• Home
  • Mystery & Thrillers

Night of the Giant Everything

Welcome to the Hall of Horrors, HorrorLand's Hall of Fame for the truly terrifying. When 11-year-old Steven Sweeney is tricked into drinking a strange mixture of chemicals by his classmates, things begin to get strange. Either his toothbrush is growing, or he is shrinking! Steven has to navigate his way through gigantic dust bunnies, enormous birds, and other once seemingly harmless, everyday items to get to his best friend's house for help. Will he be able to make it through the day and return to his original size?
Views: 44

The Shrinking Man

Amazon.com ReviewSome people will remember The Incredible Shrinking Man as a movie with great special effects and a surprisingly good script, given the ridiculous title. Matheson's classic novella is the reason for that. As Scott Carey -- husband, father, and all-around decent guy -- mysteriously shrinks, he faces unimagined horrors at every step, up to the story's surprising resolution. It's packaged here with a number of Matheson's other classic stories, including "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet," which became a popular Twilight Zone episode, and "Duel," which was turned into a movie by a very young Steven Spielberg. From Publishers WeeklyStarred Review. Matheson's legendary 1956 sci-fi tale of Scott Carey, a family man who is slowly shrinking into obscurity and a terrifying new world inside his own house, is beautifully realized by Yuri Rasovsky's memorable reading. Enthusiastic and compelling, Rasovsky seems predisposed to the suspense master's style of writing. Capturing the brilliant mix of everyday life and extraordinary horrors that Matheson is so revered for creating, Rasovsky reads with a dry, cool wit that breathes new life into this classic tale. He knows exactly how to relay the tension and anxiety to his audience, and never ceases to raise the stakes and bring the audience to their knees in sheer terror. This is a thrilling and unforgettable experience. A Tor paperback. (May) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Views: 44

Don't Leave Me

Can I have more stars? This is a five-star-plus book! Chuck Samson, a former military chaplain, returns from Afghanistan with post traumatic stress syndrome. Something happened there that haunts him in flashbacks, but he only sees bits and pieces in his mind. The Russian Mafia wants information about missing gold hidden in Afghanistan, and they believe Chuck knows where it is. They’re determined to capture him and make him remember. All the while he’s trying to adjust to life back home teaching school and taking care of Stan, his adult autistic brother. Then his wife is killed in a hit and run, or is she, and was it really a hit and run? It’s the first in a series of twists and turns unfolding rapidly in this thriller that’s reminiscent of a Mickey Spillane mystery with one character who’s similar to the guy Dustin Hoffman played in “Rain Man.” It’s all wrapped up in a beautifully written literary gem that will keep readers guessing and turning pages from the beginning to the end. Super!
Views: 44

Under Cover of Darkness

The youngest lawyer ever to grab the helm of Seattle's most prominent law firm, Gus Wheatley has found success—as well as money, power, and prestige. He thinks nothing can interfere with his meteoric rise to the top. Until his wife, Beth, vanishes. Beth's disappearance coincides with a series of brutal murders the FBI dubs the "bookend killings." They think Beth is the killer's latest victim . . . or his willing accomplice. But Gus knows his wife would never ally herself with a cold–blooded killer. The further he searches, however, the more he discovers that Beth isn't the woman he thought he knew. Beth may be alive. She may or may not be innocent. She may have come up against evil far more reaching than a serial killer. And for Gus and his family, that evil is much too close to home. From Publishers WeeklyA workaholic attorney is forced to examine his priorities when his wife disappears amid a spree of serial killings in the Pacific Northwest. Grippando's fifth thriller (The Pardon; Found Money) springs energetically from the gate, creating tension and pace before a few unbelievable plot twists cause it to lose traction. Attorney Gus Wheatley, general partner of one of Seattle's biggest and most prestigious law firms, is interrupted from his busy schedule by a call from his daughter's dance instructor: his wife, Beth, failed to pick up six-year-old Morgan after class. At first merely annoyed, he next assumes his wife is having an affair (they have been experiencing marital problems) but soon calls police when he realizes Beth has disappeared without a trace. Ambitious FBI agent Andrea "Andie" Henning believes Beth may have fallen victim to a serial killer. In the days following her disappearance, Gus is stunned to learn that his wife suffered from bulimia and kleptomania, conditions pointing to extremely low self-esteem. Her emotional condition and other cluesDstrange phone calls, a tip from a prison inmateDeventually tempt investigators with another theory: Beth may have joined a local cult that includes murder among its group activities. The most successful component of this story is Gus Wheatley's growing awareness of his emotional separation from his family. Former trial lawyer Grippando displays expertise in police and legal procedures, but the connection between the killings and the cult strains credulity. Several key characters are not drawn convincingly, and the finale is more of an ambush than a surprise. (July) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library JournalIn this latest from Grippando (Found Money), the marriage of high-powered attorney Gus Wheatley and his insecure wife, BethDalready unfamiliar terrain to both partnersDis invaded by a serial-killer. Beth seems to have it all: the perfect home and a precious young daughter. Yet she vanishes one afternoon without taking a single piece of her life, including her child, who is left waiting all evening at private school. Rookie FBI agent Andie Henning has recently ditched her loser of a fianc at the altar and welcomes the opportunity to work on what turns out to be a high-profile serial-killer case. Gus's world continues self-destructing, as his daughter, sister, and colleagues judge and reject him, the killer piles up Beth lookalike victims, and eerie telephone clues indicate that she may be alive and in the killer's clutches. In the meantime, Gus learns some rather sad and unsavory things about the wife he thought he knew. Another riveting tale of suspense from Grippando.-DSusan A. Zappia, Paradise Valley Community Coll., Phoenix Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Views: 44

Bad Blood

Marnie Bruce has hyperthymesia; she can remember everything she has ever seen. Everything except from one fateful night when she was eleven; she woke up in an isolated cottage with a head injury and her mother gone.Twenty years later Marnie heads back to Scotland seeking answers to what happened, but in the small town of Galloway, her mother’s disappearance still burns in the air and Marnie’s return looks set to tear open old wounds for many of the locals.For DI Marjory Fleming the disappearance of Karen Bruce is a case she would prefer not to re-open but the ripple effect of Marnie’s return makes it clear this is one mystery that must be solved. As Fleming unravels the secrets of the past, she realises Marnie’s life is inextricably, terribly linked to a monstrous crime decades ago.Can Fleming fit the puzzle together before it’s too late? And will the truth be one Marnie wants to remember?Review'Loved it. She has become the crime czar of the Scottish small town!' Val McDermid 'Vivid characterisation, excellent description and a horribly looming sense of inevitability ... a riveting read' The Guardian 'Aline Templeton has demonstrated that, just when we thought Scotland was saturated with detectives, a strong woman can elbow her way in and find a unique niche' The Scotsman About the AuthorALINE TEMPLETON lives in Edinburgh with her husband and their Dalmatian dog. She has been Chair of the Society of Authors in Scotland and has been nominated for the Crime Writers' Association committee.
Views: 44

Sinners and Saints

Vylette Echo is a spunky college student who goes from a nightmare come true to an offer she won't refuse. Join Vylette as she fights for her life and her freedom after she is jumped, blindfolded and kidnapped from the only life she knows. Another twist of fate lands her before Dorrian Buchanan, a tall handsome millionaire who deals in the buying of woman. Once in his custody, things are not what they seem. Now she knows the truth and is presented with a proposal. Whatever her choice, it won't be an easy one. The hour is upon her, she has made her decision. It is time to begin what promises not only to be a dangerous life, but if all goes well, one with many rewards, including the man who has her heart in the breast pocket of his suit.
Views: 44

The Marriage Game

In a dazzling celebration of the power of friendship and love, acclaimed bestselling author Fern Michaels brings her trademark wit and warmth to an action-packed story featuring a group of diverse women who bond Survivor-style under the most unlikely of circumstances...and find romance along the way.When Samantha Rainford—newly wed to Douglas Cosmo Rainford III—returns home from her honeymoon to find divorce papers waiting, she's shocked and heartbroken. Then she discovers that she's not the first to be abandoned—she's one of four (or maybe more) ex-Mrs. Rainfords—and decides it's time to put into practice that old truism: Don't get mad, get even. With the help of her longtime girlfriend Slick, a glamorous fashion model, Sam gathers together a highly unlikely team: Mrs. Kayla Rainford, an architect who moonlights as an exotic dancer; Mrs. Zoe Rainford, a plumber; and Mrs. Olivia Rainford, a former cheerleader and cartoon artist....
Views: 44

A Christmas Beginning

Whatever the season, a new novel by bestselling author Anne Perry is always a wonderful gift, but her holiday novels are particularly special treats, and A Christmas Beginning is a deeply felt story of passion and redemption.Superintendent Runcorn of Scotland Yard is spending Christmas on the wild and beautiful island of Anglesey off the north coast of Wales. On one of his solitary strolls, the lonely bachelor stumbles upon a lifeless body in the village churchyard. The unfortunate victim is quickly identified as Olivia Costain, the local vicar's younger sister. In life, Olivia had been a free spirit, full of charm and grace. For Runcorn, she is a haunting reminder of Melisande Ewart, the one woman he's never been able to forget. Everyone on Anglesey is quick to insist that only a stranger to the island could have committed the heinous crime. But the evidence proves otherwise, and the unpopular work of discovering who among Olivia's friends and neighbors--and...
Views: 44