Hellbent

A brilliantly funny, occasionally tender and always surprising view of a sixteen-year-old boy's Hell - an explosive cross between Terry Pratchett and Dante!Anthony McGowan is the Carnegie Medal 2020 winning author of Lark.Sent to Hell for typical teenage misdemeanours, Conor is surprised to find that it's not all pitchforks and leaping flames. But an eternity in a fusty cave full of philosophy books and obscure classical music is actually worse.Then Conor realizes that his personal version of Hell might be someone else's idea of Heaven - and vice versa. He sets out on a filthy, funny and forbidden journey to search for his opposite number, accompanied by his repulsive pet dog, a depressed cross-dressing Viking and a stumpy devil called Clarence. What he sees is disgusting and what he discovers is shocking, but oddly enough Conor learns a hell of a lot about life - now that he's dead!

“Every writer hates to hear the words "stunning new talent" applied to someone else, but in the case of Anthony McGowan nothing else will do”

Anthony McGowan made a hilarious debut with Hellbent, a modern take on Dante which manages to mix existentialist and determinist philosophy with quite surprising amounts of poo -- Anthony Horowitz Sunday Telegraph
A wisecracking helterskelter . . . Real boys' stuff . . . but watch out for a twist in the novel's devilish tail -- Hepzibah Anderson Observer
A brilliantly nauseating thriller . . . It is a devilishly funny, clever and moving novel -- Amanda Craig The Times
Dante for beginners with a serious moral message -- Geraldine Brennan TES
-- Meg Rosoff

Anthony McGowan was born in Manchester in 1965. Educated at a Catholic comprehensive, some of his school experiences inform his writing now. Before turning to writing full time, Anthony has worked as a nightclub bouncer, an Open University philosophy tutor, a cinema critic and a speechwriter in the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. He had his first novel for adults, Stag Hunt, published by Hodder in March 2004. He is married to Rebecca Campbell, a fashion designer and novelist, and they have two small children.

The shame, the horror, the ignominy ... I'm about to be run down by an ice-cream van. After the EMBARRASSING circumstances of his untimely teenage death, Conor is sent to HELL when it turns out he's THREE LIES over the limit for good behaviour. His custom-made TORTURE is to spend ETERNITY in a bleak cave filled with dusty philosophy books and classical music. But what if Conor's version of HELL is someone else's idea of HEAVEN, and vice versa? Could he escape his TORMENT by swapping places? With his HIDEOUS pet dog, Scrote, at his side, Conor sets out on a mission with his PERSONAL DEVIL and enforcer of EVIL, Clarence, and a MELANCHOLY Viking called Olaf. Together they embark on a REVOLTING, REPULSIVE and RIOTOUS search for Conor's match made in HELL ... 'A wisecracking helterskelter' OBSERVER Unsuitable for younger readers

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