The Official Site
Learned today that The Demonologist is to be the first book of mine to be translated into Bulgarian. (The publisher is BARD, who also publishes Harlan Coben, Dan Brown and Stephen King, among others, in that territory).
Just goes to show the old saying is true: When you wake up in the morning, don’t be surprised if someone wants to translate something you’ve written into Bulgarian.
(That may not exactly be an old saying, or a saying of any kind – but it ought to be).
Caught a glimpse of the first early, advance review of The Demonologist today (in Booklist) and…they liked it! Nice Friday weekend that-first-drink-is-actually-deserved-this-time kickoff.
“The evil of Milton’s pandemonium comes to life . . . Pyper’s novel takes on ‘things that go bump in the brain’ and delivers a stirring entry in the supernatural thriller genre.” — Booklist
Thank you to Kate Mosse – busy on the road with her new book, Citadel – for this!
“The Demonologist is that rare thing – a novel that is both genuinely terrifying and erudite. The research is excellent and lightly worn, the pace and cleverness of the plot thrilling. One of the most exciting works of fiction I’ve read for some time.”
— Kate Mosse, author of Labyrinth, Sepulchre and Citadel
This is a very special day.
What? Nothing marked on your calendar? Hmmm…strange. Because today is…
Only Four Months Until The Demonologist is Published Day!
(Okay, maybe that’s only considered a big deal within a rather small circle. But still. They have Give Your Cat a Hug Days and Thank Your Dry Cleaner Days, so why not?)
Thank you, Brunonia!
— Brunonia Barry, New York Times and International Best Selling Author of The Lace Reader and The Map of True Places
Multiple Stoker Award winner Sarah Langan is another writer I admire. I think of her as a “go to” name for exemplary New Horror work – emotion-fueled, real and grounded. It’s why I was so bowled over by what she sent to my InBox this morning:
“Andrew Pyper is a rare breed. Reading The Demonologist is like running through a house on fire – you’ve got to get through; nothing will stop you. And when you’re out, brokenhearted and bewildered, you’re left wondering if what happened was real. That’s Pyper’s brilliance: he does it so well you never see the fiction. Contemporary and masterful, this is grown up horror for grown up people.”
– Sarah Langan, three-time Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Audrey’s Door
Michael Koryta is a different writer from me. His interests, his style, his terrain, his people are all his own. But we also share certain inclinations, particularly an interest in marrying the supernatural with the grounded, the fantastical with the visceral. It’s why his response to The Demonologist is doubly meaningful for me – they are words that come from a writer I admire, and also a writer who knows what I’m up to:
“As compelling and smoothly chilling a tale as you’ll find this year. The Demonologist shows an enormously gifted writer at the top of his game, producing a novel of eerie menace and unique depth. Those of us who write supernatural stories do not throw the names Ira Levin, William Peter Blatty, and Peter Straub around lightly. You’ll be hearing all three associated with Mr. Pyper soon, and all such comparisons are warranted, the highest praise I can offer.”
Michael Koryta, New York Times Bestselling author of The Prophet
A while back, I read a book I just loved: Christopher Buehlman’s first novel, Those Across the River. Beautifully and seductively written, at once hallucinatory and visceral, thrilling both in its performance and in the pleasure of finding a new writer to cheer on to the next book. Oh yes, and it’s scary and unsettling as hell.
I sent Christopher The Demonologist in the spirit of admiration for his work, and the suspicion that he and I might have some overlapping obsessions when it comes to taking a twist to the so-called real world. He just wrote to say that I was right. (Another kind soul I look forward to thanking in whisky…)
“Andrew Pyper’s satisfying prose propels a narrative sure to please readers with or without a dog-eared copy of Milton’s Paradise Lost on their shelves. If you’re looking for smart horror that chills without resorting to Grand Guignol, give The Demonologist a look.” — Christopher Buehlman
So you finish a novel. And then what happens is, even prior to publication, early readers get their hands on it (or have it thrust into their hands). They read it. Simple, right? Yes. But also nerve-wracking, because these early readers are often professional readers who know their stuff. Leading booksellers, critics, successful authors. When one takes the time to read your not-yet-officially-in-existence book and then ends up liking it? I’m telling you, it lets you take a breath or two of untroubled air. One more person in the world who doesn’t think you’re nuts!
So – deep breath – I’m pleased to share the kind words from the internationally bestselling mystery and thriller author (and also recent new James Bond writer) Jeffery Deaver on The Demonologist:
“Richly crafted, deliriously scary and compulsively page-turning from beginning to end. Imagine The Exorcist and The Da Vinci Code as penned by Daphne du Maurier. Don’t miss this one!” – Jeffery Deaver
As the entertainment news site Vulture is reporting today, Universal and ImageMovers (Robert Zemeckis’ production company) have hired a screenwriter to adapt my forthcoming novel, The Demonologist. And it’s an amazing choice.
The Demonologist Has a Screenwriter – Vulture
Robert Schenkkan is a playwright, actor and writer for both TV and screen. He’s won the Pulitzer Prize for his play, The Kentucky Cycle, and has been twice-nominated for an Emmy for his work on the HBO mini-series, The Pacific.
As for adaptations, he wrote the pitch perfect The Quiet American (from the novel by Graham Greene, a hero of mine). His screenplay for The Conscientious Objector is currently in production.