Dark is When the Devil Comes
the chilling and gripping kidnap horror
Published on 28. April 2026
Book
Hardback
336 pages
978-0-356-52916-5 (ISBN)
Description
HE'S A KIDNAPPER. BUT SHE'S THE REAL MONSTER . . .
Dark Is When the Devil Comes is the utterly gripping and chilling new novel from acclaimed horror author Daisy Pearce.
Reader reviews:
'I couldn't turn the pages fast enough'
'Phenomenal . . . a wild ride from start to finish'
'Completely gripping until the final page!'
'Haunting and propulsive, it had me reading late into the night - and jumping at every shadow' Hannah Whitten, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Foxglove King and Reliquary
Hazel is twenty-seven, and her life is falling apart. As an amateur mycologist - someone who studies mushrooms - Hazel's hobby takes her to some dark places, but following a traumatic divorce she reluctantly finds herself back in her childhood home in the shadow of the sprawling Idless wood. To start rebuilding, she takes the plunge and arranges to meet her estranged sister Cathy; she also bumps into Suzie, an old school friend with whom she shares a dark childhood secret.
But then Hazel meets Andrew, who claims to have rare fungi growing in his old farmhouse. Lured out into the wilderness by curiosity and no little professional ambition, Hazel is trapped by Andrew, shut in the basement with no help for miles around.
As Cathy and Suzie desperately begin the search for her, Hazel starts to feel that something darker and even more terrifying than Andrew resides in that farmhouse. But is the power living in the dark with her or . . . much, much closer?
Discover the brilliantly creepy and twisty new novel from Daisy Pearce, author of Something in the Walls. Part psychological thriller, part horror, it will thrill fans of books such as The Last House on Needless Street by Caitriona Ward, Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough and Home Before Dark by Riley Sager.
'A masterclass in unrelenting tension . . . Pearce strikes the perfect balance between the unforgiving tightrope of tension and pacing that's so expected of a thriller, and the creeping, impermeable dread of the best horror' Megan Bontrager, author of The Sea Hides Its Dead
'Pearce's taut storytelling and shocking revelations had me breathless, and as chilled as Idless' freezing, haunted woods' Francesca May, Sunday Times bestselling author of Wild and Wicked Things
'Dark and terrifying, this is an insidious tale that will burrow deeper beneath your skin with each turned page' Philip Fracassi, USA Today bestselling author of Boys in the Valley and The Autumm Springs Retirement Home Massacre
Books by Daisy Pearce
SOMETHING IN THE WALLS
DARK IS WHEN THE DEVIL COMES
Dark Is When the Devil Comes is the utterly gripping and chilling new novel from acclaimed horror author Daisy Pearce.
Reader reviews:
'I couldn't turn the pages fast enough'
'Phenomenal . . . a wild ride from start to finish'
'Completely gripping until the final page!'
'Haunting and propulsive, it had me reading late into the night - and jumping at every shadow' Hannah Whitten, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Foxglove King and Reliquary
Hazel is twenty-seven, and her life is falling apart. As an amateur mycologist - someone who studies mushrooms - Hazel's hobby takes her to some dark places, but following a traumatic divorce she reluctantly finds herself back in her childhood home in the shadow of the sprawling Idless wood. To start rebuilding, she takes the plunge and arranges to meet her estranged sister Cathy; she also bumps into Suzie, an old school friend with whom she shares a dark childhood secret.
But then Hazel meets Andrew, who claims to have rare fungi growing in his old farmhouse. Lured out into the wilderness by curiosity and no little professional ambition, Hazel is trapped by Andrew, shut in the basement with no help for miles around.
As Cathy and Suzie desperately begin the search for her, Hazel starts to feel that something darker and even more terrifying than Andrew resides in that farmhouse. But is the power living in the dark with her or . . . much, much closer?
Discover the brilliantly creepy and twisty new novel from Daisy Pearce, author of Something in the Walls. Part psychological thriller, part horror, it will thrill fans of books such as The Last House on Needless Street by Caitriona Ward, Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough and Home Before Dark by Riley Sager.
'A masterclass in unrelenting tension . . . Pearce strikes the perfect balance between the unforgiving tightrope of tension and pacing that's so expected of a thriller, and the creeping, impermeable dread of the best horror' Megan Bontrager, author of The Sea Hides Its Dead
'Pearce's taut storytelling and shocking revelations had me breathless, and as chilled as Idless' freezing, haunted woods' Francesca May, Sunday Times bestselling author of Wild and Wicked Things
'Dark and terrifying, this is an insidious tale that will burrow deeper beneath your skin with each turned page' Philip Fracassi, USA Today bestselling author of Boys in the Valley and The Autumm Springs Retirement Home Massacre
Books by Daisy Pearce
SOMETHING IN THE WALLS
DARK IS WHEN THE DEVIL COMES
Reviews / Votes
The novel is full of superb, and sustained, tension and heavy doses of folklore and eerie history, making this a fun read that is also smart and engaging * New York Times * A taut tale that chillingly intertwines psychological and supernatural suspense * Kirkus * Pearce provides visceral descriptions of people and places and smells and sounds to create a world where no one can trust their senses. Readers will be left questioning which is more disturbing, the rot within or the evil of other people * Booklist * In this tense page-turner, Pearce weaves together folklore and horror to create a haunting suspense novel that readers will not soon forget * Library Journal * What begins as a supernatural thriller gradually develops into a thoughtful meditation on grief and groupthink, with enough pathos and drama to keep the pages turning. It's a winner * Publishers Weekly * Pearce has written something magical with the capacity of leaving me genuinely frightened. There are scenes in this book I'll never forget * Kristi DeMeester, author of Such a Pretty Smile * A terrific tale of cults, witch bottles, curses, witchcraft and the 'old ways' * Horror DNA * The perfect dark, creepy, witchy read to keep you warm with fright this winter... creepy, emotional, complex, and incredibly atmospheric * Horror Bound * Haunting and propulsive, Dark is When the Devil Comes had me reading late into the night - and jumping at every shadow * Hannah Whitten, SUNDAY TIMES bestselling author of THE FOXGLOVE KING and RELIQUARY * This book is a masterclass in unrelenting tension. I don't think I took a decent breath from the moment I started reading . . . Pearce strikes the perfect balance between the unforgiving tightrope of tension and pacing that's so expected of a thriller, and the creeping, impermeable dread of the best horror * Megan Bontrager, author of THE SEA HIDES ITS DEAD * Dark is When the Devil Comes is a nail-biting mystery that keeps you guessing and gasping right to the very end! Pearce plumbs the depths of psychological torment for a truly upsetting mindf*ck: You never know what is real and what is just in your head, but always the stomach-churning assurance that things are gonna get worse at the hands of one of horror literature's most chilling psychos. I loved it! * Bitter Karella, author of MOONFLOW * Disorientating, unsettling, and with an eerie atmosphere that crawls beneath your skin and digs its claws deep, Dark is When the Devil Comes is the perfect blend of horror and thriller. Pearce's taut storytelling and shocking revelations had me breathless, and as chilled as Idless' freezing, haunted woods * Francesca May, SUNDAY TIMES bestselling author of WILD AND WICKED THINGS * Dark and terrifying, this is an insidious tale that will burrow deeper beneath your skin with each turned page before twining around your heart like blackened string. But it's also a story about family, and guilt, and the bond between two sisters fractured by a malevolent force, one that won't rest until it's torn them apart * Philip Fracassi, USA Today bestselling author of THE AUTUMN SPRINGS RETIREMENT HOME MASSACRE *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Little, Brown Book Group
Product notice
Trade binding
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 36 mm
Weight
542 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-356-52916-5 (9780356529165)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
04/2026
Run for It
€0.99
Available for download
Person
Daisy Pearce was born in Cornwall and grew up on a smallholding surrounded by hippies. She read The Hamlyn Book of Horror far too young and has been fascinated with the macabre ever since.
Daisy began writing short stories as a teenager and had her first short story 'The Black Prince' published in One Eye Grey magazine. In 2015 'The Silence' won a bursary with The Literary Consultancy and her short story, 'The Brook Witch', was performed on stage at the Small Story Cabaret in Lewes.
Daisy's debut novels The Silence and The Missing were published by Thomas & Mercer in 2020. Her third novel Something In The Walls was published in the US in 2025 and will soon be available in the UK. Daisy currently works in a library and hunts ghosts.
Daisy began writing short stories as a teenager and had her first short story 'The Black Prince' published in One Eye Grey magazine. In 2015 'The Silence' won a bursary with The Literary Consultancy and her short story, 'The Brook Witch', was performed on stage at the Small Story Cabaret in Lewes.
Daisy's debut novels The Silence and The Missing were published by Thomas & Mercer in 2020. Her third novel Something In The Walls was published in the US in 2025 and will soon be available in the UK. Daisy currently works in a library and hunts ghosts.