick to my stomach.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 24, 2008
This was my first book by this author and I enjoyed it quite a bit. The Taken tells the story of a terminally ill woman in a small antiquated village in the UK and the supernatural happenings surrounding the disappearance of a local child decades before. Very imaginative and I definitely recommend this book
July 19, 2008
Outstanding!
February 27, 2018
**1/2
Sarah Pinborough’s “The Taken” opens with some familiar genre tropes: a mysterious death, ghostly children, small town families that go back years and years. The descriptions of the small England town are top-notch, while some of the narrative descriptions can be a little lazy (I don’t know how many times someone wondered, silently, “Just what the hell was going on?”).
A mean little kid named Melanie was killed years ago, but the older folks in town don’t seem to want to talk about it. But then, some odd deaths occur, and dead kids start appearing, mentioning Melanie by name. Now our heroine, Alex, is on Melanie’s trail, trying to find out what happened to her, and how she could possibly be involved with this new violence.
The townsfolk have grown up with a story of the “Catcher Man,” a fellow who steals children. This legend becomes intertwined with Melanie, and Alex just knows there’s got to be a connection.
Expanding from its at-first-familiar premise, “The Taken” is an ambitious book that marries spooky small-town-cemetery-style weirdness with a serious story of child murder. It doesn’t quite succeed, but there’s enough promise in the book that I’d happily check out more from Ms. Pinborough.
Sarah Pinborough’s “The Taken” opens with some familiar genre tropes: a mysterious death, ghostly children, small town families that go back years and years. The descriptions of the small England town are top-notch, while some of the narrative descriptions can be a little lazy (I don’t know how many times someone wondered, silently, “Just what the hell was going on?”).
A mean little kid named Melanie was killed years ago, but the older folks in town don’t seem to want to talk about it. But then, some odd deaths occur, and dead kids start appearing, mentioning Melanie by name. Now our heroine, Alex, is on Melanie’s trail, trying to find out what happened to her, and how she could possibly be involved with this new violence.
The townsfolk have grown up with a story of the “Catcher Man,” a fellow who steals children. This legend becomes intertwined with Melanie, and Alex just knows there’s got to be a connection.
Expanding from its at-first-familiar premise, “The Taken” is an ambitious book that marries spooky small-town-cemetery-style weirdness with a serious story of child murder. It doesn’t quite succeed, but there’s enough promise in the book that I’d happily check out more from Ms. Pinborough.
June 27, 2018
It took a bit of work for me to get into this one, which is unusual when I'm reading a book by Pinborough, whose work I love. It took maybe a quarter of the book before it clicked in my head, and I loved the hell out of the rest of it. There is a particularly gruesome scene that was the pivot point for me. And it was so well done that it kind of got to me, which is very hard to do. This marks the second time Pinborough was able to do this. There are several scenes that are really hard to read, in particular one involving a child. However, it's interesting to see how it all turns out for the villain. The ending is nothing I would have ever expected. I recommend this book. It might take some time to get into it, but stick with it. This one pays off big time.
February 20, 2019
Wonderful book. Great plot and good characters. Death is not to be feared, but embraced.
June 15, 2021
Scary and cool
February 19, 2016
In ‘The Taken’, the ghost of Melanie Parr returns to her childhood village in order to take revenge on those who have wronged her. Soon, a series of disturbing deaths incites fear in the hearts of the helpless residents. Alex – a woman diagnosed with ovarian cancer, her cousin Paul and his friend Simon band together to figure out how to put an end to this vicious cycle of murder.
After reading and loving ‘The Reckoning’ by this author, I had somewhat high expectations for this book but I found it to be a letdown for a couple of reasons. There was unnecessary repetition in regard to various things such as the weather conditions, the police not being able to get to the village due to an overturned lorry and the phones not working. This ruined the otherwise great, creepy atmosphere as being constantly reminded of the aforementioned things quickly became annoying and thus, detracted me from being engrossed in the story.
Besides that, the characters were flat and forgettable. Alex was an alright lead character but she could have been a lot better if she had been fleshed out. Instead, she was merely reduced to being cancer-stricken. The only other details about her were pertaining to her non-existent love life and that wasn’t even fully delved into. As for Paul, he was overweight and.. what else? Oh, evasive whenever the subject of Melanie Parr was brought up. Simon was quiet and calm but apart from that, there was no background on him. As a result, I felt like I didn't know them and therefore, it was hard to care about their eventual fate.
If the execution of the storyline had been done well, I could have overlooked the boring characters. However, it was disappointingly all over the place. Melanie’s presence was interesting and I enjoyed reading about how she approached and lured her targets. Unfortunately, the large chunks of pointless parts revolving around Alex, Simon and Paul wondering whether Melanie really was the one behind the onslaught of murders overshadowed the chilling moments. Plus, too much was incorporated into the last few chapters, leaving me with more questions than answers. The inconsistent pacing (too slow in the first two-thirds and too fast in the final one-third) was simply hard to ignore.
Only the few truly gory and shocking scenes provided some redeeming value to this book as they were imaginative and memorable. Overall, ‘The Taken’ was promising but its meandering content, poor pacing and unsatisfying explanation turned this into a directionless, mediocre story.
After reading and loving ‘The Reckoning’ by this author, I had somewhat high expectations for this book but I found it to be a letdown for a couple of reasons. There was unnecessary repetition in regard to various things such as the weather conditions, the police not being able to get to the village due to an overturned lorry and the phones not working. This ruined the otherwise great, creepy atmosphere as being constantly reminded of the aforementioned things quickly became annoying and thus, detracted me from being engrossed in the story.
Besides that, the characters were flat and forgettable. Alex was an alright lead character but she could have been a lot better if she had been fleshed out. Instead, she was merely reduced to being cancer-stricken. The only other details about her were pertaining to her non-existent love life and that wasn’t even fully delved into. As for Paul, he was overweight and.. what else? Oh, evasive whenever the subject of Melanie Parr was brought up. Simon was quiet and calm but apart from that, there was no background on him. As a result, I felt like I didn't know them and therefore, it was hard to care about their eventual fate.
If the execution of the storyline had been done well, I could have overlooked the boring characters. However, it was disappointingly all over the place. Melanie’s presence was interesting and I enjoyed reading about how she approached and lured her targets. Unfortunately, the large chunks of pointless parts revolving around Alex, Simon and Paul wondering whether Melanie really was the one behind the onslaught of murders overshadowed the chilling moments. Plus, too much was incorporated into the last few chapters, leaving me with more questions than answers. The inconsistent pacing (too slow in the first two-thirds and too fast in the final one-third) was simply hard to ignore.
Only the few truly gory and shocking scenes provided some redeeming value to this book as they were imaginative and memorable. Overall, ‘The Taken’ was promising but its meandering content, poor pacing and unsatisfying explanation turned this into a directionless, mediocre story.
February 14, 2025
“I’ve come back home. The Catcher Man brought me home.”
Set in the village of Waterrow, outside of Somerset, England.
Mary (60) has one child remaining, son Paul (40). After her daughter’s passing, Mary and Paul raised their granddaughter/niece Alexandra (27).
Simon Watley, Paul’s journalist friend, has come down from London with Paul. They’re to celebrate Paul’s birthday with Mary and Alex.
Alex is secretly ill.
Alex: The dreams. Giggles. The little boy…
The church. The writing at the altar. Reverend Barker—haunted by what he did, all those years ago.
“Our…sin…warn them…”
Thirty years ago, Melanie Parr was ten years old. Now, suddenly, Melanie and the other spooky children begin to appear.
Snatching Petey. Text messages to Laura. Everyone having different visions of the youngsters…
Gripping. Intense. Superbly atmospheric writing, as always.
People turning up dead…youths disappearing…
“The child is an abomination.”
Melanie was an evil child. Paul’s recollections are horrific.
“…Melanie never got bored of playing games. Never. And I think she’s going to play with us until we’re all dead, just like her.”
Flashbacks to Melanie’s vicious control over the village children. Psychopathy. Peer pressure, bullying…and worse.
The Storm—unceasing. The woods. The blue lightning.
The In Between. The Catcher Man. The long-missing children. The woods. Confrontation.
The final showdown. Melanie’s sick “games.”
So goddamn emotional towards the end.
Bittersweet—but very fitting conclusion.
SP always brings something unique to the table. On a simple surface read, this novel may not seem particularly unique. Ghosts, wicked children, creepy vibes, etc…but Sarah takes it there. It’s the one thing we never really, truly wanna talk about: Death. It’s a pervasive theme throughout, and makes this novel all the more chilling.
“You have to take the choice back. And you have to do it now. While you still can. The choice is yours. Not hers. Take it back.”
“This is my place! My place!”
“No, Melanie. This is my place.”
Set in the village of Waterrow, outside of Somerset, England.
Mary (60) has one child remaining, son Paul (40). After her daughter’s passing, Mary and Paul raised their granddaughter/niece Alexandra (27).
Simon Watley, Paul’s journalist friend, has come down from London with Paul. They’re to celebrate Paul’s birthday with Mary and Alex.
Alex is secretly ill.
Alex: The dreams. Giggles. The little boy…
The church. The writing at the altar. Reverend Barker—haunted by what he did, all those years ago.
“Our…sin…warn them…”
Thirty years ago, Melanie Parr was ten years old. Now, suddenly, Melanie and the other spooky children begin to appear.
Snatching Petey. Text messages to Laura. Everyone having different visions of the youngsters…
Gripping. Intense. Superbly atmospheric writing, as always.
People turning up dead…youths disappearing…
“The child is an abomination.”
Melanie was an evil child. Paul’s recollections are horrific.
“…Melanie never got bored of playing games. Never. And I think she’s going to play with us until we’re all dead, just like her.”
Flashbacks to Melanie’s vicious control over the village children. Psychopathy. Peer pressure, bullying…and worse.
The Storm—unceasing. The woods. The blue lightning.
The In Between. The Catcher Man. The long-missing children. The woods. Confrontation.
The final showdown. Melanie’s sick “games.”
So goddamn emotional towards the end.
Bittersweet—but very fitting conclusion.
SP always brings something unique to the table. On a simple surface read, this novel may not seem particularly unique. Ghosts, wicked children, creepy vibes, etc…but Sarah takes it there. It’s the one thing we never really, truly wanna talk about: Death. It’s a pervasive theme throughout, and makes this novel all the more chilling.
“You have to take the choice back. And you have to do it now. While you still can. The choice is yours. Not hers. Take it back.”
“This is my place! My place!”
“No, Melanie. This is my place.”
August 22, 2012
Dear Brett,
This book was pretty good. I have been trying to get a hold of A Matter of Blood for a little while now because http://elitistbookreviews.blogspot.com/ can't stop gushing about it and the whole The Dog-Faced Gods series. Since the library didn't have any of the latter-mentioned series, I thought I'd try one of Pinborough's other books as a primer. This particular book won out exclusively on ease of availability.
First off, the book's premise of "lost kids coming back to exact revenge" suited me just fine... right up my alley really. Pinborough's writing is basically interesting and the book flowed for the most part. There were times where the author decided to wallow in standard cliche's... like a totally pointless love arc that added nothing really for me. Some of the plot devices reeked of convenience, but overall I liked the idea and enjoyed the execution.
For me, it seemed a book of an author finding her voice, and developing her craft. Knowing that The Dog-Faced Gods are more recent books, I'm expecting to find a more mature and refined Sarah Pinborough.
Overall, it's a good read and worthy of a solid 3 stars.
Your friend in brutality,
Derek
This book was pretty good. I have been trying to get a hold of A Matter of Blood for a little while now because http://elitistbookreviews.blogspot.com/ can't stop gushing about it and the whole The Dog-Faced Gods series. Since the library didn't have any of the latter-mentioned series, I thought I'd try one of Pinborough's other books as a primer. This particular book won out exclusively on ease of availability.
First off, the book's premise of "lost kids coming back to exact revenge" suited me just fine... right up my alley really. Pinborough's writing is basically interesting and the book flowed for the most part. There were times where the author decided to wallow in standard cliche's... like a totally pointless love arc that added nothing really for me. Some of the plot devices reeked of convenience, but overall I liked the idea and enjoyed the execution.
For me, it seemed a book of an author finding her voice, and developing her craft. Knowing that The Dog-Faced Gods are more recent books, I'm expecting to find a more mature and refined Sarah Pinborough.
Overall, it's a good read and worthy of a solid 3 stars.
Your friend in brutality,
Derek
August 19, 2015
Horror is not my favourite genre, but every once in a while, I get a craving for a tale of the supernatural - largely, I think, because when done the way I like it, a horror story is above all a story about morality, about right and wrong, good and evil, justice and revenge, sacrifice and redemption. All that good archetypal gut-level stuff. And happily, I discovered as I read it that Sarah Pinborough's The Taken is my kind of horror story.
It's a classic haunted house story, on a wider scale - an entire village is being visited by the ghosts of children, one of whom - Melanie Parr - died in the village thirty years ago under circumstances which are, at first, a mystery. There is a massive storm brewing, and the village is cut off, isolated, roads flooded, telephones down, while Melanie seeks her vengeance.
But there is a power even greater than Melanie's in the village, and when that power comes into play, it will set things right - and break your heart.
I'm looking forward to reading more of Pinborough's work.
It's a classic haunted house story, on a wider scale - an entire village is being visited by the ghosts of children, one of whom - Melanie Parr - died in the village thirty years ago under circumstances which are, at first, a mystery. There is a massive storm brewing, and the village is cut off, isolated, roads flooded, telephones down, while Melanie seeks her vengeance.
But there is a power even greater than Melanie's in the village, and when that power comes into play, it will set things right - and break your heart.
I'm looking forward to reading more of Pinborough's work.
January 30, 2015
In a small English farming village, Alex watches and a storm rages and her life falls apart around her. Inside the unrelenting storm, strange children are appearing and mysterious deaths are occurring. Slowly Alex unwinds the mystery of the last time such a storm came to town, 30 years ago.
This is a really good "ghost" story. It is creepy and compelling. I really liked many of the characters, flawed as they were. This is a great winter's read. Curl up with something warm to drink and enjoy.
This is a really good "ghost" story. It is creepy and compelling. I really liked many of the characters, flawed as they were. This is a great winter's read. Curl up with something warm to drink and enjoy.
October 31, 2008
I learned from this book that I am right to avoid horror--I really don't enjoy it! I didn't actually find this book scary as much as gory/gross (although I understand that by horror standards this book is very mild), and there were quite a few minor editorial errors that I found irritating. I will say, however, that malevolent children always make for a nice creepy horror device.....
October 8, 2009
The beginning of the book felt a bit slow though this may also be attributed to the fact that I dislike being kept hanging for too long before getting the back story. Especially since the back story was a key factor to understanding what was going on in the present. Once the book got going, I found it to be an enjoyable "ride".
February 22, 2013
I sat down to read this one before bed, and I didn't stop until I turned the last page. I was up ALL night. The unique twist at the end, and the job that Alex ends up doing, they almost brought me to tears! I just find the whole concept very original and I'm not going to spill it for future readers by revealing the plot here :-) just know that it's miles away from your typical ghost story.
May 26, 2010
I had no idea that Sarah Pinborough is a horror writer when I picked this book up. I was pleasantly surprised--and reminded that I have a soft spot for good horror, as grotesque as that may sound.
December 6, 2014
First take on "The Taken" by Sarah Pinborough is all good. Terror and just scary stuff is what you will expect. Small country towns adjacent to dense woodlands have always remained a fascination for me.
June 24, 2016
Pretty good horror story about evil children, particularly one evil child who seeks revenge against the people in the English village where she died. Satisfying ending. What I didn't like were the many grammatical and spelling errors. The writer is a hs English teacher...hmmm.
October 7, 2008
This was okay a little strange.Started off really good then got weird at the end.A small town has strange deaths and a girl who disappeared 30 yrs ago seems to be getting her revenge.
April 30, 2009
I liked the whole story, but the ending wasn't how I expected. It could have been better.
February 10, 2010
I've give this one 3.5 stars if I could (but not 4).
October 11, 2012
I have a new favorite horror writer. There are parts of this book that will haunt me forever.
June 30, 2012
This was an amazing read! I got chills while reading this book. It was exciting, suspenseful, and tragic. Definitely recommend this book to those who love horror novels!
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August 20, 2013A slow start, leading to a compelling old fashioned good scare. I was very disappointed with the ending. I had expected so more more.
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