Dark is When the Devil Comes

by Daisy Pearce, Catrin Walker-Booth (Narrator)

HE'S A KIDNAPPER. BUT SHE'S THE REAL MONSTER . . .

Dark Is When the Devil Comes is the utterly gripping and chilling new novel from acclaimed horror author Daisy Pearce.

Hazel is twenty-seven, and her life is falling apart. As an amateur mycologist - someone who studies mushrooms - Hazel's hobby takes her to some dark places, but following a traumatic divorce she reluctantly finds herself back in her childhood home in the shadow of the sprawling Idless wood. To start rebuilding, she takes the plunge and arranges to meet her estranged sister Cathy; she also bumps into Suzie, an old school friend with whom she shares a dark childhood secret.

But then Hazel meets Andrew, who claims to have rare fungi growing in his old farmhouse. Lured out into the wilderness by curiosity and no little professional ambition, Hazel is trapped by Andrew, shut in the basement with no help for miles around.

As Cathy and Suzie desperately begin the search for her, Hazel starts to feel that something darker and even more terrifying than Andrew resides in that farmhouse. But is the power living in the dark with her or . . . much, much closer.

Discover the brilliantly creepy and twisty new novel from Daisy Pearce, author of Something in the Walls. Part psychological thriller, part horror, it will thrill fans of books such as The Last House on Needless Street by Caitriona Ward, Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough and Home Before Dark by Riley Sager.

Praise for Daisy

'A taut tale that chillingly intertwines psychological and supernatural suspense' Kirkus

'A deliciously creepy and twisty chiller that fans of The Conjuring and Stephen King will love' Bestselling author Mark Edwards

'Pearce provides visceral descriptions of people and places and smells and sounds to create a world where no one can trust their senses. Readers will be left questioning which is more disturbing, the rot within or the evil of other people' Booklist

'Pearce has written something magical with the capacity of leaving me genuinely frightened. There are scenes in this book I'll never forget' Kristi DeMeester, author of Such a Pretty Smile

'Creepy, emotional, complex, and incredibly atmospheric' Horror Bound

Books by Daisy Pearce
SOMETHING IN THE WALLS
DARK IS WHEN THE DEVIL COMES

Audible Audio

Expected publication April 28, 2026

About the author

Daisy Pearce was born in Cornwall and grew up on a smallholding surrounded by hippies. She read Stephen King’s 'Cujo' and The Hamlyn Book of Horror far too young and has been fascinated with the macabre ever since.

She began writing short stories as a teenager and after spells living in London and Brighton Daisy had her first short story ‘The Black Prince’ published in One Eye Grey magazine. Another short story, ‘The Brook Witch’, was performed on stage at the Small Story Cabaret in Lewes in 2016. She has also written articles about mental health online. In 2015, The Silence won a bursary with The Literary Consultancy, and later that year Daisy also won the Chindi Authors Competition with her short story ‘Worm Food’. Her second novel was longlisted for the Mslexia Novel Award.

Daisy currently works in the library at the University of Sussex, where she shelves books and listens to podcasts on true crime and folklore.