Twisted Pike: An utterly bewitching British folk horror novel

This could be the end of everything.

The remote village of Withered Hill harbours dark secrets. Outsiders are not welcome, but a film crew descends. Their producer Rob claims they intend to make a low-budget horror movie: Twisted Pike. In truth, the cameras are a front for something infinitely more sinister.

They haven’t come to capture fictional nightmares. They have come to raze Withered Hill to the ground – and obliterate everyone who calls it home.

Will Rob succeed in wiping out the place that took so much from him? Are there forces at work beyond the reach of human vengeance?

If Withered Hill falls, the ancient gods sleeping beneath the soil will finally awaken. And their wrath won’t stop at the village borders.

Return to the Withered Hill universe with this unsettling folk horror of apocalyptic proportions.

Praise for David Barnett

‘There’s a rich vein of horror to be mined here, and Barnett’s doing a great job of excavating it.’ SFX

‘An eerie tale of folk horror, as old gods and locals with age-old roots come into conflict … a twist you won’t see coming.’ Jane Johnson

‘A brutal, brilliant novel of folk horror and dread.’ Tim Lebbon

‘Slowly builds a picture of a town complicit in some terrible things. Really loved this one!’ Sarah Pinborough

‘Eerie, erotic and engrossing … shall henceforth be mentioned in the same breath as The Wicker Man.’ Kealan Patrick Burke

‘A bloody masterpiece Black Mirror meets The Wicker Man.’ Mark Stay

‘Midsommar, Evil Dead and Stepford Wives all in one, this twisted dark fairytale rooted in the modern world.’ Lisa Rookes

‘Beguiling, bewitching and brilliant.’ Jeremy Dyson

‘Twisted Pike has the exact kind of malice I want from folk horror. Mud, gods, consequences and the creeping suspicion that modernity is only a thin layer of paint.’ Reader Review

‘Barnett weaves a subtly creepy tale that builds satisfyingly.’ Reader Review

‘Another must-red folk horror novel by David Barnett.’ Reader Review

‘Twisted Pike had me hooked! This was such a dark, creepy and unsettling read, with the kind of atmosphere that makes you feel like something is seriously wrong, even when you can’t quite put your finger on what it is. Dark, suspenseful, disturbing and completely addictive.’ Reader Review

‘This is folk horror at its finest!’ Reader Review