In honor of the Halloween season, let’s turn to a horror book, shall we? This book was written by John Saul, my favorite sci-fi/horror author- I have read most, if not all of his books. Sadly, he stopped writing novels years ago- and here’s an interesting tidbit- I found out recently online somewhere- apparently, he did NOT like writing horror books, but he did because they were popular, and he knew how to. A surprising revelation considering how many books he wrote, and how good they are. I am not typically a horror book type of person- but his books were some of the exceptions. I also have read a few Stephen King and Dean Koontz books.

Anyhow, back to this book- it takes place in a small town called Prairie Bend, the main character being a young boy named Michael Hall whose family has recently moved to the town to live with his father’s parents after a tragedy where his father died. Nathaniel is a name that has been feared by the town for a hundred years- it is said that he is an evil spirit that will return for revenge. Nathaniel is said to be the sole survivor a century ago when his mother killed all his other siblings one cold winter night.

It is not long before Nathaniel starts calling out to Michael-beckoning him. And thus begins a reign of terror in the town. And that’s all I will reveal about this book in case any of you feel any interest in reading the book. The reason I enjoy John Saul’s books is because he is a fantastic author that draws you into the stories, make you feel what the characters feel-if a character is upset, you can feel their stress. If a character is angry, you can feel that anger. You feel very involved with the stories.

With that said, this book, and any of his other books are not for everyone. But if you like the occasional horror book, you might want to give this one a try!