Ramsey Campbell is one of the most consistent horror writers working today, and his 33rd novel proves his reputation. Arriving in the British occult footsteps of Arthur Machen and M.R. James, The Wise Friend is an unsettling and eerie novel that will please fans of literary horror and make new ones of those unfamiliar with Campbell's long career. The book opens with Patrick Torrington and his son finding the diary of his aunt, an artist whose mysterious suicide ended her increasing preoccupation with magic. The pair visit the occult sites described in her journal, but the search unearths horrific consequences for Patrick and the people he loves. Now he must stop his son from unwittingly carrying out a dark ritual before it's too late.
Like his literary horror forbears, Campbell uses slow, patient craft and plotting in order eventually to pull the rug out from under the audience. The last hundred pages of The Wise Friend are able to do what they do (i.e., scare the pants off readers) because they're built on a stable foundation, something not all horror novels have. If there's a flaw to the novel, it's that the characters aren't always three-dimensional, but that can be forgiven when the writing is this sharp. An absolute must-have for misty, dark nights. --C.M. Crockford, freelance reviewer