John Thunstone investigates supernatural events. Wellman created him in the 1943 short story, “The Third Cry To Legba” in Weird Tales. This is the first of two novels. The second is 1985’s “The School Of Darkness.”
This is bland story that follows Thunstone to the small English village of Clains. He’s looking into a figure carved into a hillside. The locals call it Old Thunder. Outside the church is Demon Rock. Every July fourth the residents turn it. The ceremony is at least ten thousand years old.
Thunstone puts his sword cane near the Rock and feels an energy coming from it. He’s staying at a small bed and breakfast and almost everyone is friendly towards him. The exception is Porrask, the owner of a gas station. He’s jealous of anyone who is friendly with Constance Bailey. She’s a young girl who works at the B & B and refers to herself as a white witch. She gathers herbs to help residents get over minor injuries.
One night she and Thunstone turn out the lights in his room and find themselves back in the Stone Age. They have to get out in a hurry when they’re spotted. When he turns on a flashlight they’re back in the room. Most of the village is owned by Gram Ensley. He can trace his family back ten thousand years. He’s friendly with Thunstone and is all for keeping tradition alive. The local Reverend, David Gates, consideres the rock turning ceremony a pagan ritual and is determined to stop it.
It takes a long time to get to the payoff and the reason for Ensley friendly attitude towards Thunstone. This is not for action fans or those that like a lot of weirdness. The book just ambles along and the ending is not that great. Overall it’s not a bad read but you’ll probably ask yourself at the end if the whole thing was worth it considering the slow pace.
Manly Wade Wellman
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