Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner
Others
Amazon US HC Amazon Canada HC
James Herbert
Class/Genre: Fantasy
Forge, Oct 1999, $25.95, 512 pp.
The public revered him for his good looks and good deeds. However that public icon hid his ugly soul very well on Earth. Now he is just another lost sinner residing in hell until angels visit him with an offer of redemption. Failure to accept or succeed will condemn in hell for eternity. The former movie star jumps at the opportunity.
With no memory of his previous life, he returns to earth in a different body. Nicholas Dismas is a private investigator with a thriving practice in England. Still, he is an unhappy soul. In his own eyes and that of the world, Nicholas is monster and his misshapen body leaves people staring in stunned horror.
A client hires him to locate her missing son that she thought died during childbirth. Nicholas goes through the motions of an investigation, but does not believe there is any chance of success. The client introduces Nicholas to a clairvoyant who becomes his ally by warning him of imminent danger. He finds danger in Perfect Rest, a nursing home that allows its elderly patients to hide a horror that is capable of allowing to surface the dark nature in Nicholas’ soul.
James Herbert is one of the recognized masters of the horror genre. Though OTHERS centers on efforts to regain Paradise Lost in the face of extreme adversary, the horror of this tale lies in the brutality humans inflict on less fortunate beings. It is the beauty of the physical form that matters. A handsome person freely walks the earth with admiring glances even if their inside rivals that of Lucifer. On the other hand, those with hearts like Mother Teresa but in deformed bodies will probably be treated as freaks. Could Mr. Herbert be Stoker bound?
Harriet Klausner
Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner
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