Banquet for the Damned

Banquet for the Damned

Cover for the 2008 release
Author Adam Nevill
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Genre Horror
Published 2004, PS Publishing
2008, Virgin Books[1]
2014, Pan
Media type Print, ebook
Pages 416 pages
ISBN 0753513587
Followed by Apartment 16

Banquet for the Damned is a 2004 horror novel and the debut novel of British author Adam Nevill. The work was first published in 2004 by PS Publishing (where Nevill was credited as Adam L. G. Nevill), was re-published in 2008 through Virgin Books, and again in 2014 through Pan.

Synopsis

Dante and Tom are a pair of musicians that have hit rock bottom in their personal lives and in their career. Their friendship is also strained due to Tom, a confirmed lothario, romancing a woman that Dante loved - and then leaving her in favor of accompanying Dante on a trip to St Andrews to meet Eliot Coldwell, a professor at the prestigious University of St Andrews. He is also the author of the book Banquet for the Damned, which has had a particularly strong influence on Dante. However the two are unaware that there have been a series of strange deaths and disappearances plaguing the area, the only clue to their deaths being that they were students plagued by night terrors prior to their demise. Once at St Andrews Dante is both drawn to and disappointed by Coldwell but is especially taken by his assistant Beth, a mysterious young woman with a strange aura to her. Soon after Dante finds himself obsessed with her, to the point where he ends up nearly shattering his friendship with Tom when he grows jealous over the idea that Tom has pursued her. This jealousy is further spurred by the knowledge that Tom left Dante's old crush because he had gotten her pregnant and she wanted more of a commitment.

Meanwhile an American anthropology researcher and writer named Hart Miller has begun investigating the missing and dead students, as the case has piqued his interest. He manages to interview at least one of the students, eventually discovering that they all had one thing in common - they had all belonged to a group led by Coldwell. It is eventually uncovered that the group had taken part in an occult ritual, one that had terrified every member, caused Beth to be possibly possessed by an evil spirit, and unleashed an ancient, hungry being that has since pursued the students one by one, a being that Hart refers to as the Brown Man. As more and more strange events begin to unfold around him, Dante begins to research Coldwell's past himself and comes across Miller, who tells him that it is up to them to stop this ancient being, as it has marked them both for death. Coldwell is of no help to them because the Brown Man has reduced him to madness. Also, Dante has gone missing and is presumed to have been taken by either Beth or the Brown Man, if not both. They decide that the only way to eliminate it is to destroy the cottage that the students used for their ritual. However while they are aware that Beth and Brown Man have enlisted others to their cause to form a coven, they're unaware of their scope, as the coven has enlisted some of the town's more influential women and begun killing off several of St Andrews' professors.

Hart and Dante are horrified when they start driving into town and find that the coven has begun setting fires throughout, signifying that they are going to make their major move that night (an event Hart refers to as Dies Irae) and that they do not have as much of an element of surprise going for them - if any. As they grow closer to the cottage they discover that the coven is indeed powerful, as they can even control the elements, causing them to further doubt whether or not they would be victorious. They manage to successfully set the cottage on fire and kill Beth, although the act saps their strength and does not kill the Brown Man, causing it to go wild since Beth is no longer around to exercise control over it. The two men manage to make it out of the burning house but Dante passes out, awakening to find Coldwell confronting the Brown Man. Knowing that he is the only one left tying the creature to the world, he tries to commit suicide via the burning building but the Brown Man follows him into the building and pulls his body out. It then flees into the night carrying Coldwell's corpse. The following day the town is abuzz with gossip over what caused the fires in town and at the cottage. Dante watches them, only reacting when one person mentions that a strange creature had tried to attack the students still in their dorm rooms. The book ends with Dante's crush finding him on the beach, where he tells her that Tom is dead. As the two console one another, Dante whispers something into her ear that no one else can hear.

Reception

Critical reception for Banquet For the Damned has been positive.[2] The work has received praise from Den of Geek and SciFiNow,[3] the latter stating that while the book's dialogue was stiff, the setting was excellently done and that it was overall well worth reading.[4] The Western Star also praised Banquet For the Damned, citing that it had strong characters and writing that "At essence it is a story of supernatural revenge, with a very authentic and convincing edge."[5]

Further reading

References

  1. ↑ Alexander, Niall. "Cover Art Corner: A New Look for Adam Nevill". Tor.com. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  2. ↑ Hebblethwaite, David. "Featured Review: Banquet for the Damned". SF Site. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
  3. ↑ Felthouse, Lucy. "Banquet For The Damned review". Den of Geek. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  4. ↑ Sim, Krystal. "BANQUET FOR THE DAMNED BY ADAM NEVILL BOOK REVIEW". SciFiNow. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  5. ↑ Squires, Darrell. "Banquet for the Damned a character-driven horror novel". The Western Star. Retrieved 5 October 2014.

External links

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