If five people write reviews on this book each might give it a different star rating. It is a brave, mysterious and challenging work of fiction. Divided into three Acts, the first is a creation story in a style reminiscent of Hemingway’s The Old Man and The Sea. The entry of greed and other forces into the world is revealed through the experiences of a family. I was reminded of CS Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters.
In the second Act, we encounter the main protagonist, Ash, who inherited great power from his ancestors. He answers the desperate call of a friend only to find himself confronting the manifestation of evil in modern society. This section is awash with graphic and horrific images as evil manifests itself in physical form. At times, the drama threatens to overwhelm the writing and in places the text would benefit from a meticulous proof-reader as punctuation goes missing.
After these difficulties are overcome, the third Act sees Ash battling evil beneath the streets of London. He is trying to save the innocent and the misled but seems unaware that the fate of the whole world is at stake.
This book is not for everyone. It is a singular and uncompromising vision, written in defiance of convention. I get the impression the writer has drawn on deep personal experience in this work. Awash with threats that are physical, mental, and moral; hope and goodness are never quite extinguished. Once read; never forgotten.

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