During an archaeological dig, a hidden chamber filled with the skulls of children is discovered. At first glance they seem to have been there for thousands of years but closer examination reveals a more shocking secret.

The opening of the chamber triggers a series of horrific murders, each victim mutilated and their entrails used to form a different letter of the alphabet. Who is behind this outrage? And how is it linked to a subterranean chamber thousands of years old?

Inspector Stephen Wallace must unmask this crazed killer. Is it the sadistic thug responsible for organising a series of barbaric dog fights? The mysterious recluse who holds Black Mass orgies for drug addicted teenagers? Or is it, in fact, something much worse?

An evil so old, so vile and so powerful that it threatens to engulf everyone who comes near it. For Wallace, and possibly for the whole human race, time is running out fast. Something evil is waiting. Something monstrous is loose...

Shaun Hutson is one of the UK's best known horror writers and author of over 50 books. He made his name with best-sellers such as Spawn and Relics - acquiring the nicknames 'The Godfather of Gore' and 'The Shakespeare of Gore' in the process – and has since written a number of dark urban thrillers as well. He has also written for radio, magazines, television and novelized a couple of Hammer Horror films.