Hmmm....Sounded so promising, but took me an age to get through, could not get the will up to pick up this book, but finally finished it about an hour ago, and was never so glad to finish a book.

It tells the story of The House of the Seven Gables....funnily enough! This house is occupied by Hepzibah, an old scowling woman who came from much wealth but is now reduced to opening a penny shop at the side of her house. Also living here is a young man named Holgrave who is an artist, Hepzibah's relation Phoebe, a young girl from the country and her brother Clifford.

A mystery surrounds this house, and the family is believed to be cursed ever since they stole land belonging to a supposed Wizard.

Sounds good? Yeah well the horror part doesn't arise until the last 20 pages or so, where you just get a slightly creepy feeling, but thats about it. Not worth the read at all, and if I hadn't gotten to the point of no return, I would have abandoned this book a long time ago.

Sleath is a quiet little picturesque village isolated from the rest of the world. A village which if situated anywhere else would be brimming with tourists, the natives like their privacy and discourage visitors.

However this is before the problem of the ghosts started. Sleath becomes plagued by ghosts of all sorts. From the little boy who drowned in his bath and visits his mum on the day of his funeral, to his stepfather who comes back to torture his stepson's spirit.

Ash is called in to investigate this paranormal activity. A member of an institution which consults on anything strange or abnormal, he is famous for disproving the existence of ghosts on many occasions. This time however, he gets dragged into something which goes a lot deeper.

The story is just ok, not as thrilling as it could have been. Probably not worth picking up.

will review later

I would highly recommend this book for any lovers of both horror films and horror fiction. Stephen King discusses what he feels are the most influential films and novels of the genre for 3 decades, 1950 to 1980. The book was published in 1982, so unfortunately he did not get a chance to comment on many horror films which would be well known to myself, however he did give me some idea's for films I would not normally have thought of watching.

Of course, the obvious ones are there, Exorcist, Rosemary's Baby, and TV shows such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Twilight Zone. Its very interesting to hear from an author of this genre's point of view, to see what inspired his books, and he even discusses some of his own film adaptations, but he does say that the book is not meant to be an autobiography, and so the references are brief.

This book grabbed my attention from the opening line and didn't let up until the end. With many twists and turns, I felt like I was with both Laura and Mary in the chase from Georgia to California while hoping that throughout the mayhem and chaos the baby would survive. I also liked how the narrative switched from Laura to Mary and back again.

What a great horror/suspense novel this is - a real page-turner.

Back Cover Blurb:
Laura Clayborne is a successful journalist with a successful stockbroker husband. But her marriage is foundering and her biological clock is winding down. David, her newborn son, is the only light in her life.
Mary Terrell, alias Mary Terror, is a scarred survivor of the Sixties. A former member of the terrorist Storm Front Brigade, she now festers in a world of warped memories and unrelenting rage. Quite simply, Mary Terror is mad. Murderously mad.
When Mary Terror steals Laura's baby and heads west, killing anyone in her way, Laura realizes the only way to stop her is to hunt her down. But the closer she gets to Mary, the more she must think and act like her.....

I have always been a huge fan of Stephen King's from the very beginning but this book just couldn't hold it together for me. I got about halfway through and, although I tried, I just found it very wanting. It hit the wall!

Back Cover Blurb:
In Derry, Maine, four young boys once stood together and did a brave thing. Something that changed them in ways they hardly understand.
A quarter of a century later, the boys are men who have gone their separate ways. Though they still get together once a year, to go hunting in the north woods of Maine. But this time is different. This time a man comes stumbling into their camp, lost, disoriented and muttering about lights in the sky.
Before long, these old friends will be plunged into the most remarkable events of their lives as they struggle with a terrible creature from another world. Their only chance of survival is locked in their shared past - and in the Dreamcatcher.

This book was said to be the best horror novel of the new century.....well, I tend to disagree. I got halfway through it and just couldn't go on anymore. It started to get bored and repetitive and just lost me.

Back Cover Blurb:
In the wild interior of the Yucatan, far from the lazy beaches of Cancun, two young couples and some new-found friends venture to the site of an ancient Mayan temple, in pursuit of another in their group. What started out as a day trip spirals into a nightmare when they reach the ruins.....and discover the terrifying presence that lurks there.