An eerie, modern gothic thriller about what awaits us after death – angels or the devil . . . A fast-paced, dark, sinister and powerful novel, shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal 2011 and longlisted for the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize 2010.
It’s summer. Taken from the buzz of London, her friends and what she thinks is the start of a promising romance, Rebecca is an unwilling visitor to Winterfold.
Ferelith already lives in Winterfold – it’s a place that doesn’t like to let you go, and she knows it inside out: the beach, the crumbling cliff paths, the village streets, the woods, the deserted churches and ruined graveyards, year by year being swallowed by the sea.
Against their better judgement, Rebecca and Ferelith become friends, and during that long, hot, claustrophobic summer they discover more about each other – and about Winterfold – than either could have wanted. Frightening secrets are uncovered that would have been best long forgotten.
Interwoven with Rebecca and Ferelith’s stories is that of the seventeenth century Rector and Dr Barrieux, master of Winterfold Hall, whose bizarre and bloody experiments into the after-life might make angels weep, and the devil crow . . .
It’s summer. Taken from the buzz of London, her friends and what she thinks is the start of a promising romance, Rebecca is an unwilling visitor to Winterfold.
Ferelith already lives in Winterfold – it’s a place that doesn’t like to let you go, and she knows it inside out: the beach, the crumbling cliff paths, the village streets, the woods, the deserted churches and ruined graveyards, year by year being swallowed by the sea.
Against their better judgement, Rebecca and Ferelith become friends, and during that long, hot, claustrophobic summer they discover more about each other – and about Winterfold – than either could have wanted. Frightening secrets are uncovered that would have been best long forgotten.
Interwoven with Rebecca and Ferelith’s stories is that of the seventeenth century Rector and Dr Barrieux, master of Winterfold Hall, whose bizarre and bloody experiments into the after-life might make angels weep, and the devil crow . . .
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Reviews
an original and exceptional novel of tragedy, angels, devils and friendship
A dark and gruesome modern Gothic novel, with a compelling, and carefully crafted dual storyline that really builds the tension. The way in which the past and present interweave is brilliantly achieved, and there is a tremendous sense of place, both creepy and oppressive.
This may be [Sedgwick's] most ambitious book yet ... explores religion, death, friendship, truth and love with an intensity that confident older readers will immerse themselves in
The narrative is fast paced and dark. The characterisation of the two protagonists is powerful
An oppressive modern-gothic thriller