Bernard Taylor - The Reaping

[dem bones]

Bernard Taylor - The Reaping (Souvenir Press, 1980)

Oliver Frey

Blurb
First came the sowing – and then the reaping. The commission to paint a por­trait at Wolvercombe House seemed a chance in a million, and Tom Rigby grasped it thankfully as a turning point in his life. Not only would it take his mind off his unhappy relationship with Ilona, but it also promised a new and wonderful beginning to his career.

His expectations, however, hardly prepared him for what was to follow.

Strange things were happening at Wolvercombe House, things he could not explain. What was going on in that secluded old mansion, surrounded by its high walls? What was Mrs. Weldon's real reason for inviting him there? And why were nuns to be seen moving about the grounds? What of the old lady, Miss Stewart? And what terrors drove the beautiful young Catherine to seek refuge in his arms at night? Then there was the tower, and the ornate old lift – what secrets did they hold?

As time went by, Tom found himself drawn deeper and deeper into an impenetrable maze where he was con­fronted on every side by mystery and endless questions.

But it was with the answers that the horror really began.

For then came the time of the reaping.

In this haunting new novel, the author of The Godsend once again combines a compelling present with mysterious and primitive forces to create a thriller of spine-chilling effect.

if we'd started Vault two years earlier then chances are, Bernard Taylor threads would have been all over this board by now as i was, and remain, one BIG fan of his work, most notably Sweetheart, Sweetheart and The Moonstone Sickness, the latter one of very few horror novels that actually horrified me. So, what's The Reaping about. Truth is, apart from a scene involving swearing 'Nuns' taking a fag break, i can't remember a damn thing about it! Sweetheart, Sweetheart - which i'd routinely list among my all-time top 10 supernatural horror novels - is likewise a blur, though at the time i got the impression that it was Taylor's very own The Beckoning Fair One. He has a way with reworking old standards ( in the case of Mothers Boys, no less than Mendal Johnson's mighty Let's Go Play At The Adams'!). Evil Intent takes the gist of M. R. James' Casting The Runes for a run-out through contemporary Britain. The, admittedly, less ambitious The Kindness Of Strangers is more akin to a Paperback Library woman-in-peril offering minus the gorgeous frocks and plus knives. I think i read all of his macabre titles bar the last, Since Ruby (1999) after which he seems to have taken to writing romance as 'Jess Foley'.

Bernard Taylor. He's long overdue the full Vault treatment.