The Final Cut

Some stories capture the imagination, others will be the death of you.The Final Cut is a genre busting mash up of crime, horror and urban fantasy. An imaginative and thought provoking tale that explores our need to watch and make horror fiction, examining not just the medium, but the purpose of storytelling itself. Taking in everything from ancient myth, to modern atrocity, this novel will entrance, mystify and appall you in equal measures, haunting you long after you've reached the very last line.In an East London lock up, two film makers, Jimmy and Sam, are duct taped to chairs and forced to watch a snuff film by Ashkan, a loan shark to whom they owe a lot of money. If they don't pay up, they'll be starring in the next one. Before the film reaches its end, Ashkan and all his men are slaughtered by unknown assailants. Only Jimmy and Sam survive the massacre, leaving them with the sole copy of the snuff film.The film makers decide to build their next movie around the brutal film. While auditioning actors, they stumble upon Melissa, an enigmatic actress who seems perfect for the leading role, not least because she's the spitting image of the snuff film's main victim. Neither the film, nor Melissa, are entirely what they seem however. Jimmy and Sam find themselves pulled into a paranormal mystery that leads them through the shadowy streets of the city beneath the city and sees them re-enacting an ancient Mesopotamian myth cycle. As they play out the roles of long forgotten gods and goddesses, they're drawn into the subtle web of a deadly heresy that stretches from the beginnings of civilization to the end of the world as we know it.

Aaron Sterns, co-writer Wolf Creek 2, Wolf Creek: Origin ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ "This story lures you in and traps you there, and even after you've turned the final page you can't quite let it go."

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ "Be warned, after reading The Final Cut you'll believe stories can kill."

About the Author

Jasper Bark is infectious. If you're reading this then you're already at risk of contamination. The symptoms will begin to manifest any moment now. There's nothing you can do about it. You'll become obsessed with his work, from the award winning collections Dead Air and Stuck on You and Other Prime Cuts, to cult novels like Way of the Barefoot Zombie and acclaimed graphic novels such as Bloodfellas and Beyond Lovecraft. Soon you'll want to tweet, post and blog about his work until thousands of others fall under its spell. We're afraid there is no way to avoid this, these words contain a power you are hopeless to resist. You're already in their thrall and have been since you started this book. Even now you find yourself itching to read the rest of his work. Don't fight it, give in to the urge and succumb to the joyous derangement it brings.

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