A Crown of Lights

If you enjoy a good, old fashioned ghost story, Phil Rickman's Merrily Watkins series is right up your alley. Merrily, an extremely loveable and believable character, is the vicar of a church on the Welsh border. She's also the head of the "Deliverance" ministry (exorcisms for those not in the CofE). The settings and tales are classic and gothic, yet the entire series maintains a very modern feeling. Dealing with turn of the century and older hauntings and curses while simultaneously handling the political intrigue of the church and a wise cracking teenage daughter who sees herself as more spiritual than religious keep Merrily busy and very much ground these books in the present. All of this is backed up by a firm footing in the mystery genre. Rickman is big in the UK, but just starting to get a foothold in the states as people discover these gems. These books defy classification, but once you read them you will be hooked. This book, in particular, really takes the series up a notch and bodes nothing but a wonderful future for the series.

This is the first book I have read by Phil Rickman. I shop for books based on customer reviews and he really should have a larger following. This book weaves the eerie legends of old into modern day perfectly. Every Character became real. While reading this book when I went to put it down it took me a little bit to realize I was still in my own home...because Rickman takes you there. I have since bought two more of his books and look forward to all of them based on his writing ability.

I believe that it was Lord Peter Wimsey who once made a habit of collecting vicars, one of the more idiosyncratic of British countryside characters. Be that as it may, I'm sure the venerable master detective never anticipated a vicar quite like Merrily Watkins, determined minister, caring mother, and deliverance consultant (exorcist) in the service of the Anglican Church on the Welsh border. Spiritual and personal crises have lead Merrily to this point in her life, and her investigations of not-so-normal events and challenges have made her the principal focus of Phil Rickman's mystery stories. When events give a pair of Pagan witches control of the site of a ruined church, Merrily senses trouble. Not from the pagans, but from Nick Ellis, a priest from the more evangelical side of the Anglican Church. Lately come from America, Ellis has set himself up in Radnor valley, where his style seems to suit the natives. He is outraged by the presence of the couple and sets about declaiming and defaming in an effort to oust something he considers a tool of the devil. Called in to mediate what appears to be a dangerous situation, Merrily discovers that the danger lies in more directions than expected. A death, a mysterious disappearance, and a host of dark rituals in unexpected places lead Merrily to realize that something wicked does indeed haunt the valley and that the pagans, Robin and Betty, are only come lately to a dark tale of greed and superstition. Rickman, who started writing horror stories, has really found his métier writing what are really detective stories with a supernatural bent. He has created a set of likable characters - Merrily herself, 16-year-old daughter Jane, Jane's boyfriend Eirion, and the omnipresent Gomer, his wife lately passed away, happy to be helping Merrily in a tangled web of intrigue and murder. Other volumes introduce even more characters, and the village of Ledwardine and its surrounding parishes spring alive with both charm and tension. One of Rickman's talents is his ability to build a long and detailed story arc from several angles. This keeps the action fresh. Be warned though that Rickman starts the windup to his endings early and can build the denouement steadily for over 100 pages of the book. He never loses that action though, and these long books are usually quick entertaining reads. While this isn't the first in the series, it plays well on its own, so by all means consider it a possible starting point.

He is relatively new to the American mass market, and I was thrilled to discover Phil Rickman late last year. He has brought a fresh approach to the British mystery tradition. Central character Merrily Watkins is a modern woman, Anglican priest, and single mother. Rickman has created a real person, one to whom it is easy to relate. Merrily struggles with many of the issues that plague Western society. Spiritual uncertainty, the problems of divorce, working motherhood, sexism, and social injustice all color her decisions and actions. How to be a good (female) priest. How to be a good mom. How to find a life partner. What is love? What is evil? Who is evil? Is demonic possession a reality? Is exorcism a valid response to it? Rickman knows well his psychology, religion, folklore, and history. He can be relied upon to create a literate, compelling story with believable characters and relevance for today.

Merrily Watkins is fast becoming the unassuming thinking person's sleuth. By her own admission, imperfect yet all the more realistic for it, she slides around the inevitable fanaticism that permeates A Crown of Lights and with almost Poirot-esque subtlet teases out the facts and nudges the forces of good and evil back into balance.The latest Rickman offering doesn't disappoint. He serves up a tingling read of an abandoned church that is portrayed as a vital reclaim to pagan religions. Robin and Betty Thorogood are the unsuspecting new owners of the abandoned church in Old Hindwell that holds its own dark history. Coupled with the sinister interweavings of the Local People and a bitter blood feud between two brothers, Merrily clashes with the fanatical Father Ellis and the antagonistic Ned Bain as each struggle to assert their religious dominance over the sleeping dragon that is warded by five churches. Excellent supporting roles from Merrily's daughter Jane, 'Irene' and Gomer Parry lend to a tale of immensely thrilling supernatural forces and the author has produced another stunning story. A must-read