Lucifer's Ark

by Simon Clark

Welcome to Lucifers Ark. This is the voyage to hell - The Volsparr routinely sails to a mining community in the Baltic. Unknown to the passengers aboard, the ship also carries a secret stateless criminals being transported to jails where no one will ever question their fate. Tanya Rhone is travelling to visit her fianc. Little does she know that aboard this ship life is the cheapest commodity of all . . .

Genres: Horror

250 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2007

About the author

Born, 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.

Reviews

[Mandy Dowson · Rating 5 out of 5]

**NOTE Simon Clark is such an under-appreciated horror writer. I have a lovely hardback collection going.

Lucifer's Ark is a unique and intriguing story.
A passenger ship, a cargo ship, a prisoner transfer ship.
A group of passengers, employees, engineers, prisoners, and terrorists.
Ten psychopaths and two guards to keep them in check.
An eclectic group of passengers, and one with a strange agenda.

All seems to be going well; the prisoners are contained, the guards are maintaining control, the passengers are unaware and the crew is doing a sufficient job.

All is going well...until it's not.
The crew disappears, the guard is attacked and the prisoners are released.
Why? You'll have to read it to find out.

Murder, mayhem, and madness.
The passengers are in for the fight of their lives, and the two guards are in for the Quilp Hunt of theirs.

This is a well-written masterpiece, but I'm biased; I would read Mr Clark's shopping list.

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very entertaining, so glad Clark stepped away from vampires for a bit and wrote this wham bam non stop action. Nothing supernatural here, but the setting is totally creepy, a giant ship in the middle of Baltic sea, in the dead of winter, with homicidal maniacs trapped in the lower level. And that's just the start. It's got a kickass heroine too. Nothing deep here, just a fun quick action packed read. Recommended.

[Wayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sort of claustrophobic horror/action book that was a very good read. We start off with a group of murderers on board a ship making an emergency voyage to a mine in the Baltic Sea. They are released to roam the ship. The crew starts to disappear. Then there are terrorists the passengers have to deal with. One of the better Clark novels that I have read.

[Geoff Battle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lucifer's Ark starts off as a foreboding tale of horror aboard a cruise ship. However, what promises deviant horror with no escape, turns out to be a rather tired cat and mouse story, with little effort to create any likeable characters, any real sense of suspense and uninteresting moments of horror. Clark has clearly missed a trick with this one. The villains of the novel are ludicrous or two dimensional and distract from any attempt to create tension. The very basic premise is enough to snag you until the end, however you're likely to be rushing to get there, rather than savouring the read.

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, it isn't going to be classed as a literary great, but this was an enjoyable romp on board a ferry in the Baltic Sea. Not for the squeamish but well worth a read. Btw, I do recommend Simon Clark's mighty fine Night of the Triffids as well.

Ray Smillie

[Paulo "paper books only" · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been reading Simon Clark and in the last few months I've read 4. I will say I am becoming really frustated.. I don't drop that many books, and I dropped The Fall. I thought of dropping this one as well.

I didn't enjoy the story or characters. It's a story about a boat that is travelling to a place in the baltic and it's transporting people and prisoners. Things go bad and it become a free for all.

This is not a Horror Book. This is a thriller.

[Garryvivianne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I liked nothing about this book, I just finished reading it to find out what happens to these trapped like rats people on this ship, after finding out crew is gone, hijackers have taken over (CRAZY hijackers at that!) AND there are 10 mentally insane psychotic prisoners that have been let loose. Like one of those cheesy movies where all seems hopeless! Waste of my time.

[David Minger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great premise. A bit gory.