Phil Rickman is best known in the US for three books, 'Candlenight', 'Curfew', and 'December' all released in the early 90's. After 1994's 'December' he appeared to drop off the map. His other books are hard to find unless you mail order them. 'Smile Of A Ghost' is the latest in his series of books involving a female Anglican priest and exorcist named Merrily Watkins. I read the first two in the series about 5 years ago. My parents took a trip to England and asked me if I wanted anything special. "Anything recent by Phil Rickman" was my reply. They returned with the first two Merrily Watkins stories, "Wine Of Angels" and "Midwinter Of The Spirit". These were both quite good. On vacation in California last month I found this book, 'Smile Of A Ghost', in a Borders bookstore. It's a UK paperback on Pan McMillan. I believe this is the fifth book in the series and he makes references to events in the other books so if you haven't read them, these references mean very little. The story takes place in a few villages and towns in Wales. Several phrases and slang words used in the book are unfamiliar to me but it was easy enough to get a general meaning from the context. Most of the characters have been introduced in previous books. Although this book works fine as a stand-alone novel, I think the reader would be better served by starting with the first book in the series. The main plot involves a young boy who is fascinated with the history of an old town and the castle there. The boy falls from the castle to his death and his uncle, a recently retired policeman who has been in several of the previous novels, is unconvinced that the boy's death was an accident. Merrily Watkins is not only an Anglican priest with her own church but also an exorcist with the politically correct title of "Deliverance Consultant". In these novels, the Church recognizes that sometimes ghosts and other supernatural presences affect their members so a few priests who have a gift for sensing these things are trained as Deliverance Consultants. Merrily attracts quite a bit of attention as not only a female priest but also as someone who consistently gets involved in high profile crime investigations. Merrily spends much of this book in conflict with two other church officials who are maneuvering to remove the Deliverance Consultant position from the Church and move her to a lower profile position. All of the characters are well developed. One of the most interesting is an 80's goth superstar who's sort of a mix between Siouxsie Sioux and Stevie Nicks who may or may not have murdered the boy. Rickman is great at establishing characters and creating elaborate storylines that are great fun to watch play out. I enjoyed the settings and the language as well. I would love to visit Wales to see if it's anything like he describes in his books. Despite the title, this is not a supernatural thriller. There are a few moments in the story that suggest ghostly presences but it's always just suggested. This also isn't a traditional mystery and I imagine a lot of mystery readers are disappointed with this book because everything is not wrapped up neatly at the end. Rickman is a unique writer and Merrily Watkins is a character worth meeting. If you're unfamiliar with these books, "Wine Of Angels" is the first in the series and the best place to start. "Smile Of A Ghost" presents several interesting puzzles many great characters and wonderful British/Welsh dialogue. The fact that Rickman straddles several genres without giving in to any single formula and sets all of his stories in small Welsh bordertowns practically guarantees that he will never achieve the commercial success he deserves.
I always like the Merrily Watkins books and this was a good one. But I am always left not quite knowing what actually did happen!! This time Merrily is asked to help by a friend of hers (recently retired police officer Andy Mumford), when his nephew dies after falling from Ludlow Castle. He is not convinced it was an accident and his mother seems to be seeing & speaking to the ghost of the dead child. Hence the reason for calling in Merrily, the diocesan deliverance minister (exorcist to you and me). Merrily is going through her own challenges with the appointment of a committee to decide which cases should be dealt with by the deliverance ministry. She doesn't get on with either of the two people appointed and they seem to want to take charge.There are also of course, the strange characters in the town of Ludlow, not least of which is a goth/rock star famous in the 1980s who may or may not be a bit off her nut!! (It was a bit worrying to think of the 80s as a long time ago while reading this book, as those were my teen years and I now feel quite old!!)There are also the usual characters of Jane (Merrily's daughter, who has matured considerably in this book) and her boyfriend Eirion, policeman Frannie Bliss and the ever loyal Lol Robinson (Merrily's boyfriend, but no-one in the village is supposed to know, except they all do and some of them are not happy about it!!).Sadly Gomer Parry (Plant Hire) only makes a brief appearance this time round.There are various storylines going in which of course all converge at the end of the book and various relationships are revealed which weren't known about at the beginning of the book.Interestingly, I had read a couple of chapters of December before switching to this book and a couple of the characters are mentioned in Smile of a Ghost.I think it is probably best to read the Merrily Watkins books in sequence as things in the older books are brought up, but if you don't, I think this can be read as a stand alone. But you will want to go back and read the others afterwards!I waited a long time to read this book because it was out of print and I couldn't find a copy. When I eventually did find one the print was quite small so I waited for the Kindle edition and whizzed through it. I'll still keep my paperback copy though.
What do You think about The Smile Of A Ghost (2005)?
Phil Rickman's Merrily Watkins novels have become my comfort read. When life is hard, escaping with Merrily makes it easier to cope.The Smile of a Ghost sees Merrily facing pressure from the newly formed Deliverance Committee to tone down her deliverance activities, and perhaps cease them altogether. When Merrily is drawn into investigating whether the supposed accidental death of Andy Mumford's nephew in Ludlow may be linked to an ancient ghost, the Deliverance Committee makes it quite clear that she should stay out of the whole business.While Merrily battles church politics, another teenager falls to her death from the castle tower in Ludlow, and both her death and that of Robbie seem to be linked to the legend of a ghost called Marion de la Bruyere, and a newish Ludlow resident, Goth singer Belladonna.Merrily is forced to go behind the back of the Deliverance Committee but her actions seem to either put herself in danger or make matters worse. There are two bright spots in Merrily's life though - her relationship with Lol is strengthening and deepening, and Jane seems to have finally got past the awful teenage stage. Like all Merrily's stories I enjoyed this book very much. Phil Rickman somehow manages to make the brooding supernatural essence of Ludlow seep through the pages of the book so that you feel as if you are there in the village with Merrily.
—Debbie
I truly love this series! There is just something so utterly lifelike about it, despite the supernatural elements that flit in and out of the plots. Although, this is one of the series’ least supernatural so far. All of the regular characters make appearances here which is always a relief - and the plot that starts out so simply quickly becomes more complex with plenty of strings to be tied together by the conclusion.This edition also includes some photographs of the area, which only roots the series even more firmly in reality. It really is a nice addition! Rickman’s books really have it all - plot, setting, characters - all masterfully crafted. And while the books may lack some of the “flash-and-bang” showiness, they are still quite exciting and just so authentic feeling!
—Victoria
This, the seventh mystery in the Merrily Watkins series, is the best so far. In this installment, Rickman moves the setting to Ludlow, an historic border town with a castle and cathedral. The story is loosely derived from local folklore about a lovelorn 12th-century aristocrat who flung herself from the top of the castle to her death. (In the afterword, Rickman says that the owners of the castle would not let him in to research the book--no ghosts in their castle! Silly.)Rickman works over blowhard, publicity-hungry psychiatrists well in the character of Nigel Saltash, a jerk who puts many obstacles in front of Merrily's pursuit of evil. Other targets: New Age hipsters and career-driven Anglican priests. Yeah, these are pretty big targets that Rickman has hit before--but it's so satisfying to see them trashed. All the characters are integral to the plot, from Andy Mumford, the now-retired detective to daughter Jane, who plays a small but important part. The stories with Jane as a major player beggar belief--the 16-year-old small-town England kid with the education and sophisticated tastes of a Cambridge grad. Also silly. What will happen when Jane leaves the vicarage for college? How will Merrily cope with life alone in the huge old house? How will Rickman cope with not having Jane on the scene to develop the plot?
—Trilby
