The Ascending

Ryerson Biergarten #4

by T.M. Wright

When psychic Ryerson Biergarten offers his special talents to the police to help them find a serial killer with a penchant for hiding his victims in odd corners of office buildings, he is met with distrust and suspicion as he faces an evil beyond his control

Genres: Horror, Occult Detective

222 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Terrance Michael Wright (AKA T. M. Wright) is best known as a writer of horror fiction, speculative fiction, and poetry. He has written over 25 novels, novellas, and short stories over the last 40 years. His first novel, 1978's Strange Seed, was nominated for a World Fantasy Award, and his 2003 novel Cold House was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award. His novels have been translated into many different languages around the world. His works have been reviewed by Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Booklist, and many genre magazines.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Ryerson Biergarten books have always been my favorites of T.M. Wright's works. The first two, The Changing and The Devouring, were published under the pseudonym of F.W. Armstrong in the mid-1980s, and the other two, Goodlow's Ghosts and The Ascending, were published under his own name in the mid-1990s. Biergarten is a psychic who works with the forces of law and order to solve horrific crimes. With his faithful canine companion, Creosote, he helps both the living and the not-so-much who are in need of aid. The books are full of interesting and amusing investigations, along with Wright's usual ambiguous and occasionally seemingly contradictory interactions with ghosts, but Ryerson also deals with werewolves, vampires, and other popular demons of the day. They're a bit dated in spots, I'm sure (the covers of the first two are very much a relic of their era), but skimming through I think they would still hold pretty well. Wright was an excellent writer who excelled at creating a dreamlike quality in his quiet horror novels, an aspect which is present but secondary to rigorous plotting and good pacing in the Biergarten books. Ryerson was a literary descendant of Hodgson's Carnacki and a forerunner of Butcher's Dresden.

[Debra]

Stephen King recommended author: "T.M. Wright is a rare and blazing talent!"

[Mary G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable guilty pleasure of reading about a physic detective.