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Darker
Looking forward to a week of quality time with his wife and young daughter, Richard Young finds himself plunged into a world of terror when a stranger knocks on his door begging for help from a demonic force, thirsty for blood and death, that will brutally destroy everything in its way. Original.
411 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
3 people are currently reading
165 people want to read
About the author
Simon Clark
212 books299 followersBorn, 20th April, 1958, Simon Clark is the author of such highly regarded horror novels as Nailed By The Heart, Blood Crazy, Darker, Vampyrrhic and The Fall, while his short stories have been collected in Blood & Grit and Salt Snake & Other Bloody Cuts. He has also written prose material for the internationally famous rock band U2.
Raised in a family of storytellers – family legend told of a stolen human skull buried beneath the Clark garage – he sold his first ghost story to a radio station in his teens. Before becoming a full-time writer he held a variety of day jobs, that have involved strawberry picking, supermarket shelf stacking, office work, and scripting video promos.
He lives with his wife and two children in mystical territory that lies on the border of Robin Hood country in England.
Raised in a family of storytellers – family legend told of a stolen human skull buried beneath the Clark garage – he sold his first ghost story to a radio station in his teens. Before becoming a full-time writer he held a variety of day jobs, that have involved strawberry picking, supermarket shelf stacking, office work, and scripting video promos.
He lives with his wife and two children in mystical territory that lies on the border of Robin Hood country in England.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 25, 2024
It’s a hard one for me as I always complain about books not having enough umph, this one might have had a little too much. The book got straight into the action on page one and it didn’t seem to slow down but that made this a hard read it didn't ebb and flow it just went all out constantly.
It was hard hitting and really gruesome which I love but it was just not stop it didn’t give the reader anytime to take the story in or have a breather. Due to this I felt there was no character development which left me feeling indifferent about what might happen to them. The plot wasn’t that bad but it just needed to be slowed down. I think Simon Clark is trying to fit in so much action and gore he forgets about the development of his plot line.
There were some really amazing descriptive moments which is why I didn’t go below the 3-star mark. This is worth a read if you read horror for its guts and gore. If you after creepy, spooky or scary it doesn’t quite hit any of these marks. I would say it is a horror just due to its gore but it really didn’t scare me that much because it was just so fast-paced and a bit all over the place.
This is the first book I have read by Simon Clark and I wouldn’t look out for him in a bookstore but if I found his name in a charity shop I’d pick it up for sure.
It was hard hitting and really gruesome which I love but it was just not stop it didn’t give the reader anytime to take the story in or have a breather. Due to this I felt there was no character development which left me feeling indifferent about what might happen to them. The plot wasn’t that bad but it just needed to be slowed down. I think Simon Clark is trying to fit in so much action and gore he forgets about the development of his plot line.
There were some really amazing descriptive moments which is why I didn’t go below the 3-star mark. This is worth a read if you read horror for its guts and gore. If you after creepy, spooky or scary it doesn’t quite hit any of these marks. I would say it is a horror just due to its gore but it really didn’t scare me that much because it was just so fast-paced and a bit all over the place.
This is the first book I have read by Simon Clark and I wouldn’t look out for him in a bookstore but if I found his name in a charity shop I’d pick it up for sure.
April 17, 2016
I'd forgotten how much fun Simon Clark's books are. DARKER is no exception, a joy from start to finish. You're straight into the action and it doesn't let up, as an invisible force stalks a family across the English countryside. There's a marvelous set piece in York Minster, some great suspense scenes, and a satisfying, if slightly Hollywood, ending. All in all, I loved it.
April 1, 2020
A bit too intense for me. I was reading it at the start of the Covid 19 pandemic in the south U.S., which might have had some bearing.
December 2, 2010
The Young family falls under the spell of pleasant-looking but ruthless Michael (which gives a weird atmosphere to this novel, as they follow him blindly, unable to see that they are being manipulated).
Graced with these docile subjects, Michael pursues his quest to dominate the invisible entity that has attached itself to him. This creature comes from Istanbul (formerly Constantinople and Byzantium). It is ancient and used to live alongside emperors from the ancient world, granting them the power they needed to rule and conquer.
Reading about its destructive powers, I was reminded of the creature from "Forbidden Planet" (the movie, not the shops) and the evil presence in "Casting the Runes" (M.R. James story, adapted in movie format as "Night of the Demon - 1957).
In "Darker", the creature doesn't seem to have a mind of its own and pursues Michael (plus everyone associated with him) as if its life depended on it. This gives a strong supernatural element to the story, in front of which everyone needs to flee, or be smashed.
The downside to this is that the mad run of the Young family can feel a bit tedious at times, but overall, like the creature itself, "Darker" possesses an energy of its own that makes for a pleasant read. I certainly enjoyed it, despite a rather rushed ending. It suffers from what I call "quick exit syndrome": lengthy descriptions throughout the book, and then suddenly the show is over. The word quota has been reached, time to move on ladies and gentlemen.
What I have learned from this book:
* Energy and determination can be transmitted to the reader.
* Too many point of view changes feel like watching TV with someone who zaps channels every 5 minutes.
Graced with these docile subjects, Michael pursues his quest to dominate the invisible entity that has attached itself to him. This creature comes from Istanbul (formerly Constantinople and Byzantium). It is ancient and used to live alongside emperors from the ancient world, granting them the power they needed to rule and conquer.
Reading about its destructive powers, I was reminded of the creature from "Forbidden Planet" (the movie, not the shops) and the evil presence in "Casting the Runes" (M.R. James story, adapted in movie format as "Night of the Demon - 1957).
In "Darker", the creature doesn't seem to have a mind of its own and pursues Michael (plus everyone associated with him) as if its life depended on it. This gives a strong supernatural element to the story, in front of which everyone needs to flee, or be smashed.
The downside to this is that the mad run of the Young family can feel a bit tedious at times, but overall, like the creature itself, "Darker" possesses an energy of its own that makes for a pleasant read. I certainly enjoyed it, despite a rather rushed ending. It suffers from what I call "quick exit syndrome": lengthy descriptions throughout the book, and then suddenly the show is over. The word quota has been reached, time to move on ladies and gentlemen.
What I have learned from this book:
* Energy and determination can be transmitted to the reader.
* Too many point of view changes feel like watching TV with someone who zaps channels every 5 minutes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 31, 2011
Simon Clark's Darker is the story of a very powerful entity that has been used for centuries in a symbiotic relationship with powerful rulers. While within a person, this entity grants great power and makes the holder inspiring to all around them. However, the entity does not stay within the holder when the holder moves beyond certain geographical regions.
The latest to hold the entity, Michael loses it when entering England. This sets Michael forth on a quest to reclaim the entity for his own personal greed and leaves the entity on a death-filled chase to find Michael.
It wasn't a bad read. The plot was interesting enough and a decent amount of historical research went into it as well.
I felt that the story dragged out a bit in some areas and the pacing would have been more exciting had some parts been simply removed. Not all points need to be pounded into a reader's head.
This was a standard novel with some decent characters. Perhaps after reading Blood Crazy, I simply hold this author to a much higher standard than his other books can hold up to.
The latest to hold the entity, Michael loses it when entering England. This sets Michael forth on a quest to reclaim the entity for his own personal greed and leaves the entity on a death-filled chase to find Michael.
It wasn't a bad read. The plot was interesting enough and a decent amount of historical research went into it as well.
I felt that the story dragged out a bit in some areas and the pacing would have been more exciting had some parts been simply removed. Not all points need to be pounded into a reader's head.
This was a standard novel with some decent characters. Perhaps after reading Blood Crazy, I simply hold this author to a much higher standard than his other books can hold up to.
May 14, 2011
Simon Clark is an author that I just can’t seem to like. Darker is another failed attempt on my part to enjoy his work with the exception of The Tower. I thought I would love a novel about a force that chases down and literally crushes people flat but this, like most of the Clark novels I’ve read, just seemed sooooooooooooo drawn out and I wanted it to end. There comes a point in certain books where it becomes a challenge to me to finish and that’s when I decide it is a bad book. This one was especially difficult because I had already read a couple bad novels by this guy. Still, I am a horror fan and I have time to get to all of it before I die, at least hopefully, and I’m glad I read Darker even though I pretty much hated it. I will give it credit for having a grabbing beginning and some gruesome descriptions of deaths but that’s about all I got out of it.
April 14, 2008
Horror
January 21, 2016
Interesting horror from English writer Simon Clark. One things for sure, you haven't read anything similar in theme or plot.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews