Cape Wrath

by Paul Finch

Craeghatir: a lonely rock, far out on the northernmost tip of Britain; the closest point of land to it, the wild, storm-ravaged Cape Wrath. To call this place bleak is the understatement of a lifetime. Huge cliffs dominate its shores, but within there are green tracks linking secret valleys where tumuli can be found, ancient megaliths and the bones of prehistoric mammals long grown over with moss. The island is now uninhabited and in terms of this beauty and silence, it is an outstanding locale - though few sightseers ever venture there willingly, for Craeghatir has an evil reputation. Professor Jo Mercy of Warwick University's elite archaeological unit doesn't believe the rumours and is keen to investigate a newly-discovered barrow on the island which might contain the remains of Ivar Ragnarsson, perhaps the most infamous of all Viking chieftains. Ragnarsson was reputed to be berserkir - a warrior possessed with the wolf-spirit, whose madness carried him past all pain and reason in the heat of battle, and whose victims were deemed offerings to the wolf-god Fenrir. But Mercy and her team will find themselves faced with more than just the inhospitable environment on Craeghatir, as the spirit of Ragnarsson is disturbed and death and madness come to the island.

Genres: Horror

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Paul Finch is a former cop and journalist, now full-time writer. Having originally written for the television series THE BILL plus children's animation and DOCTOR WHO audio dramas, he went on to write horror, but is now best known for his crime / thriller fiction.

He won the British Fantasy Award twice and the International Horror Guild Award, but since then has written two parallel series of hard-hitting crime novels, the Heck and the Lucy Clayburn novels, of which three titles have become best-sellers.

Paul lives in Wigan, Lancashire, UK with his wife and children.

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first piece of long-ish (it's a novella) fiction from Paul Finch, this is a corker of a read, starting off at a cracking pace and never letting up. Set on a remote island, genuinely creepy, juicily gruesome when called for, this is a great read and highly recommended.

[Adam Stone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cape Wrath is a novella by Paul Finch set on a remote island off the most northerly part of the Scottish mainland where a group of archaeology students are on a field trip that goes horribly wrong for the majority of them.

It is a very quick read being approximately 120 pages long, and is also very gruesome and the author doesn't pull his punches when describing the ways in which the characters are killed, all of which are grisly and get worse as time goes on.

This book is definitely not for the squeamish, and would only really be enjoyed by people who love watching slasher horror movies such as Evil Dead, Cabin Fever and the Friday The 13th series of movies.

As I am one of those people who enjoy watching those sort of films this book worked for me. I didn’t find it particularly scary but then I don’t tend to find these sort of things scary or disturbing but I could see how a lot of people wouldn’t enjoy it, so I would say only read it if you can stomach a lot of blood and guts.

I could very well imagine this being made into a film which would end up being a cult classic. It is certainly something that I would watch if it ever ended up being made into a film as it would suit that form particularly well.

[David Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very scary stuff. The book follows some archeologists as they try to uncover an ancient viking's burial ground. The book takes place on a deserted island in the frigid Northern British isles, with a history of every inhabitant of the island either going mad or was murdered. Hm. The book has some interesting artistic flickers and is always descriptive enough to keep you on your toes. It's short enough at 120 pages to be scary and at the same time not out warm its welcome.

Be warned, there's some extremely graphic sexual scenes, but they are done with artistic license involving an interesting juxtapose of the penetration of the dig site and a sexual encounter. The violence and gore is quite graphic as well, but always involves an interesting history lesson (which from its detail is most likely real) on norse mythology.

I had to purchase the book used since it's not available at any book store I could find, nor at any library I searched, so if you see it snatch it up as it's definitely worth a read.

[Canyonxplorer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cape Wrath is the fourth Paul Finch book that I've read this year. The basic plot is very similar to Willie Meikle's Island Life - archaelogical dig set on remote Scottish Island disturbing something best left alone.

Once again Mr Finch's descriptive work was excellent - particulary the opening pages where the boat is approaching the island via a steep and narrow inlet - it was very evocative of the sights and sounds.

Against the backdrop of the Scottish Island, Cape Wrath, we have the historical backdrop of Viking/Norse legends (and I will admit that the historical elements are a feature of Paul's writings that I really enjoy). The rest of the story flies along with the "nasty" unleashed and some particulary gruesome and original murders.

Very enjoyable.

[Jameson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paul Finch is an awesome storyteller. Interesting premises, well-drawn characters, mystery, mounting dread, sex, outright horror, action-packed climaxes, impactful endings—his best work has it all. Storytelling is a dying art in many ways, but Finch is a reliable teller of tales.

I’m not well-versed in Viking lore and what they did when they came to Britain but JFC—crazy. In the afterword action Finch says “if anyone who reads [Cape Wrath] is reminded, even for a second, that the ground they tread daily is the same ground once trodden by warlike barbarous hordes, then I’ll consider it a job well done.” I love that.

*Jean Grey once went jogging on Cape Wrath.