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Ogre
Death... mutilation... panic.
The peace of a remote Cumbrian village is disturbed by a rash of unusual killings. At first suspicion falls on a newcomer, Richard Finlay, but then a notorious murderer nicknamed the Leopard Man is rumoured to be in the area. When he is caught the villagers believe their nightmare is over. But the disappearances continue. As Finlay pieces together the chilling evidence he becomes aware of unspeakable menace. For in the old mining tunnels far below, an age-old creature has awoken from its timeless slumber.
The whole community is put in terrifying danger as it continues to satisfy its craving for human flesh...
The peace of a remote Cumbrian village is disturbed by a rash of unusual killings. At first suspicion falls on a newcomer, Richard Finlay, but then a notorious murderer nicknamed the Leopard Man is rumoured to be in the area. When he is caught the villagers believe their nightmare is over. But the disappearances continue. As Finlay pieces together the chilling evidence he becomes aware of unspeakable menace. For in the old mining tunnels far below, an age-old creature has awoken from its timeless slumber.
The whole community is put in terrifying danger as it continues to satisfy its craving for human flesh...
198 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
24 people are currently reading
125 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
March 5, 2016
Nothing groundbreaking but at least a decent read. A giant ooze eats livestock and people in Cumbria. It comes down to a sexy pair to stop it. There is some violence, some suspence, some sex and a decent plot (the latter contrary to the other two Mark Ronson books I've read).
If you are into 80's nasties this is a treat.
If you are into 80's nasties this is a treat.
July 17, 2020
OGRE is a pulp horror novel written in the lean, fast-moving style that was popular in the 1970's and 80's. The author wastes no time setting up a horrific situation in a suitably eerie isolated English town and throwing our lead characters in feet first, though it takes a while for them to figure out exactly what's going on. Characterization is pretty well done and if the protagonists are a little bland at least they are generally sympathetic, and a few of the supporting characters are surprisingly colorful. The eponymous monster is something very different than the book's title might lead one to believe and it definitely makes for a terrifying antagonist. OGRE is a quick, mostly satisfying read that isn't particularly ambitious but is pretty effective with a few distinctive touches. It would make a great b-movie! As it is, it's an above average novel.
July 31, 2021
Richard inherits land in a small village and while getting settled in a creature of the depths causes havoc consuming livestock and people.
March 28, 2021
Separated from his wife Rita after discovering her affair, photographer Richard Finlay moves to the farm his great-Uncle (the last of the Calgarths) left him, in the remote village of Greysike in the Lake District. His arrival coincides with several mysterious events and it quickly becomes apparent that excavation works for a new pipeline have awakened a monstrous beast (or, from the blurb, “man’s oldest enemy”). Oddly enough, the ‘ogre’ here isn’t some kind of child-killing giant but an ‘ooga’, a blob-like entity sixty foot or more wide. Patricia Derbyshire, who lies that she’s a reporter, insinuates herself into Calgarth House but she’s really there to investigate a mysterious tower in the farmyard which seems to serve no purpose but might have some link to the Ogre.
So far, so good and Ronson tells his story with workman-like prose, offering the occasional lyrical touch and the pace is briskly efficient, quickly sweeping the reader along. Characters are introduced to have nasty things happen to them - Mrs Liz Johnson is doomed from the moment you read her name - locations are well used and described and the sub-plots stack up nicely. All the characters mention the Leopard Man, a serial killer who’s terrorising the country and apparently moving north though he’s dealt with mid-book by a policeman we never see again, in a particularly nasty sequence. Rev Wakeling - who was friends with Calgarth - ministers at St Michael’s church, built on the site of a pre-Christian temple which not only had a carving of St Michael apparently slaying a serpent but also a bricked up ‘Devil’s Door’ and the Calgarth tomb in the graveyard, where vagabonds are sometimes discovered, their life sucked from them by a ‘vampire’. Clegg, a club-footed local from the pub, has a real problem with the Calgarth’s and decides to take it out on Richard, leading to a sequence that owes a lot to “Straw Dogs”, complete with shotguns, sexual assault, boiling water and molotov cocktails. In fact, as someone else wrote, with a pyschotic farmer, a simpleton pervert, a nosy postmistress and a nymphomaniac, this is the basic paperback horror novel of the era’s representation of a small English village.
While the characterisation is generally broad, the leads get some nice little touches of detail, from Inspector Jardine and his pipe and Prendergast from the Ministry, whose gentlemanly ways hide a core of steel as he worries about the forthcoming election, leaks from Windscale and tall tales of “immense crabs”. Biologist Indrani Carna holds her own, always elegant in her sari and develops a relationship with Karl Bruggermann, the beefy German working for the pipeline company who becomes a friend and ally to Finlay and Derbyshire.
While it’s perhaps easy to write off the explanation of the ‘Ogre’ (and the cult of the Ooga) as dopey, a bigger glitch is Ronson’s odd habit of building up a cliff-hanger and then, in the very next chapter, starting on the aftermath with the character casually explaining how he or she got out of the predicament. I’m not sure why he does it and it feels like a lost opportunity to mine some suspense and action. These potential downsides, however, are more than covered by some well realised set pieces, especially the Ogre’s assault on the pub, the sequence with Richard, Pat and Karl in the tunnels and a nasty meeting between flamethrower-wielding SAS men and the monster.
The ending feels brisk, with the Ogre’s destruction a bit bland but it’s smartly off-set with the final confrontation between Clegg and Richard and, once peace is restored, the vicar a final surprise in store, which I liked a lot.
Your enjoyment of this will, of course, depend entirely on how much you’re willing to suspend your disbelief but as a prime example of 80s horror, I thought it worked a treat and would definitely recommend it.
So far, so good and Ronson tells his story with workman-like prose, offering the occasional lyrical touch and the pace is briskly efficient, quickly sweeping the reader along. Characters are introduced to have nasty things happen to them - Mrs Liz Johnson is doomed from the moment you read her name - locations are well used and described and the sub-plots stack up nicely. All the characters mention the Leopard Man, a serial killer who’s terrorising the country and apparently moving north though he’s dealt with mid-book by a policeman we never see again, in a particularly nasty sequence. Rev Wakeling - who was friends with Calgarth - ministers at St Michael’s church, built on the site of a pre-Christian temple which not only had a carving of St Michael apparently slaying a serpent but also a bricked up ‘Devil’s Door’ and the Calgarth tomb in the graveyard, where vagabonds are sometimes discovered, their life sucked from them by a ‘vampire’. Clegg, a club-footed local from the pub, has a real problem with the Calgarth’s and decides to take it out on Richard, leading to a sequence that owes a lot to “Straw Dogs”, complete with shotguns, sexual assault, boiling water and molotov cocktails. In fact, as someone else wrote, with a pyschotic farmer, a simpleton pervert, a nosy postmistress and a nymphomaniac, this is the basic paperback horror novel of the era’s representation of a small English village.
While the characterisation is generally broad, the leads get some nice little touches of detail, from Inspector Jardine and his pipe and Prendergast from the Ministry, whose gentlemanly ways hide a core of steel as he worries about the forthcoming election, leaks from Windscale and tall tales of “immense crabs”. Biologist Indrani Carna holds her own, always elegant in her sari and develops a relationship with Karl Bruggermann, the beefy German working for the pipeline company who becomes a friend and ally to Finlay and Derbyshire.
While it’s perhaps easy to write off the explanation of the ‘Ogre’ (and the cult of the Ooga) as dopey, a bigger glitch is Ronson’s odd habit of building up a cliff-hanger and then, in the very next chapter, starting on the aftermath with the character casually explaining how he or she got out of the predicament. I’m not sure why he does it and it feels like a lost opportunity to mine some suspense and action. These potential downsides, however, are more than covered by some well realised set pieces, especially the Ogre’s assault on the pub, the sequence with Richard, Pat and Karl in the tunnels and a nasty meeting between flamethrower-wielding SAS men and the monster.
The ending feels brisk, with the Ogre’s destruction a bit bland but it’s smartly off-set with the final confrontation between Clegg and Richard and, once peace is restored, the vicar a final surprise in store, which I liked a lot.
Your enjoyment of this will, of course, depend entirely on how much you’re willing to suspend your disbelief but as a prime example of 80s horror, I thought it worked a treat and would definitely recommend it.
September 17, 2023
These books are always by-the-number but that doesn't make them any less fun to read. A bit of mindless nonsense that we need now and again. This wasn't the best but it had it's moments, especially when the history and mythology is brought in (the parts I always love about this type of book). I was just sat thinking, after the description of creature, "this does not sound like an ogre" and then the history of the word ogre is discussed (Tremayne's version anyway).
March 4, 2018
I really enjoyed this book, in fact I found it hard to put down. I thought it was going to be Horror but surprisingly it reminded me of very good 50's Science Fiction., like Quatermass for some reason. It is well worth the read, try it - you'll like it.
September 3, 2013
Enjoying this 1980 horror novel set in Cumbria, nothing earth-shatteringly original but good fun.
January 27, 2020
This one reminded me of those old horror/sci-fi flicks I grew up watching on Saturday afternoons. Great fun!
July 20, 2018
Easy to read. Good story line..
I recommend this book. I enjoyed it very much. Story easy to follow. Grabs your interest quickly. Surprise ending. Read it.
I recommend this book. I enjoyed it very much. Story easy to follow. Grabs your interest quickly. Surprise ending. Read it.
June 22, 2018
Ogre
A very good story, a mixture of straw dogs, quatermass and the pit and Bram Stoker. What more could you ask for.
A very good story, a mixture of straw dogs, quatermass and the pit and Bram Stoker. What more could you ask for.
December 9, 2018
Good, but the ending stinks. The monster and the main human antagonist are kill off screen.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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July 10, 2020Full review: https://supermonsternovels.com/2020/0...
August 29, 2025
Entertained me when I was thirteen years old. Probably best not to read it again.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews