The Vessel

By: Adam Nevill

Narrated by: Bridget Thomas

An eerie folk horror novel from the author of Cunning Folk, The Reddening, The Ritual, No One Gets Out Alive and the four-time winner of the August Derleth Award for Best Horror Novel.

"A watcher may remark that after sleeping for so long, the building appears to have been roused."

Struggling with money, raising a child alone, and fleeing a volatile ex, Jess McMachen accepts a job caring for an elderly patient. Flo Gardner–a disturbed shut-in and invalid. But if Jess can hold this job down, she and her daughter, Izzy, can begin a new life.

Flo's vast home, Nerthus House, may resemble a stately vicarage in an idyllic village, but the labyrinthine interior is a dark, cluttered warren filled with pagan artefacts.

And Nerthus House lives in the shadow of a malevolent secret. A sinister enigma determined to reveal itself to Jess and to drive her to the end of her tether. Not only is she stricken by the malign manipulation of the Vicarage's bleak past, but mercurial Flo is soon casting a baleful influence over young Izzy. What appeared to be a routine job soon becomes a battle for Jess' sanity and the control of her child.

It's as if an ancient ritual was triggered when Jess crossed the threshold of the vicarage. A rite leading her and Izzy to a terrifying critical mass, where all will be lost or saved.

©2022 Adam L. G. Nevill (P)2022 Adam L. G. Nevill

Critic reviews

"You don’t read an Adam Nevill horror novel: you live it." (The Guardian)

Great story

I loved the imagination of this story. It was short but worth it. The ending was written so well, would love to see this as a movie.

Great ending

So i hated this until the last 30/20 min, then it was amazing. Could’ve used more of that.

Excellent

Adam Nevill hasdone it again! Its scary! It’s weird! It’s got sinister pagans! It’s got a well-maintained garden that’s somehow terrifying! It’s got it all! Read it!

Nice but kinda saw it coming…

Definitely not his best book, not as good as “cunning folk” or “the ritual” but not terrible either. Definitely recommend reading it twice so you can understand what’s really going on, even though the story is easy to follow there’s a bunch of little details that you probably want to look at again. 3/5

strange ,creepy .

I loved it! There was no dragging out the story. Suspenseful very strange and tons of creepy.