Forget the horror for the moment and read it for a fine evocation of rural Sussex as it was at that time and as a sympathetic but realistic portrayal of the Catholic Church and its servants.

Unbelievably, it’s not long before another such miracle takes place, and through Alice Pagett’s newfound healing powers, those afflicted with an illness find themselves miraculously cured. We are moving here from witchcraft as the magic of supernatural powers to a more "cultist" kind of magic, where powers are, in fact, natural and merely more evolved. Human beings have no dog in the fight because they don't stand a chance against an entity that doesn't play by physical rules. It wasn't gross or disturbing in a way that's haunting but the imagery of it just sticks in the brain. Soon the site of the visitation, beneath an ancient oak tree, has become a shrine, a holy place for thousands of pilgrims.The third-person narrative switches between several points of view, including village businessmen, Catholic officials, and other minor, as well as important, characters. I personally also liked the long talks taking place among the high horses of the Catholic Church and, not for the first time, came to the conclusion that no religion should have so much weight when it comes to people's health - there are many dialogues about the sick and disabled people who are being cured in masses by little Alice and the discussions of representatives of the Church were really intriguing to follow. In 2010, he was made the Grand Master of Horror by the World Horror Convention and was also awarded an OBE by the Queen for services to literature. I had this on my shelf because I collect pulpy horror novels with cool covers, and then I heard that a new horror film had been released based on this book ( The Unholy) so I thought it was time to actually read it.

She is found by reporter Gerry Fenn and, when news of her cure spreads, their village becomes ablaze with publicity. The book is interesting not because of the horror (which I won't spoil by telling more) but because Herbert seems genuinely interested in the problem of the relationship between the Church and simple and desperate folk's faith when that faith may prove to be naive and dangerous. Better than some of the clunkers he did like 'Moon,' but not at the level of his classics like 'Once' and the 'Rats' series, which I still need to finish reading. The book is a much more mature, well rounded story in which Herbert explores themes around religion in the modern world, the media circus and nature of belief all wrapped up in a sixteenth centaury witch’s curse. Meanwhile, the local reporter, Gerry Fenn, is convinced that all is not quite right with the scenes of holy miracles unfolding in Banfield.It started well, and the last quarter was good, but the middle bit just seemed to last ages, and I'm not quite sure why. I loved the narration and the "boring" parts weren't boring for me they added to the story in an important and impactful way. In its core, an exploration Roman Catholicism; poses some interesting questions about the religion, its icons, and faith.