With the help of some friends, Shadlok, the hob and Brother Snail, a little digging of the detective kind reveals that the site of the chapel was once a sacred grove where the Hunter’s Oak grew, a place for pagan worship of the demon Raum, a fallen angel. While lifting tiles from the floor of the old chapel he uncovers an ornately decorated oak chest containing a bowl with strange symbols carved into its base. When the church finally collapses, Will is roped into helping the Weforde stonemasons with repairs. The sense of growing evil soon becomes palpable and even fey creatures of the surrounding forest begin fleeing to the west for safety. No thanks to a number of furtive blood sacrifices being made by the crone Dame Alys in Foxtwist Wood.

If he’s to believe the growing number of signs, the reason that the church is falling to pieces is because a demon trapped in its foundations is beginning to stir. As if it wasn’t bad enough being an orphan in 1348, forced to live an austere life in Crowfield Abbey under the watchful eyes of Prior Ardo and the other monks, William Paynel discovers that the church – his home of the past 2 years – is in danger of falling down around his ears. In The Crowfield Demon Pat Walsh combines archaeological knowledge, impeccable research, and imaginative writing style, to bring 14 th Century England to life – right in the palms of your hands. Unless, of course, you enjoy the walk to a non-virtual store (if only because it takes you past more cafés). The much anticipated sequel to The Crowfield Curse is as close as your nearest online bookstore.

Pat Walsh Scholastic Australia – Chicken House

The crowfield demon