Hells Bells by John Connolly out next week

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A new novel from bestselling author John Connolly is out next week, entitled Hells Bells in the UK and Infernal in the US.

Hells Bells is the story of Samuel Johnson, who finds himself in trouble when, not content with being in love with the wrong girl, he is also the subject of the wrath of demon Mrs Abernathy.

The demon wants revenge, for John played a part in stopping the forces of Darkness taking over the Earth.

When the Large Hadron Collider is switched back on, the demon has the perfect opportunity to get her claws on John, as he and his faithful dachshund Boswell are sucked into a portal to Hell.

However, Samuel has no intention of making it easy for Mrs Abernathy to catch him, as she hadn’t reckoned on his cleverness and that of his dog.

Indeed, nor had she any way of knowing that Samuel has a loyal friend in the hapless demon Nurd.

And to top it off, it seems there are more inhabitants of Earth in Hell than she thought, when a bunch of little men unexpectedly intervene at a crucial point.

“If you thought demons were frightening, just wait until you meet Mr. Merryweather’s Elves…”

Except from Chapter one of Hells Bells:

“The place generally referred to as Hell but also known variously as Hades, the Kingdom of Fire, Old Nick’s Place, and assorted other names designed to indicate that this is not somewhere in which you might want to spend eternity, let alone a short vacation, was in a state of turmoil. Its ruler, its dark king, was unwell, and by ‘unwell’ I mean mad as a parade of March hares.

This source of all Evil, the ancient thing that hid itself in the darkest part of Hell, also had many names, but his followers called him the Great Malevolence. He wished for many things: he wished for every star in every universe to be snuffed out like candle flames between his fingers; he wished for all beauty to cease to be; he wished for cold, and blackness, and a great silence that would last forever.”

Praise for the author:

“[A] joy to read . . . Despite the terrors of Hell, this highly enjoyable, often funny adventure is buoyed by optimism and the possibility of grace.” — Publishers Weekly

“Brilliantly funny, often touching, with enough action to keep adventure fans on the edges of their chairs, this novel combines top-notch writing with cutting wit.” —Kirkus Reviews

John Connolly was born in Dublin in 1968. His debut -Every Dead Thing – swiftly launched him right into the front rank of thriller writers, and all his subsequent novels have been Sunday Times bestsellers. He is the first non-American writer to win the US Shamus award. (For Every Dead Thing). In 2007 he was awarded the Irish Post Award for Literature.

Hells Bells is released on 18th October and is available now on Amazon for pre-order.

Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Export (18 Oct 2011)
Language English
ISBN-10: 145164308X
ISBN-13: 978-1451643084