The Dark
November 2018, 208 pages
Available material: English sample
Rights sold: Poland (Stara szkola)
A thriller, a horror story – Karika takes an opportunity to portray the darkness within us and our society.
A screenwriter comes to an isolated cabin in the Slovak mountains, hoping to escape the pressures of work and the stress of his marriage – but his peaceful get-away turns into a nightmare with the arrival of an uninvited and unknown guest. Is it a wild animal? A local ghost? A sadistic criminal? Without its doors ever being locked, the cabin becomes a prison, and our protagonist must fight for his very survival. From the experimental Slovak novelist comes a gripping thriller that will keep you awake at night.
“The Dark by the Slovak writer Jozef Karika is a book you’ll need to wrap yourself in a blanket and put the kettle on to read. The iciness that seeps from every sentence will chill your bones.“
– Kultura
“Jozef Karika’s books rank among the very best psychological horrors out there – and I don’t mean just in Central Europe.“
– Pardubický deník