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Day of the Arrow
The hero of this novel is drawn into the troubles of a young woman he was once close to, who has since married the wealthy owner of a chateau in the French wine country and become the mother of a small son. But her husband has abandoned her emotionally and sexually; there are strange and sinister doings afoot --and it seems that male members of the family have a centuries-old history of dying at young ages in mysterious and often violent circumstances. (Philip Loraine's real name was Robin Estridge.)
186 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 1, 1964
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About the author
Philip Loraine
36 books5 followersRobin Phillip Lorraine Estridge was a British writer of suspense fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
April 26, 2017
Here's the 1967 Lancer mass-market I have (254 pages), with cover art by Lou Marchetti. It was re-titled to tie in to the film version released that same year. Note the obligatory lone lit window atop the castle. I've yet to see a Gothic paperback from the era without a light burning in the background castle or mansion. Not two or three lights, just one. Always. Must be more ominous that way or something.
June 16, 2015
brilliant book.
Although written in 1964, Day of the Arrow still packs a hell of a gut punch that I won't soon forget. Do yourself a HUGE favor though and read the novel before you watch the 1966 movie that was based on it, "Eye of the Devil." While the movie is very good (especially the creep factor of Sharon Tate's indescribable stare), and would be just super for a Deborah Kerr Halloween night creepfest along with "The Innocents", it leaves out so much of what makes this book an incredible read.
Very much Gothic in tone with atmosphere that doesn't quit, Day of the Arrow begins when James Lindsay spies his former lover coming out of a Paris where she'd evidently been for a tryst. That makes him wonder ... after all, he knew she was married to Philipe de Montfaucon for six years. They eventually meet, and Françoise reveals that for the last three years, something's been a bit off with Philipe. It's not another woman -- it's that Philipe is certain that he is going to die. Lindsay agrees to come to the Montfaucon country estate, Bellac, to see what he can make of things, and while he's there he uncovers a secret in some old tomes of family history that is rooted in traditions going back before the Christians ever set foot in the place. Something is very much amiss at Bellac, as James discovers, and to his horror, he also comes to understand that whatever is going to happen cannot and absolutely will not be stopped, no matter how hard he tries.
Day of the Arrow is one of those novels that just gets under your skin from the beginning. Once the scene moves to Bellac, there is no shaking off the atmosphere that Loraine has so expertly crafted. It is a horror novel with an intense mystery at its center, it goes deeply back into time, and it's a very hard book to put down once it's opened. And while it may not appeal to gore/splatter/swimming in guts sorts of readers, I'd put this old book up against anything coming out today. It is, in two words, beyond excellent. It's another one worthy of absolute shrieks of delight once I turned that final page.
Although written in 1964, Day of the Arrow still packs a hell of a gut punch that I won't soon forget. Do yourself a HUGE favor though and read the novel before you watch the 1966 movie that was based on it, "Eye of the Devil." While the movie is very good (especially the creep factor of Sharon Tate's indescribable stare), and would be just super for a Deborah Kerr Halloween night creepfest along with "The Innocents", it leaves out so much of what makes this book an incredible read.
Very much Gothic in tone with atmosphere that doesn't quit, Day of the Arrow begins when James Lindsay spies his former lover coming out of a Paris where she'd evidently been for a tryst. That makes him wonder ... after all, he knew she was married to Philipe de Montfaucon for six years. They eventually meet, and Françoise reveals that for the last three years, something's been a bit off with Philipe. It's not another woman -- it's that Philipe is certain that he is going to die. Lindsay agrees to come to the Montfaucon country estate, Bellac, to see what he can make of things, and while he's there he uncovers a secret in some old tomes of family history that is rooted in traditions going back before the Christians ever set foot in the place. Something is very much amiss at Bellac, as James discovers, and to his horror, he also comes to understand that whatever is going to happen cannot and absolutely will not be stopped, no matter how hard he tries.
Day of the Arrow is one of those novels that just gets under your skin from the beginning. Once the scene moves to Bellac, there is no shaking off the atmosphere that Loraine has so expertly crafted. It is a horror novel with an intense mystery at its center, it goes deeply back into time, and it's a very hard book to put down once it's opened. And while it may not appeal to gore/splatter/swimming in guts sorts of readers, I'd put this old book up against anything coming out today. It is, in two words, beyond excellent. It's another one worthy of absolute shrieks of delight once I turned that final page.
January 17, 2017
A slender book worth seeking out if you saw the Sharon Tate, Deborah Kerr, David Niven Suspense film, The Eye of The Devil. the film introduced Sharon Tate as an actress, in fact. The narrator differs here, being not the wife but the best friend of the Vinyard Owner wrapped up in ancient rituals. If you know a little something about pre-Christian rituals being white-washed into charming local customs and feast days, then this book will give you something to chew on. I enjoyed reading the book as much as watching the film, if not more since the book delves a little deeper into the mysticism behind the "thirteen days." Many Libraries will be cutting this book from their collections in coming years so read it while you can.
July 31, 2025
Though with all the necessary elements of a folkloric tale, a remote farming community, superstitious locals, pagan festivals, and an outsider visits, this is more of a gothic story.
Scottish painter James Lindsay lives in France and runs into his friend and ex-lover Francoise, who is distraught over her husband Philipe’s o strange behaviour. He, a Marquis living in his ancestral chateau surrounded by vineyards, has recently become depressed, believing that he is under a family curse and that he will soon die. James accompanies Francoise to the chateau, in the village of Bellad, and they attempt to solve Philipe’s seeming insanity.
Though the ending is predictable, it’s the journey there that is entertaining in itself.
Robin Estridge (1920-2002) was a British writer of mystery novels who wrote under a couple of pseudonyms, including Philip Loraine. He’s one of those many writers who enjoyed some success only to then disappear into almost complete obscurity. This is probably the best known of his books, and was adapted into a British horror movie in 1966 called Eye of the Devil. Despite a stellar cast, it met with only limited success.
Scottish painter James Lindsay lives in France and runs into his friend and ex-lover Francoise, who is distraught over her husband Philipe’s o strange behaviour. He, a Marquis living in his ancestral chateau surrounded by vineyards, has recently become depressed, believing that he is under a family curse and that he will soon die. James accompanies Francoise to the chateau, in the village of Bellad, and they attempt to solve Philipe’s seeming insanity.
Though the ending is predictable, it’s the journey there that is entertaining in itself.
Robin Estridge (1920-2002) was a British writer of mystery novels who wrote under a couple of pseudonyms, including Philip Loraine. He’s one of those many writers who enjoyed some success only to then disappear into almost complete obscurity. This is probably the best known of his books, and was adapted into a British horror movie in 1966 called Eye of the Devil. Despite a stellar cast, it met with only limited success.
September 17, 2012
James Lindsay has been living in France for five years when his former lover Francoise comes to him for help. Francoise is now married to the wealthy owner of a chateau in the French wine country and is the mother of a young son. Philippe de Faucon, Marquis de Bellac, Francoise's husband, has turned suddenly cold and emotionally distant towards her and Francoise is desperate to find out the reason why Philippe's attitude has changed so drastically.
There are also strange and sinister things happening. It seems that all the male members of the de Faucon family have a centuries-old curse upon their heads. Apparently, all the sons of the lineage have a history of dying young in mysterious and often violent circumstances.
I liked this book; it was pretty good but, again, not my favorite. If I was to be really picky about the book, in my opinion, the story had some slight continuity issues with it and was a little slow going in terms of reading for me. Overall, though, the book was not a bad way to spend three days and I give it an A!
There are also strange and sinister things happening. It seems that all the male members of the de Faucon family have a centuries-old curse upon their heads. Apparently, all the sons of the lineage have a history of dying young in mysterious and often violent circumstances.
I liked this book; it was pretty good but, again, not my favorite. If I was to be really picky about the book, in my opinion, the story had some slight continuity issues with it and was a little slow going in terms of reading for me. Overall, though, the book was not a bad way to spend three days and I give it an A!
July 14, 2017
Whenever the peasants start crossing themselves and spittin at you as you're strolling around Provence, you'd be wise to skedaddle on outta there. James Lindsay is a British artist (which the French find hilarious because those things seem mutually exclusive to them) visiting his old friend in a sinister chateau and poking his nose in French people's business. Despite the many ominous signs of trouble brewing he stubbornly refuses to back off, and that is how you end up in a horror novel.
There is a nicely evil atmosphere to this, and although I didn't find the mysticism all that interesting, I enjoyed it.
There is a nicely evil atmosphere to this, and although I didn't find the mysticism all that interesting, I enjoyed it.
October 18, 2023
Found this little gem at a local flea market. Blonde witches, gay lovers, and mysterious priests prowl the faded estate of a French marquis. Just what sort of terrible games might be afoot on these ancient grounds?! Only when armed with this book might you, the protagonist James Lyndsay, and the marquise Françoise, pull all of the pieces together…
N.B. I haven’t seen the film Eye of the Devil (1966) based on this book - but I certainly want to now. Having read this book though, I want to see it remade as an A24 production. 🎥✨
N.B. I haven’t seen the film Eye of the Devil (1966) based on this book - but I certainly want to now. Having read this book though, I want to see it remade as an A24 production. 🎥✨
January 18, 2020
Another of those hit-and-miss Valancourt reissues...I'd love to be a fly on the wall at editorial meetings when someone says, 'Let's reprint all of John Blackburn' and someone else is stupid enough to agree with them...'Day of the Arrow' isn't quite as bad as Blackburn's fiction, but it's not good. To be fair, parts of it are quite impressive, especially the final third when the hero gets hunted through the woods (an effective scene) and begins to discover how ancient pagan practices endure beneath the surface of French rural life (I'm sure Kate Mosse has read Loraine's work). This section has the added charm of fatalism and conspiracy, but the first two-thirds of the story are far less appealing. It's slow to the point of aimlessness, has some terrible dialogue (read the conversations aloud if you don't believe me), and wholly fails to evoke the setting which is so important if the story is to succeed. I wanted to be able to see and smell those failing vineyards, but instead I just got dreary bourgeois types sitting around eating olives and having conversations which seem at first pregnant with meaning but which end up simply being frustratingly vague, as if the author quite can't see the point of them. The characters were wooden at best - even the narrator never manages to come to life. The film version may lack some of the nuances of the book, but it is much more watchable, not least because it succeeds in capturing the tone and atmosphere of the novel while imbuing it with much needed verve (and indeed, pathos). The lack of atmosphere was a problem while nothing else was happening, but the novel certainly improves once the narrator begins to get an inkling of what's going on. On the whole, a rather unsatisfying read, though by no means an uninteresting one.
June 20, 2018
I found this old book in my mother’s collection. Entertaining and creepy gothic story with a pagan theme set in modern times. I read it in 2 days - it kept my attention which is better than a lot of books. I remember the movie it was based on, "Eye of the Devil", which came out in the late 1960s with David Niven and Deborah Kerr. The book, as always, had more details. I recommend if you like a gothic and creepy genre.
October 12, 2018
About a week and a half ago the movie of this was on TCM, The Eye of the Devil (which I’ve recorded but haven’t seen yet), and when I looked up the book it was under $5 on amazon so I thought I’d see what a horror book published around the time I was born was like. Well, if this is any indication the answer is borrr-ing!!! Slow as molasses, and though I haven’t looked ahead yet, I predict that it’s also predictable!
I’m still looking forward to watching the movie, though.
I’m still looking forward to watching the movie, though.
October 5, 2025
Visit JetBlackDragonfly (The Man Who Read Too Much) at www.edenthompson.ca/blog
for a large clear copy of the paperback image and over 900 book reviews in all genres
This atmospheric thriller was first published in 1964 as "Day of the Arrow" before being filmed in 1966 and reissued under this title. Filled with menace, this fits the Daphne Du Maurier (or Hammer horror) style of gothic castles and ancient rites.
Accomplished young painter James Lindsay spies his old love Françoise in Paris. His desire is still strong despite her marrying his effete college roommate Philippe six years ago and becoming Françoise de Montfaucon, Marquise de Bellac. Her surprising call that night is full of fear, for Philippe claims he is going to die. He hasn't touched her in years; maybe he is having an affair?
James agrees to travel to the family castle in the Auvergne, Château de Bellac, complete with iron-studded doors and circular towers surrounded by a small kingdom of farmland and wine fields. He finds Philippe boisterous and welcoming; perhaps she is wrong. Staying there are Philippe's sister Tante Estelle; the Comtesse de Vignon with her virile son Christian; and his sister Odile, an ethereal girl whom everyone will tell you is a witch. Philippe's main concern is the two years of drought floundering crops, and James researches the history of this land where for centuries the Lords have all died suspiciously before forty. James soon discovers Philippe may be having an affair with Christian, Odile performs rituals with dead doves, and there is a hidden chapel watched over by Pere Dominique. The days of the local harvest fete Les Treize Jours (The Thirteen) arrive with extra guests - an Italian Prince with various other European elites - forming a party of thirteen for a big hunt.
James has been warned by Philippe to leave; he may be attacked or killed, but he cannot abandon Francoise as the ancient celebration commences, filled with pagan dances and debased rituals their god demands, the darkness overseen by Pere Dominique.
You can clearly see the road this is going down, but the subtle menace is so mesmerizing you don't mind. The chateau is filled with secrets, the guests quite odd, and anyone who has read witchcraft stories will know there is only one cure for a famine: your basic blood sacrifice. The 1966 film Eye of the Devil, starring David Niven, Deborah Kerr, and Sharon Tate in her first role, was overlooked but is now considered a cult classic. British writer Robin Estridge (using the Loraine pseudonym) wrote both this novel and the screenplay.
for a large clear copy of the paperback image and over 900 book reviews in all genres
This atmospheric thriller was first published in 1964 as "Day of the Arrow" before being filmed in 1966 and reissued under this title. Filled with menace, this fits the Daphne Du Maurier (or Hammer horror) style of gothic castles and ancient rites.
Accomplished young painter James Lindsay spies his old love Françoise in Paris. His desire is still strong despite her marrying his effete college roommate Philippe six years ago and becoming Françoise de Montfaucon, Marquise de Bellac. Her surprising call that night is full of fear, for Philippe claims he is going to die. He hasn't touched her in years; maybe he is having an affair?
James agrees to travel to the family castle in the Auvergne, Château de Bellac, complete with iron-studded doors and circular towers surrounded by a small kingdom of farmland and wine fields. He finds Philippe boisterous and welcoming; perhaps she is wrong. Staying there are Philippe's sister Tante Estelle; the Comtesse de Vignon with her virile son Christian; and his sister Odile, an ethereal girl whom everyone will tell you is a witch. Philippe's main concern is the two years of drought floundering crops, and James researches the history of this land where for centuries the Lords have all died suspiciously before forty. James soon discovers Philippe may be having an affair with Christian, Odile performs rituals with dead doves, and there is a hidden chapel watched over by Pere Dominique. The days of the local harvest fete Les Treize Jours (The Thirteen) arrive with extra guests - an Italian Prince with various other European elites - forming a party of thirteen for a big hunt.
James has been warned by Philippe to leave; he may be attacked or killed, but he cannot abandon Francoise as the ancient celebration commences, filled with pagan dances and debased rituals their god demands, the darkness overseen by Pere Dominique.
You can clearly see the road this is going down, but the subtle menace is so mesmerizing you don't mind. The chateau is filled with secrets, the guests quite odd, and anyone who has read witchcraft stories will know there is only one cure for a famine: your basic blood sacrifice. The 1966 film Eye of the Devil, starring David Niven, Deborah Kerr, and Sharon Tate in her first role, was overlooked but is now considered a cult classic. British writer Robin Estridge (using the Loraine pseudonym) wrote both this novel and the screenplay.
February 5, 2019
O caminho que me levou até esse livro é curioso: filme De Olhos Bem Fechados > vídeos no youtube com interpretações conspiratórias sobre De Olhos Bem Fechados > filme Eye of the Devil que tem algumas ligações temáticas com De Olhos Bem Fechados > livro Day of the Arrow que é a base para o roteiro de Eye of the Devil.
Esse é aquele tipo de história em que você pensa “tem alguma coisa muita errada acontecendo aqui embora as pessoas pareçam simpáticas”. Nesse aspecto conspiratório lembra O Bebê de Rosemary, mas a ambientação rural e os elementos de folclore e paganismo aproximam o livro mais de Wicker Man. Gostei, um bom mistério que aborda temas que me fascinam.
Esse é aquele tipo de história em que você pensa “tem alguma coisa muita errada acontecendo aqui embora as pessoas pareçam simpáticas”. Nesse aspecto conspiratório lembra O Bebê de Rosemary, mas a ambientação rural e os elementos de folclore e paganismo aproximam o livro mais de Wicker Man. Gostei, um bom mistério que aborda temas que me fascinam.
September 18, 2017
Fantastic literary piece hiding a folk-horror gem inside. Reminiscent of The Wicker Man, layered in lovely prose.
February 4, 2022
What does responsibility entail? More here: https://ahotcupofpleasureagain.wordpr...
October 12, 2022
The movie is Pleasant, but the book is AWESOME!!!
December 1, 2017
Folk Horror for William Sloane and Shirley Jackson fans. Recommended.
July 16, 2014
Lackluster. No suspense. No atmosphere. No chills. No thrills.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews