The Great and Secret Show is an epic novel (and I rarely use the word epic). It's an epic of mythology born from Clive Barkers mind. It spans some 4o years and involves a huge cast of characters. It's a story of good and evil I suppose but saying that is a bit too reductive. It is about a tug of war of yen and yang, two energies necessary for the world to exist. And above all how these to forces effect the ever changing world they inhabit. To say more would ruin the story.

The ease with which these 600+ page passed by for me was simply incredible. It seems unfair to other writers that such a long book should feel so lean and concise. Unlike most books that cycle between multiple narratives, none of the various story lines seemed to just be filler--they all moved the story forward and had a reason for being there. The intricacy of all the moving parts of this story--its themes, its characters and its myth--are astounding.

This is now a favorite book for me and I think it's the best I've ever read from Clive Barker. I'd recommend it to those dipping their toes into horror, or those that love fantasy and maybe those that love metaphysical themes.

"As within, So Without, as the universe so the soul"