Synopses & Reviews
A signature cocktail of gore and suspense fused with elements of the occult have made Mo Hayder a rising star on the mystery circuit. Her latest, Ritual, delivers all the thrills her growing fanbase has come to expect. Just after lunch, police diver Flea Marley closes her gloved fingers around a human hand. The fact that there is no body attached is disturbing enough-until the matching hand is discovered and forensics indicate that the victim was still alive when they were removed. Flea and Detective Jack Caffery soon establish that the hands belong to a young man who has recently disappeared. Their search for answers lead them into the darkest recesses of Bristol's underworld, where street kids prostitute themselves for a hit and one of Africa's most disturbing rituals may have made an unwelcome appearance.
Review
ôReaders looking for visceral thrills need look no further.ö
ùPublishers Weekly
ôHayder surpasses even Ruth Rendell in her ability to find horror in everyday things. . . . Intensely enthralling.ö
ùThe Observer (London)
Synopsis
The author of "The Devil of Nanking" delivers a taut, chilling tale of clandestine occult practices, New Age medicine, and the drug underground, set in a hypermodern urban landscape challenged by colliding immigrant cultures.
About the Author
Mo Hayder left school at fifteen and has worked as a barmaid, security guard, filmmaker, and Tokyo nightclub hostess. This is her fourth novel.