Richly atmospheric, Bolton sets the pace for her riveting thriller from the first page in a gothic

setting, an ancient cathedral in

ruins and the graveyards that border the new home of a recently-arrived family. The rest of the village consists of tall,
gloomy buildings, cobblestone streets and the moors that surround man's attempt to civilize nature. A more modest house of
worship stands near the ruins, a new minister arriving to tend to the congregation. The village of Heptonclough is steeped in
the traditions of the old beliefs, harvest rituals, bonfires and bloody sacrifices to appease cruel gods. The occupants of the
bright new house are thrilled with their location, bordered by overgrown cemeteries with tumbled gravestones and wild vines.
But as the adventurous Fletcher boys, Tom, ten, and Joe, five, explore the spooky parameters of their property, young Tom
grows increasingly subdued, sensing that they are being watched.
While the boys' freedom is spoiled by their fear and an increasing awareness of a girl who hides in the shadows, whether
well-meaning or malevolent, there are an assortment of other characters to flesh out this moody thriller: the handsome new
minister, Harry Laycock; Gillian, a tormented mother who wanders the moors in search of her young daughter lost in a fire; a
disabled psychiatrist attempting to bring closure to the challenging Gillian; and the wealthy family that virtually owns
Heptonclough, their sense of entitlement inviolable. Most terrifying of all: this place is not safe for little girls, as evidenced by
the tiny skeletons unearthed when a cemetery wall collapses. The happy shouts of children and harried parents are stilled
by the horror of the disappearance of five-year-old Joe Fletcher and his baby sister, Millie.
Something is terribly wrong in this idyllic village on the moors of Northern England, as evidenced by the loss of innocents
and the sobs of distraught parents. While Tom can get no one to believe him about the girl in the shadows, the spark
between Harry Laycock and psychiatrist Evi Oliver is tainted by Gillian's crush on the minister, and clear warningsdisappearing children and a chalice of blood- ratchet Heptonclough into a state of panic, malevolence seeping into every
page as death draws near. Will little Millie be the next sacrifice? My heart in my throat, I cannot look away from Bolton's
perfectly crafted tale.

Bolton, S J - 'Blood Harvest'

Hardback: 432 pages (Apr. 2010) Publisher: Bantam Press ISBN: 0593064119
The Fletchers, have just moved to live in the quiet country village of Heptonclough in a new
house next to the church. They have three children, Tom (aged 12), Joe (aged 6) and their
little sister Millie who is just 2 years old. Tom is finding it hard to settle in at school, is
taunted by other children in his class, and thinks he can see someone hiding out amongst
the gravestones, someone who is watching their house. Harry is the new vicar, for the local
church, which is just re-opening after being left unused for some years. He is relaxed, not
like a vicar at all, and is very very charming. Evi is a psychiatrist, who has just started
treating one of the villagers called Gillian. Gillian had a young daughter that was apparently
killed in a house fire one night, when Gillian was out, and still has trouble coping with her
guilt. Evi is partially disabled, through damage to her sciatic nerve, and needs a walking
stick and sometimes a wheelchair. She finds Harry very attractive. And finally, into the mix,
is the Renshaw family, who own most of the village.
As the story opens, the police are investigating the contents of the grave of the young
daughter of Jenny Pickup, who died when she was a toddler. Jenny is the daughter of
Sinclair Renshaw. Something has fallen on the grave and disturbed it, but instead of just
finding Lucy Pickup in the grave, there are two further corpses of small children. Who are
they, why have they been placed in Lucy's grave, and who put them there?
The first half of the book details the events in the six weeks leading up to the disturbance of
the grave. These include Harry's first appearance in the village, his meeting with Evi, Evi's
treatment of Gillian, and the gradual increasing feeling that Tom has that they are being
watched by someone, and that his family is in danger. The second half then deals with the
discovery of the children's bodies in the grave, and the subsequent investigation both by the
police, and by Harry and Evi.
The plot is pretty straightforward, doesn't hold too many surprises, and is really what I
would call armchair thriller. We all know it's going to turn out all right in the end, but it can

get a bit scary along the way. There is an undercurrent to the story that reminded me of the
film The Wicker Man but in this case, the story is set in a Yorkshire village, with children
under threat, particularly 2-3 year old girls, rather than a visiting policeman. For example
there are a few pagan rites that appear to need the blessing or at least the use of the
church, which add to the menace, and people living in the village have quite a few secrets
to be uncovered. A strength of the book is that the characters of Harry and Evi are
particularly well drawn. The interactions between these two, their desire to find out what
happened, and their determination to discover if what is frightening Tom is real, are very
effective in helping to drive the story forward. Is there really someone watching Tom's
family in the churchyard, is his family really in danger of something, or is he just making it
up? Tom's fear, and his frustration with not being believed are very believable. Overall, this
is a novel with wide general appeal. The story is well told, and is definitely one to keep you
entertained on a long boring train journey, or when stranded in an airport.
Michelle Peckham, England
July 2010