The One Safe Place

This book is deep and hard-hitting. It's like a trip to another world; an experience you won't soon forget.

This is a brilliant tale of modern horror that totally eschews any of the usual trappings of things that go bump in the night and instead focuses on the cruelty and nasty possibilties of everyday life. The death of one of the lead characters halfway through the book is pretty hard hitting mainly due to Campbells excellent descriptive technique, you almost feel as if you know the family. As with all Campbells novels you finish this book with the satisfaction of knowing you have just read a well written novel by an important novellist.

Ramsey Campbell has distinguished himself as one of the top award winners among all active horror writers and his latest, _One Safe Place_, only provides further evidence of his prodigious talent. In moving from the unexplained horror of the supernatural to a more realistic milieu, Campbell sacrifices none of the unsettling quality of his previous work. The book revolves around an American family, newly arrived in Manchester to open up a used and antiquarian bookshop. When the father unwittingly runs afoul of a local thug and his family, the resulting violence has long-lasting effects on both families. This is a haunting and sad novel with a very convincing look at what it must be like for expatriates attempting to start a new life in a foreign country. Anyone who has ever daydreamed of moving to England (a dream I must admit I've had) should read this cautionary tale. Campbell, unlike other horror writers on the bestseller lists, continues to grow and challenge himself as a writer, tackling new subjects and themes with continually superlative results. This reviewer can hardly wait to get ahold of a copy of his next book, _The House on Nazareth Hill_