- Hardcover
- Publisher: Macmillan (2004)
- ASIN: B000P0W4N6
- Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
The Prayer of the Night Shepherd
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
One of the principal rules of ensuring a long running genre series retains its stamina and mass appeal is knowing the precise moment to change the dynamic. Avoidance of this fact inevitably results in character stagnation, plot repetition and eventual banishment to the twilight zone of a publishers back catalogue. Thankfully Rickman is a canny enough writer to realise Merrily can't go tilting at (haunted) windmills in every book and in `The Prayer of the Night Shepherd' he wisely reins in the supernatural elements of previous novels and gives his characters breathing space to evolve. Not to say that Rickman has stripped the novel of all things that go-bump-in-the-night. Far from it, but there is a more subtle sleight-of-hand approach to the unquiet dead this time around, allowing the focus of the story to develop into a stylish who-done-it mystery that would do credit to Sherlock Holmes whose creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle features prominently in the story line.
The central thrust of the plot concerns the legend of a `Black Dog' whose unwelcome appearance foretells of a death in a local family and is attributed to be the inspiration for `The Hound of the Baskervilles'. Meanwhile Merrily is becoming the focal point of alleged miracle working when a woman claims to have been cured of cancer at a meditation and prayer session. Another disturbing plot strand involves children who kill - and it's here that Lol Robinson finally emerges from the shadows of Merrily's cassock to show his true mettle. These stories and other curious tales wind around each other like a nest of hissing serpents - and as you would expect there is a twist of Chubby Checker proportions at the finale.
Another excellent book from Phil Rickman in the Merrily Watkin's Deliverance Procedurals.
The central thrust of the plot concerns the legend of a `Black Dog' whose unwelcome appearance foretells of a death in a local family and is attributed to be the inspiration for `The Hound of the Baskervilles'. Meanwhile Merrily is becoming the focal point of alleged miracle working when a woman claims to have been cured of cancer at a meditation and prayer session. Another disturbing plot strand involves children who kill - and it's here that Lol Robinson finally emerges from the shadows of Merrily's cassock to show his true mettle. These stories and other curious tales wind around each other like a nest of hissing serpents - and as you would expect there is a twist of Chubby Checker proportions at the finale.
Another excellent book from Phil Rickman in the Merrily Watkin's Deliverance Procedurals.
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I won't go into plot details which are mentioned in previous reviews but suffice it to say that - along with Crybbe - this is my favourite among the Phil Rickmans I've read to date. Ancient, old and modern evils are woven together seamlessly in a sometimes snowbound scenario which also involves elements of a spectral dog legend a la Hound. The last bit is no coincidence - long before reading the book I heard Mr Rickman talking on Radio Wales about the possibility that Conan Doyle took his inspiration from a Welsh Borders legend rather than Devon or even Norfolk.
As an entry in the Merrily saga many familiar faces are involved in the action. The always endearing Gomer Parry and his mate Danny Thomas play their parts while Lol survives a chillingly close call(maybe he was able to work it out of his system by writing a song??)
Apart from the many nailbiting twists and turns of the plot the most satisfying - perhaps even moving - element of the entire book is that it ultimately offers some hope of redemption for a troubled individual who has thoroughly earned it.
This book has all the hallmarks of vintage Rickman - not least the strongly defined sense of place but even more characters (both the regulars and others) who feel like real flesh and blood. Thoroughly recommended.
As an entry in the Merrily saga many familiar faces are involved in the action. The always endearing Gomer Parry and his mate Danny Thomas play their parts while Lol survives a chillingly close call(maybe he was able to work it out of his system by writing a song??)
Apart from the many nailbiting twists and turns of the plot the most satisfying - perhaps even moving - element of the entire book is that it ultimately offers some hope of redemption for a troubled individual who has thoroughly earned it.
This book has all the hallmarks of vintage Rickman - not least the strongly defined sense of place but even more characters (both the regulars and others) who feel like real flesh and blood. Thoroughly recommended.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Hands up first to being a fan of The Merrily Watkin books. I first came across her with The Smile of a Ghost and from that i wanted more! This novel is my favourite of them all as it touches on so many things i find interesting. Where else could you find rural conflicts,folklore, seances, Conan Doyle,business nightmares, tv folk, teenage angst and vicars! Thats without mentioning paranormal activity!
Whatever time of year you read this in you will be transported to a snow filled world that you won't want to be dug out of until you've finished the book. I guarantee that if this your first read of Phil Rickmans book you will be left wanting more.
Whatever time of year you read this in you will be transported to a snow filled world that you won't want to be dug out of until you've finished the book. I guarantee that if this your first read of Phil Rickmans book you will be left wanting more.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
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In this, the sixth in Phil Rickman's excellent series, diocesan deliverance consultant Merrily Watkins is struggling with a slightly different problem, an unwanted reputation as a... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Mr. T. Young
Gripping story from beginning to end
I have read five Merrily stories and this was my sixth. I think it the best so far. I am trying to read them in the correct order, but actually read this one after two later... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Stephanie
A challenging and compelling winter read.
I only discovered Phil Rickman's writing and the Merrily Watkins novels a few months ago and have found them totally compelling and, as a woman priest who has worked on the Welsh... Read more
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Well, I loved it!
This is my second favourite (after Midwinter of the Spirit, which was the first of the Merrily series I read). Knowing the area so well helped. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Anna Biggs
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Published 10 months ago by Mark
Less Merrily, more Jane
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Published 16 months ago by R. Vernon
The Prayer Of The Night Shepherd
Another classic Merrily novel.
I'm still catching up on Rickman's series and needed something as winterly atmospheric as his "December". Read more
I'm still catching up on Rickman's series and needed something as winterly atmospheric as his "December". Read more
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