Ask a Bookseller: 'Between Two Fires' by Christopher Buehlman
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We can't let the Halloween season go without featuring one horror book, and Sarah Gerton of Excelsior Bay Books in Excelsior said her pick is “Between Two Fires” by Christopher Buehlman.
The setting is medieval France: The black plague era. A disgraced ex-knight named Thomas encounters a girl who tells him of her visions of a war between heaven and hell that will be raged over control of Earth. Are her words the ravings of a person gone mad, or is she expressing saintly visions? Thomas himself has lost his faith, but he finds himself accompanying the girl and a priest across France to help her with her quest.
"I would definitely recommend [this novel] for adults with a strong stomach," cautions Gerton. "This a very, very dark book, so all the trigger warnings [apply]."
And yet, this book has garnered a following. It was originally self-published in 2012, and over the years it gained such a devoted social media following that earlier this year, Tor — part of major publisher Macmillan — released a hard cover edition with black sprayed edges.
Gerton said she was struck by the tone, which to her felt epic and “almost biblical,” like the translation of an ancient tale. She'd love to see this story make its way to film.
“Some of the monsters that they encounter are, like, crazy, and like I would love to see this adapted. But at the same time, I don’t know how they could translate some of the battle scenes,” says Gerton.
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