By Vitina Molgaard
“I think the most merciful thing in the world is the inability of the human mind to relate it all together…One day the piecing together of separate knowledge will reveal such a horrible prospect of reality, and our horrible situation in it, that we will either go mad with the revelation or flee from the light into the peace and security of a new dark age.”
-HP Lovecraft
This was a “new” read for me and yet another exploration of a well-known author’s work. I realized that this was not an entirely new story from his head, but rather a re-release with some changes to the original book that was published in 1981. With that in mind, let’s look at where this book goes and where it leads.
One of the greatest tragedies a parent can have happened in the life of a young mother: her daughter went missing and was later found to be the victim of a brutal and violent murder. Barbara Wolfe’s soul was hollowed out and her daughter Amber was taken from her forever. Years later, she managed to move on when she got a call from a little girl asking for help. The simple request was “Mom, help me.”
Barbara begins to wonder if her daughter is still alive and if she really made these calls. But why would it happen after all these years, and the better question is, why did it happen? She begins to search for answers with hope and fear, because that voice could very well be her daughter, and if that is the case, she absolutely must find her. This is when things get a little complicated and confusing.
Our protagonist is about to embark on a very serious journey into the unknown. Someone has done everything to convince her that Amber was murdered, but why is she in this terrible situation now? Under the influence of a personal friend, Barbara visits a telepath. The problem is that she doesn’t want to accept what this person shares with her, even if the facts begin to match the truth she uncovers.
In these pages, we learn about a cult that is led by an apparent dark force… a man with supernatural powers. This cult has been known about, but unfortunately, we never really get a full picture of these lunatics. Look, Mr. Campbell leaves a lot of important unanswered questions. I want to know who is the evil force behind the cult’s activities? Why are children victims and later so powerful that they victimize others? A big question is, what makes Amber such a special child? There are a lot of things that feel incomplete in this horror aspect, and believe me, it is a horror story, and it just left me a little depressed.
Nonetheless, I found this to be a good read and was pleased with Ramsay’s climax. A bit contradictory? Not really, because the story – even if it does leave some loose ends – is really well written. Mr. Campbell expresses himself in his easy way, taking us to different places and leaving the reader wondering where we will end up. So yes, I do recommend this book to you, but only if you are prepared to have some unanswered questions. In the end, I’m not sure that’s necessarily a bad thing, to be honest.
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grade: 3.5/5
