Torc of Moonlight [Paperback]

A fan of Alan Garner's "The Owl Service" I began this book with high expectations. Disappointingly I finished it feeling as if the Author had been shouting at me all the way through. Perhaps it is intended for a teenage audience because it is all physicality without any pause for reflection. It seemed the characters are all either in a heightened state of fear, physical pain or sexual arousal all the time. Knowing only what they are feeling - rather than what they are thinking - made it impossible for me to develop empathy for any of them. In fact they seemed like empty vessels waiting to be filled - no wonder vengeful spirits found them so easy to take over. Silk kimonos (both Clare and Alice wore them) were mentioned far too often as was Alice's hair floating up round her head or falling in ripples to her shoulders. OK - we got the water reference. It was clear the author had carried out a great deal of meticulous research. Alice's guided tour of Hull and the museum seemed like a race to impart as much information in as short a time as possible. However, there is a fine line between having each detail ploddingly explained to one and not being given enough explanation and with the mythology the author tended to the latter, throwing us tidbits with little link to their relevance to the plot. This was particularly apparent with the references to the annual cycle of death and rebirth which were never clearly tied in to Ognirius' story. A reader not familiar with the intricacies of Celtic mythology would not have got the relevance of Samhain to Ognirius "passing through" . The author never explains that he is trying to pass through to the other world. Having then mentioned Samhain (Halloween) it was dropped. One assumes the denouement at the pool took place then - the short time when this world and the other meet? If not, why mention it in the first place? I was not totally sure at the end either whether Alice was a personification of the water goddess herself or inhabited by her priestess, Yslan. In summary; a great idea for a story that could have done with a more subtle execution.

Linda Acaster, in starkly elegant prose, builds a powerful novel of possession and psychological breakdown in 'Torc of Moonlight'. She writes the male point of view very well indeed, showing the pressures men themselves and society put them under. This spiritual thriller builds to a gripping a inexorable climax while exploring aspects of northern British history, places and cities that are deeply fascinating. A haunting read.

Two things I guarantee will happen when you read this book:
1 - you will have to finish it, becasue you will be desperate to know how it ends, how the mysteries unravel
2 - you will want to buy an ordanance survey map and go hunting for signs.

You may even book a trip on the fantastic Pickering railway, see what you can spot on Google Earth, or go snooping round the Salmon Road area of Hull University.

The people and plot are all fictitious - the geography and history is not. If you've ever fancied learning about Yorkshire celtic history, read this book, buy the OS map, and spend a few days having the most fun you can have with your clothes on (Unless, of course you decide to recreate the railway love scene).