PRAY YOU ARE ILL WHEN THE BELLS TOLL
Review of All The Fiends of Hell by Adam L G Nevill
What does one say about a book read twice that was even more astonishing the second time around? My first reading was right after publication of All The Fiends of Hell. I found it strange, disturbing, and full of creepy passages, but I could not imagine how to write a review of this latest book by one of my favorite authors.
The novel of 323 pages is cosmically horrific science fiction, and I mean that as the highest form of praise. Being a voracious reader all my life, I’ve read countless sci-fi, fantasy and, more recently, lots of horror. Perhaps my own anxiety about our collapsing world has led me to Folk Horror, Cosmic Horror and Psychological Horror. Whatever the incentive, I have found my perfect destroyer of the veil to the dark side. Adam L G Nevill is my king of the horrific. He is able to capture my attention with ease, lead me astray into the night and drown me with mental meanderings. This is why I felt incapable of writing a competent review.
I always look forward to a new release from Nevill, but this one left me stunned. The second reading was even better than the first. Just as many monster movies hold back on the monster (bah!) these Fiends start out invisible, but fear not! As the red sky envelopes the UK, they start to be revealed, and the revelation is grotesque and perilous. The author has included an essay at the end: “Story Notes: About This Horror” which explains his concern for Earth’s future and his need to write an alien invasion tale. I would say he nailed the “horrors” and left us longing for more.
I think Adam Nevill would be very pleased with this! I just read the opening description on Goodreads and I see what you're getting at...:
"The red night of bells heralds global catastrophe. Annihilation on a biblical scale. Seeing the morning is no blessing. The handful of scattered survivors are confronted by blood-red skies and an infestation of predatory horrors that never originated on earth. An occupying force intent on erasing the remnants of animal life from the planet."
I'm on page 84, thanks to your above review, and enjoying it this far. Several "empty earth" similarities to the stories in Wyrd and Other Derelictions, the only other Nevil I have read.
Many thanks!