I picked this up after reading an enjoying a few of Ramsey Campbell's short stories in various horror compilations. This is strange to think back on now, as my big problem with this book is that it feels like an underdeveloped short story that was needlessly padded to novel-length. It is a shame, because there are seeds for a good story buried in the mess, but they don't really appear until about 2/3 of the way through the book. By that time, they have been smothered by poorly executed and repetitious exposition. By the end of the novel (admittedly the strongest part), the payoff is too little, too late, and largely predictable. The potential for a good story was there, but bad execution seems to have squandered it. I cannot recommend this book. A good horror/supernatural suspense novel should never leave a reader bored and uninvested in it's protagonist, but that's just what this book did.
