UK Cover
The Scarlet Gospels is the sequel to The Hellbound Heart written by the same author, Clive Barker, and was released in 2015. This novel marks the return of Pinhead in his books since 1987 and also marks the fourth appearance of his other major recurring character Harry D'Amour.
Plot[]
The Scarlet Gospels takes place some time after the events of The Hellbound Heart and sees the world's most powerful magicians being ruthlessly slaughtered by a feared and powerful Cenobite known as the Hell Priest but is more commonly referred to as "Pinhead" by those fortunate enough to escape his clutches alive.
The novel begins with a man named Joseph Ragowski being resurrected by a group of magicians led by Elizabeth Kottlove using a spell known as the N'guize Working. Joseph confirms that he was indeed killed by the Hell Priest, a Cenobite from Hell, all the while having his magic drained by the creature. Elizabeth reveals the Cenobite is hunting them down and they need his help but he coldly states that nothing can help them now, the Priest is too strong for even them. The others are skeptical until they hear the sound of a church bell and realise the Hell Priest has found them.
The other magicians; Lili Saffro, Yashar Heyadat, Arnold Poltash and Theodore Felixson do their best to create a barrier to protect them but it is useless and the Hell Priest enters. The Cenobite taunts and insults the magicians before proceeding to force Felixson to become his slave and rape Elizabeth while he brutally kills Poltash with his hooks and chains after the latter attempts to escape. Heyadat attempts to reason with Hell Priest while he gloats in Elizabeth's rape but this only leads to him being horribly and violently killed by the Hell Priest as well.
Lili dies of natural causes after witnessing the brutal deaths of her comrades while Joseph is killed a second time after he insults the Cenobite with the nickname "Pinhead", a name that brings out a great anger from the Hell Priest. Elizabeth is torn apart from the inside by the baby born from her rape, which the Hell Priest briefly "fathers" before promptly abandoning it to feast on the magicians remains. He takes Felixson with him, seeing him as a useful pawn and transforms him into a monstrous creature; though not a Cenobite.
Harry D'Amour is contacted by his friend Norma Paine to go and visit a house of the request of a ghost, Norma is blind and has the ability to talk with the dead.
They visit the house where Harry find The Lamerchand Configuration and The Hell Priests arrives and brings Felixson who fights Harry, but Harry is saved by a man known as Dale, who brings him to a safehouse where Harry gets to recover.
Trivia[]
External link[]
- The Scarlet Gospels at Wikipedia