SOMEONE MAKE THIS INTO A MOVIE - VICIOUS CIRCLE BY MIKE CAREY
 

Mike Carey of course began his writing career with the horror/fantasy series Lucifer for DC’s Vertigo imprint. This comic, based on characters from Neil Gaiman’s Sandman, won several international awards and was actually nominated for five Eisners. He moved on to novels and screenplays while still writing for comics (he is currently handling X-Men and Ultimate Fantastic Four for Marvel).

A movie based on his “erotic ghost story” Frost Flowers is currently being made. According to his bio he “lives in London, England, about as far as you can get from the centre of the city and still have access to the London Underground train network. His wife, Linda, writes fantasy for young readers under the pseudonym A.J. Lake. They have three children and an implausibly beautiful cat (heh, heh).”

Vicious Circle is the sequel to Carey’s 2007 novel, The Devil You Know. Both feature the tough-as-nails freelance exorcist Felix Castor who spends his time either getting rid of ghosts or performing magic tricks at children’s parties. Noir fans may detect a Philip Marlowe influence in Castor’s cynical and smart demeanour, but Vertigo comic fans may also spot a bit of something of a certain other jaded Brit dabbling in magic played by somewhat wooden American actor in a big screen adaptation a while ago . . .

Anyway, his latest adventure picks up where the previous one left off. Castor has reluctantly returned to exorcism after a successful case convinces him that he really can do some good with his abilities – “good,” of course, being a relative term when dealing with the undead. His friend Rafi is still possessed, the succubus Ajulutsikael (Juliet to her friends) still technically has a contract on him, and he's still dirt poor.

Doing some consulting for the local cops helps pay the bills, but Castor needs a big private job to really fill the hole in his bank account. That's what he needs. What he gets is a seemingly insignificant “missing ghost” case which involves him trying to contact the ghost of a girl on her parent's behalf. However this case inexorably drags him and his loved ones into the middle of a horrific plot to raise one of hell's fiercest demons.

When Satanists, stolen spirits, sacrifice farms, and haunted churches all appear on the same police report, the name Felix Castor can't be too far behind . . .

As Publishers Weekly stated in its starred review, Vicious Circle has “some nice satiric touches . . . and the well-developed main character appears more than capable of carrying a series for many books to come.”

The Sci-Fi Channel is also currently developing Carey’s The Stranded comic book series as a TV pilot. But his Felix Castor series also has the makings of a possibly successful movie franchise stamped right across it. That is, if they don’t cast a Yank in the main role . . .