What a fun story! I know, it’s supposed to be spooky, but spooky is fun for me. I absolutely love Simon Green’s books. This series is no different. I loved all the snarky dialogue and the idea of demons pouring out of a stone circle. And considering the books that Green has written, it wouldn’t be unexpected for that to happen in his story. But I did love the kind of classic spooky mystery vibe it had going on. Was it predictable? Kind of. I knew what was going to happen and who did it pretty quickly, but not how they were going to go about it. I do wish Lily had gotten more of a role toward the end though. I dug her character. Maybe she’ll make an appearance in a future book. In any case, if you want a quick spooky mystery read that’s really fun, this is the book for you!

Huge thanks to Severn House and NetGalley for sending me this ARC for review! All of my reviews are given honestly!

I like Simon Green and I liked Holy Terrors; but, Stone Certainty was not up to his standards. The beginning is slow and “talky” with not enough suspense or sense of dread set up so I was not as worried about the stone circle as I should have been. I’m an experienced Simon Green reader so I expect twists but there really weren’t any for me. It was ultimately too predictable.

As the actress said to the bishop...

A send-up of favorite tropes with a hefty seasoning of snark. This second book featuring The Holy Terrors, as they have been dubbed by the media, is a lot of fun. Bishop Alistair brings the logic, actress Diana the intuition, and along for the ride are a few stereotypes that in anyone else's hands might have been rather stale.

A country squire with too much money has a circle of standing stones on his land in the English countryside. These stones, however, were moved a century ago and this man with more money than sense decides to "put them back," and have a documentary made about it. Alistair and Diana are invited along because of their experience with the weirdness at Stonehaven in the first volume of the series. The documentary crew, their producer, and two presenters round out the supporting cast. The mission is simple: film the final move of the stones and talk to some of the locals about legends and lore to round out the show. Then things get strange.

Green builds tension slowly, first with dire warnings, then other weird happenings, though the pacing is steady and the reader doesn't really have time to get bored. He also balances Alistair's faith with his almost cold logic--Alistair has written a book on standing stones. Diana's diva persona balanced with her loyalty to Alistair is feels natural,. Even as she can sometimes switch channels very quickly, they both feel genuine. I would have liked to have more of Peter and Cissy's characters (the documentary crew), and some more of the townspeople. I feel that could have brought in some supporting details to help make the failing town of Chipping Amesbury into more of a character.

It's a quick story, and I loved reading it. For the best experience, I recommend reading Holy Terrors first.

The Actress and the Bishop take on stone circles and folk horror vibes. Not quite as good as the first (Green excels at closed circle murders) but a good read nonetheless. Think early Riley Sager with the “ghosts aren’t real… are they?” vibes, plus Green’s trademark snappy dialog.

A (sort of) locked room mystery with atmosphere and local legends, a handful of people who don't necessarily get on and the usual sprinkling of Simon Green's snark and humour. I quite like the Actress and the Bishop and seeing their rapport as they try to suss out what's going on was good fun. I correctly guessed half the solution, but not all of it and the story moved along briskly enough that didn't spoil my enjoyment.

I'll be looking for book 3 in the series when that's available!

I really liked the idea of a mystery set during the shooting of a documentary about a circle of standing stones in Britain. And the story held my interest. Unfortunately I never really connected with any of the characters.

I have been reading this author for many years, so I’m always happy to read a new book by him. I have read the first book in the series and so was ready to read this second book. While this is a standard book by this author, I am not really clicking with the main characters. I don’t like them for some reason which makes it really hard to like the book. Now don’t get me wrong; this is actually a good book. It’s just hard to like a book when you don’t like the MCs. Anyway, other than that, this is a well-written, interesting, and engaging mystery, just what we’ve come to expect from this author. It’s OK. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

The stone circle at Chipping Amesbury has been the subject of stories going back centuries. It’s said to be a gateway to the Other Place, abode of monsters and demons. When the stones were moved, the circle became quiet. Now the new landowner is restoring them to their original gate-like configuration, and he wants to film a documentary about the re-placing of the last stone. Besides a production crew and two newscasters, he’s enlisted Alistair Kincaid, the youngest ever bishop of All Souls Hollow, is an expert in Britain's ancient stone circles, and actress Diana Hunt. The two became notorious in their last encounter, when the pair of them hunted ghosts and solved a murder. Of course, spooky things happen: mysterious mists, bloodthirsty sounds…and a dead body, pinned to the ground in the center of the circle with a pitchfork.

The story resembles a “haunted house” mystery, with a fixed location and a limited number of people who vary in their susceptibility to belief in ghosts, demons, and the horrors of the Other Place. But Alistair and Diana learned from their previous adventure that there is usually a rational explanation for weird events but murder is very real. Without giving away too much, Green masterfully creates expectations, allows the reader to interpret events, and always plays fair with what he reveals. The result is a brilliant, nuanced exploration of belief, superstition, and persuasion.

Stone Certainty
By Simon R. Green
This is book #2 in the Holy Terrors series. I think I enjoyed this as much as book #1. There are some of the same characters in this book as in the first.
The "supernatural" part was mostly folklore, but a good mystery with paranormal folklore is good, too.
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this terrific book.

I was surprised, this book is slower than I thought it would be, I kept waiting for the demons to come. It’s really well written, the settings are very detailed & realistic. I also felt like the characters are really well done. I did know the Kim was a part of it as her comments are so inflammatory. Well Done. #StoneCertainty #NetGalley

Another fun entry in the newest series by Green. I like the “holy terrors” and the approach of each mystery being a new reality show works for me. Very fun read. Just the kind of brain candy I need these days!

The Holy Terrors return with their amusing banter in yet another adventure brought with superstition, secrets, and hints of the supernatural. Is it demons or something else? We can count on the Actress and the Bishop to get to the root of things. A quick and amusing mystery, darlings!

Simon Green is a prolific novelist, and I’ve been a big fan for years. “Stone Certainty” – the second in a series – is a deft and enjoyable supernatural thriller, laced with a sardonic humor which I enjoyed immensely.

Green has written numerous series, and they all have one thing in common: although they’re better read in order, each book in each series also stands alone. This is particularly true of “Stone Certainty”. You can see that there’s some character development that happened in the first book, but plot-wise this one is completely independent and readable.

Alistair Kincaid and Diana Hunt rose to notoriety as “the Bishop and the Actress” after accidentally becoming caught up in a murderous haunted house. Both have used that; Diana to advance her career, and Alistair to promote his religion. Now both are in Chipping Amesbury to participate in a documentary about the restoration of a ring of standing stones.

Neither believe the stories of evil supernatural doings emanating from the stones. But they were drawn to each other in their earlier adventure, and both see the documentary as a chance to see each other again. Diana also wants a career boost, of course; and Alistair has an academic interest in standing stones.

Faced with a supernatural threat, the two will combine efforts to uncover what’s really happening around the stones.

There’s a sardonic, snarky humor to much of the dialogue which I really enjoyed – it rang true while also making me laugh. Although the main plot is fairly serious, this injection of levity was much appreciated.

Characterisation is important to this novel, and both Diana and Alistair are sharply delineated. It was easy to get very interested in what was happening around them, and what would happen to them. Other characters were also believable, although sometimes sketched rather than fully drawn.

The plot is a relatively straightforward one, but it’s cleverly constructed. There weren’t really any big surprises, but the tight construction and concern for the characters kept me interested until the last page. The narrative style is contemporary and fast, and it keeps you turning pages.

This is a relatively short novel, but it packs a lot of enjoyment into those pages. It should appeal both to readers who like mysteries and those who incline more to stories with a supernatural element to them.

I enjoyed this a lot, and recommend it very highly.

Enjoyed this one very much, another fantastically written supernatural thriller from author Simon R. Green. Never disappoints, highly recommend!

Stone Certainty by Simon R. Green, a fun book that draws you in and keeps you wondering whats around the corner. Green always manages to keep me on my toes wondering.

Simon R. Green brings us back to the world of televised supernatural shows in “Stone Certainty”, the second book in his Holy Terrors series.

Our heroes once again are Alistair Kincaid, the handsome televised bishop of All Souls Hollow, and Diana Hunt, celebrated actress and (aging) movie star. Ever since the ghost-hunting episode of the last book, the tabloids have called them “The Holy Terrors” and they reluctantly (in the Boshop’s case anyway) parried their fame into increased exposure. Their reunion is to provide star power to a documentary about the stone circle at Chipping Amesbury, recently inherited by local squire Sir Neville Chumley, who is returning the stones to their original configuration and hopes to use the documentary to increase tourism to his little village. Add a couple of local news reporters, a cameraman and sound engineer couple, and an ambitious producer and all of the elements are in place for a compelling TV production.

But upon arrival the group notices that the village doesn’t want them there, that the stones were moved to close the doorways between this world and the other place, full of demons. They are warned off by a local paranormal expert, who is getting evil vibrations as the demons gather at the newly restored doorway. When a mysterious body is found murdered in the middle of the stone circle, is the supernatural the cause for this death, or is something more rational behind the killing? And will the murderer strike again as the mist moves in to surround our crew?

I quick compact story that is actually better than the first chapter in this series. Not too much supernatural happens here, but the interplay between Alistair and Diana makes for a fun outing, even though most of the supporting cast is one-dimensional and annoying.

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from Severn House via NetGalley. Thank you!

I've always loved Simon R Green books for the interesting characters, witty dialogue, and unconventional, offbeat settings. This book may not be one of his best, but it has all those things, so I found it to be a highly enjoyable read.
Bishop Alistair and actress Diana return from the first book in the series. They have survived a different encounter with the supernatural together, and have agreed to be part of another odd scene. There are standing stones in the area and local legends that the stones are acting as a door to keep the bad things out, so people are worried when the stones are being moved for a project. The scene is very atmospheric and I was quite tense long before the deaths started.
I miss getting to read new books in his other series, but I'm glad Green is still giving us these exciting supernatural adventures. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

The Holy Terrors are back in Simon R. Green’s second mystery to feature them, but I found Stone Certainty a little disappointing. There’s a line in the book that usually describes Green’s books, “Hip-deep in sudden death, with supernatural elements.” The deaths came late in the story, and the supernatural elements were missing.

Alistair Kincaid is the youngest ever bishop of All Souls Hollow. He partnered with actress Diana Hunt when they were on a hit ghost-hunting show. Now, they’ve been invited to Chipping Amesbury where there is a stone circle. Sir Neville Chumley, the current owner, is going to place the stones back where they belong, despite protests from the villagers. Kincaid and Hunt are part of the TV team that will film a documentary, along with two newscasters, the producer, and a two-person crew. Kincaid brings his expertise on Britain’s stone circles. Hunt brings her acting skills and her previous experience ghost-hunting.

But, all doesn’t go as planned. The team has little cooperation from the villagers, and when a mist strands them at the circles with an unknown murder victim, some of the group panics. It’s up to Kincaid to keep the group together while investigating the elements that seem to make the stones so mysterious

I’m always willing to try a new Simon R. Green series, but I’ve also dropped them when they were disappointing. The Holy Terrors may be a replacement for the Ishmael Jones mysteries. The creepiness and supernatural elements aren’t as good in this series. Two were enough for me.

This was a good book. I like the collection of different stories at the stones, and the mystery of it all. It was fast paced and entertaining throughout the entire book. The characters were interesting.

Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complementary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

This was OK! At first it looked like a stone hedge horror story. It's unexpectedly creepy. It was OK, I wouldn't say it was amazing