Hinterland

by Neil Carstairs

Hinterland – somewhere between life and the afterlife, where lost souls, demons and abandoned gods roam. Why is Harry Kellen seeing visions of his daughter, dead these past twenty years? Why is Sean Regan haunted by a man made of mud and clay? And what will an old immigrant man gain by giving his granddaughter in tribute to an abandoned God? Out in the streets of London darkness is coming; ready to steal your soul and the only choice seems to be run or die. JJ is running, but wherever he goes death follows, and he’s just about out of places to hide.

266 pages, Paperback

First published June 26, 2014

About the author

Neil Carstairs lives and works in Worcester, UK. He writes and self-publishes novels that fall mainly in the Supernatural Thriller genre but his short work covers the full range of Speculative Fiction.

His next release comes out on 15th December 2020 and is a spin-off from his Scarrett & Kramer adventure - The Ring of Athreal.

His Scarrett & Kramer series feature #1 The Creator, #2 The Anomaly, #3 The Tomb, and #4 The Rising.

Standalone novels The Other Side of Winter, Hinterland, and The Chamber are also available along with a number of anthologies that feature one of his short stories

Reviews

[Randall S. Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a former English teacher from the United States reading a book written by an author from across the pond was somewhat
different for me. There were so many variations of the English language I found myself wanting to take out a red pen. But then
I thought - these people invented the language. So I threw away the red pen and sat down to enjoy the novel.

With the range of publicity here in the U.S. involving our illegal immigrants you would never think they have this problem anywhere else,
thus it was intriguing to see another side of a complex problem. You never realize (sorry - realise) that actually being an immigrant might
not be the most wonderful experience, so taking frustrations out on 'regular people' was a new concept I hadn't thought about.

Raising a demon, however, was entirely not what I was expecting, but it was fun to read about. Yes, there was a lot of death, but isn't that what demons do? I thought the name Chernobog a little odd for the name of a demon. Could it be a combination of Chernobyl and something else?
Aref's experiences were written with crisp delineation so it was simple for me to understand his reasoning. Could it have gone too far? Maybe, but again it was fun, so who cares.

Although the ending was a little abrupt, it left me wanting more. I am happy to say I appreciate Mr. Carstairs for sending me this novel. I'm looking forward to reading more of his works, and I very rarely read supernatural. If you are looking for a good page turner, put this one on your list.

[Cassandra Larsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hinterland takes place in the impoverished streets of London following the lives of various immigrants. Their stories collide as the demon, Chernobog, is called forth and a young girl is offered up as his bride. Sural escapes the demon just in time, but Chernobog and his minions continue to hunt her, chasing her through the dark streets of London.

This novel is extremely well written; Carstairs knows his craft. Though a little slow to start, once the demon is freed the story really picks up the pace. From there, the tension just continues to build as hell’s denizens are unleashed on the unsuspecting city. Fast paced and action packed, this one will keep you turning pages well into the night.

* I was given a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Ramona Plant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hinterland was yet another well written book by Neil Carstairs. He is one of my go to authors for a haunting story. The author captivated me in this book from the very first page dragging me deep into the story of the Chernobog. The pace is full of action and guides you nicely along, never leaving you with a dragging out feeling, nor ever rushed through the story.

This story has a lot of great characters that really play well of each other. There are some nice people that rise to the occasion, some very unlikely ones which makes this not your average "horror" story.

Hinterland is definitely one of those books that are difficult books to put down, so I hope you have time to read it in one sitting. I can definitely recommend this book to people who enjoy a good horror story, which has some nice gory parts but overall is not too gory and has a great plot to it. This author will always deliver something new and interesting to read.

[Bruce Perrin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast-Paced and Gory, but with a Somewhat Arbitrary Feel

Hinterland is the story of an old man, Aref, who brings a demon back from the Hinterland, a place between life and the afterlife. But when the demon brings friends with him, and they get out of control, no place in London seems safe.

For those of you who prefer your ghost stories fast-paced and gory, Hinterland will be to your liking. I’m not sure there’s one death in each of the 30 chapters, but it certainly felt that way. And some chapters, of course, have many more than one. Generally, that style worked, but there was a section near the middle where characters seemed to be introduced, merely so they could be killed in some new, gruesome way. Those chapters felt a bit forced. I would not necessarily expect character development to be strong in a book that features this much action, but several of the characters (JJ, Harry, Elaine, Sural, and even Sean to a degree) were likeable, and by the end, I was pulling for them. (Of course, you need to be careful forming ties to characters in a book when they are dropping like flies.)

To my tastes, there were a few issues with the writing. I some places, to evoke a feeling, the prose seemed a bit strained. Part of this may be due to the differences between British and American use of words or scenes, but some of the descriptions seemed odd. To say that the shadows of blowing trees looked like ‘demented cheerleaders at some nightmare game,’ for example, does not particularly engender dread in me. Second, while several characters were well developed, I had trouble understanding Aref. He did not seem bitter enough to unleash a demon on London just from spite. But if not spite, why? The loss of a few hundred or a few thousand of your neighbors is not going to endear you to those that are left. And finally, stories of the supernatural will always progress of their own logic – that’s the definition of supernatural, right? But some of works in this genre seem to establish bounds, or rules if you will, about the strengths and weaknesses of the foe. In this book, these bounds seem ephemeral, as prayer sometimes worked and sometimes didn’t, or light killed one type of demon but not another. Unfortunately, the somewhat arbitrary feel to the story is reinforced by the ending, which seems like it could have happened any time after the demons arrived.

For a fast-paced and somewhat gory ghost story – although not necessarily that scary – give Hinterland a try.

I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest, nonreciprocal review.

[Daniel Banks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review; Hinterland, by Neil Carstairs
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book for an honest, non-reciprocal review.
Genre-supernatural crime/thriller
This is the dark story of impoverished immigrants living in London. Some are lost to criminal avarice, drugs or prostitution; others have lost the hope of a better life in this new land. A local detective is struggling to come to grips with the loss of his daughter in a tragic accident that resulted in the failure of his marriage.
As a brutal murder and assault draw the central characters together, an ancient evil is drawn from the netherworld to feed on the inhabitants of ours, the demon, Chernobog. The rift in the barrier between our world and the netherworld has released many of Chernobog’s minions along with other, less sinister beings. London is the field on which gangsters, ghosts, goons, girls and ghouls battle to the bitter end. Who will live, who will die, and who will have their souls eaten by the beast of the hinterland?
The writer’s voice is consistent and engaging, effectively capturing the emotionally and morally bankrupt nature of the characters, and the horror of people being slaughtered and mutilated by demons.
While this is not a full length novel, but a novella, it is fast paced and terse, packed with intrigue, suspense, even romance, fully engaging and in no way lacking in character development. The plot and pace keep you turning the pages. Although the book is very well written and formatted, there are numerous missing words, repeated words and other minor typographical errors that need to be corrected.
four stars.

[Richard Nurse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hinterland by: Neil Carstairs

I could not resist. I had to use a British phrase to describe my feelings for a solid British novel. This story well very well crafted was definitely “Not My Cup of Tea”. To those that like their stories dark, gory and cold, this book should be an excellent read. Whereas, for me, the most thrilling part was reaching the end.

[Robin Peacock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review of Hinterland. Neil Carstairs.
This story centres on the emergence of a demon, summoned form the dark mountains, a black god from Eastern Europe. He is called upon to raise the impoverished, poor, overworked immigrant community in a particular part of London to escape the poverty, the bondage that surrounds them. The first problem is that the demon needs a human body to inhabit before it can return. It also needs a sacrifice; a wife, a virgin wife. The man summoning the demon has all the answers within his family!
Meanwhile, several threads are strung across the story, seemingly unrelated; an Irish terrorist, now straight and working respectably in the City, an unfortunate shopkeeper, a middle aged policeman with baggage, a drug dealer and various hangers on seen only briefly on the edges of the story. The narrative begins slowly but when the demon appears, the pace accelerates until it reaches breakneck speed, quite literally. Bodies are dispatched, mutilated, broken, drained, ruined and discarded with glorious abandon. The threads of the story entwine now, bringing the principal characters together for the grand finale. I turned the pages with bated breath to find out how these weak humans could possibly overpower the seemingly omnipotent demon, the all-powerful, all-seeing monster from the black mountains. I anticipated a glorious battle between darkness and light, a monumental struggle between good and evil, a climactic crescendo of the epic war between the despair and hope! What did we get? One single blow to the head with a wooden stick and it was all over. I almost missed it!
To say I felt disappointed is an understatement. I feel as though I have waded through 70 thousand words and that the author just wanted to finish the book in a hurry. Several grammatical and editorial errors crept into the last portion of the book, spoiling an otherwise exciting read. There is far too much use of the 3rd person past tense; everything was doing something or was going somewhere or was happening or was about to happen. I found it intensely irritating after about the 100th ‘was’ and almost wished, as it seemed the author also wished, that the story would soon end. The pub was dirty, the sign was filthy, the taxi was long gone, there was little chance of a rush, space was taken up, a large puddle was home to something, and a dog was chained. All this in one paragraph. Several errors in the use of the word to, too and there and their also crept into the text. I wanted to give the book 5 stars, the story deserves it (apart from the disappointing ending), however, the constant use of the verb, to be, in any tense, grated so much that I am forced to deduct a star. The editing errors and mistakes with the grammar, some of it elementary stuff, means that I am forced to deduct another, so sadly, three stars for an otherwise cracking story.
With a new final chapter, some fierce editing and removal of the dreaded verb, this book would easily rate the full 5 stars.

[Eldon Farrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very difficult story for me to read. The premise held such promise, but with the exception of a few moments, that promise was left unfulfilled.

As an example, the character of Aref is a good illustration of this. Carstairs has created in him a representation of the disenfranchisement of the immigrant experience in London. When he spoke of his living conditions—the tenement block he called home—or his disappointment over how London has treated himself and his family, I was truly enthralled. I found him at these moments to be an engaging character who I wanted to know more about. But then, Carstairs would have him go on about raising a demon to solve his problems and I just couldn’t connect the two. How could someone who so strongly desired to better their family and situation be the same person who could willingly give his granddaughter to a demon? It just didn’t scan for me.

Sean was another well drawn character who would ultimately leave me wanting. Carstairs scripts a beautifully rendered scene early on in a local shop that really hooked me and again left me wanting to know more about Sean and his young family. However it seemed like this thread too was pushed to the side for Chernobog.

So let’s talk about the centerpiece of this supernatural thriller…the alternately referred to God/demon of the story. For me, a supernatural thriller requires a terrifying character at the center and whatever else Chernobog is, it’s not terrifying. His dialogue was stilted and reminiscent of Frankenstein’s monster more than it was any all-powerful demon. He just failed to impress and did not once frighten me in the least I’m sorry to say.

Aside from that, the pace was good, the story was structured properly and Carstairs use of language was commendable. One note on the language that needs to be mentioned though is, around halfway through the book he uses a derogatory term to describe a marginalized subset of the population that I will not repeat here. I understand that sometimes it’s necessary for characters to use such language but when it is the narrative voice using it…it detracted from my enjoyment of the story and did turn me off a little for the remainder of the novella.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t make mention of Carstairs description of his settings. He excelled here for certain as in reading his words I felt like I was right there with the characters, whether it be the streets of London or the fields of Ireland.

There was a lot of possibility with this story, but for me, in the end just too much left unexplored and unsaid to rate it any higher.

[Ryan Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hinterland by Neil Carstairs is an engaging novella which sits somewhere between a crime thriller and the supernatural. It is an interesting mix, and with Carstairs's unique descriptive writing I was immediately taken into London's underbelly. Chernobog, a summoned demon, wants a woman as his bride. But his plans are cast astray and a hunt through the streets of London ensue. Evil is summoned from the Hinterland and the citizens of London face peril unless Chernobog can be defeated.

While Carstairs has an ability to vividly describe a scene, it may be that some readers will find this distracting. Sometimes less is more when it comes to description. I recognize, though, that for some readers the more the descriptive the writing, the better. If you are looking for a detailed read that combines evil spirits and the underbelly of the cosmopolitan London then give Hinterland a try.

[Marco Peel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vivid, dark and violent.

The demon Chernobog is promised a virgin bride to make him whole, but when he comes out of the darkness, she is gone…

Meanwhile, a series of violent crimes in London all seem to point to the same elusive eastern european gang.

Very diverse, gritty characters come to life as their separate story lines entwine in this captivating mix of crime and supernatural. Aside from the odd typo, the writing is crisp and really builds up in pace as it moves along. The ending is a bit abrupt, and seems to suggest a possible sequel to look forward to.

[Felicite Lilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

All I have to say to Mr. Carstairs, is cheers. The overall feel of this book is suspenseful and dark. There are a few different story lines and they slowly intertwine together. I won't give anything away here, but I will say that overall I am very satisfied by the story as well as the way they are woven. His writing is concise and clear, with very few errors. Nice work, can't wait to see what else he comes up with!

[Kyrah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hinterland is a brilliant mix of thrills and the supernatural. Set in the gritty streets of London, a demon god is summoned under the false pretense of a better life only to bring more suffering to his victims. Carstairs gives us a great cast of characters with their own rich backgrounds that all work together to bring down the evil in their city. Hinterland is very well written and I enjoyed every moment of it.

[Ica Iova · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mixture of crime and supernatural set in London, Hinterland by Neil Carstairs, is a charming story. The descriptions are vivid, the characters interesting. I found some lines hard to believe (even for fiction), like when Sean says that his mother died of cancer brought on by the disappearance of one son and the death of another, but overall, the story kept me turning pages.