Book picks similar to
Prodigal by Melanie Tem


horror
paperbacks-from-hell
fiction
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The Other


Thomas Tryon - 1971
    Its impeccable recreation of small-town life and its skillful handling of the theme of personality transference between thirteen-year-old twins led to widespread critical acclaim for the novel, which was successfully filmed from Thomas Tryon's own screenplay.This edition features original artwork by surrealist artist Harry O. Morris.

The Search for Joseph Tully


William H. Hallahan - 1974
    One of the few buildings still standing amid the rubble is the Brevoort House, older than memory. Its only remaining tenant is Peter Richardson. Abandoned. Menaced. Alone. The Brevoort has become an unbearable burden for him. Houses, like people, can go bad, and the Brevoort emanates an evilness, an undefined terror, aimed directly at him. The house—something in the house—is telling Richardson of his impending death. In another part of Brooklyn, solicitor Matthew Willow arrives from London seeking a man who may not exist. He has one clue, the name of the wanted man’s ancestor: Joseph Tully. Willow’s search takes him into the fascinating world of the genealogical detective—and uncovers a relentless pursuit and quest for vengeance through centuries of reincarnation . . .

Dracula


Bram Stoker - 1897
    Also included are a discussion of Stoker's working notes for the novel and "Dracula's Guest," the original opening chapter to Dracula. Reviews and Reactions reprints five early reviews of the novel. "Dramatic and Film Variations" focuses on theater and film adaptations of Dracula, two indications of the novel's unwavering appeal. David J. Skal, Gregory A. Waller, and Nina Auerbach offer their varied perspectives. Checklists of both dramatic and film adaptations are included.Criticism collects seven theoretical interpretations of Dracula by Phyllis A. Roth, Carol A. Senf, Franco Moretti, Christopher Craft, Bram Dijkstra, Stephen D. Arata, and Talia Schaffer.A Chronology and a Selected Bibliography are included.

Ghost Train


Stephen Laws - 1985
    Commuter Mark Davies has been attacked and thrown from the train. Now he must team up with Ghost Train obsessed, ex-policeman Les Chadderton, before the predator disembarks for wider pastures.

Elizabeth


Jessica Hamilton - 1976
    Her family wouldn't have believed it even if she had told them - which she had no intention of doing. Elizabeth had far different plans for them - and only God could help them. He didn't - and Elizabeth set out to prove how hellishly far she could go...

The Orchard


Charles L. Grant - 1986
    The first death seems to be an accident.But there's no doubt about the suicide, or the mutilation murder, or the horror that seizes the movie theater, or the terror that inhabits the hospital...All are the fruits of that night in the orchard.

House of Illusions


Ruby Jean Jensen - 1988
    It was there that she saw the clowns, with their large red noses, floppy shoes--and deadly grins. A hellish nightmare was about to begin. For these clowns craved terrified screams--not gleeful laughter--and were hungry for death!

Fevre Dream


George R.R. Martin - 1982
    But when he meets the hauntingly pale, steely-eyed Joshua York, he is certain. For York doesn’t care that the icy winter of 1857 has wiped out all but one of Marsh’s dilapidated fleet. Nor does he care that he won’t earn back his investment in a decade. York has his own reasons for wanting to traverse the powerful Mississippi. And they are to be none of Marsh’s concern—no matter how bizarre, arbitrary, or capricious his actions may prove. Marsh meant to turn down York’s offer. It was too full of secrets that spelled danger. But the promise of both gold and a grand new boat that could make history crushed his resolve—coupled with the terrible force of York’s mesmerizing gaze. Not until the maiden voyage of his new sidewheeler Fevre Dream would Marsh realize he had joined a mission both more sinister, and perhaps more noble, than his most fantastic nightmare...and mankind’s most impossible dream. Here is the spellbinding tale of a vampire’s quest to unite his race with humanity, of a garrulous riverman’s dream of immortality, and of the undying legends of the steamboat era and a majestic, ancient river.

Invisible Fences


Norman Prentiss - 2008
    Things stay with us—souvenirs with memories attached. We can't always choose what to keep, what to throw away.Nathan's parents devised cautionary tales for him and his sister—gruesome stories about predatory cars racing along the "Big Street" at one end of their neighborhood, or dope fiends lurking in the woods behind their house and ready to plunge hypodermics into the skin of foolish young trespassers. These stories served their purpose during Nathan's gullible childhood, essentially constructing an invisible fence around the yard and keeping the boy close to home where he'd be safe.Such barriers are not so easy to discard in later life. As an adult, Nathan no longer believes his parents' stories, and yet they still confine him. He lives cautiously, avoiding serious relationships, avoiding risk. But despite his efforts, something from his parents' cautionary tales threatens to creep beneath that invisible border…and the enclosed yard might not be as safe and secure as it always seemed…

The Doll Who Ate His Mother


Ramsey Campbell - 1976
    The man had suddenly stepped into the road, and the brakes had failed. Clare could only steer wildly, the car finally crashing into a tree and on to the kerb. Now her brother Rob was dead, silent in the passenger seat, slumped against the door. He died of massive head injuries. But there was something else, something that at first she couldnt quite grasp, that seemed inexplicable. His right arm was missing. Gone. Someone had taken it.

The Hymn


Graham Masterton - 1991
    As Lloyd struggles to deal with this tragic event, he learns about a bizarre accident in the California desert in which a busload of people have burned to death. Police speculate that this was a suicide pact, but as Lloyd’s investigation reveals connections between the two events, he begins to learn what is at the root of these horrific suicides. When he discovers a link to Nazi Germany, Lloyd becomes involved in something that may be beyond his world. But once he has begun, can he escape?

I Am Legend and Other Stories


Richard Matheson - 1954
    Every other man, woman, and child on Earth has become a vampire, and they are all hungry for Neville's blood.By day, he is the hunter, stalking the sleeping undead through the abandoned ruins of civilization. By night, he barricades himself in his home and prays for dawn.How long can one man survive in a world of vampires?I am legend --Buried talents --The near departed --Prey --Witch war --Dance of the dead --Dress of white silk --Mad house --The funeral --From shadowed places --Person to person.

Burn, Witch, Burn!


A. Merritt - 1932
    This novel inspired the movie -Devil Doll-.

Live Girls


Ray Garton - 1987
    He finds instead a nightmare in the form of a beautiful but strangely pale woman. A woman who offers him passion, ecstasy - and eternal life - but takes in exchange his lifeblood and his very soul.

Doctors Wear Scarlet


Simon Raven - 1960
    He is handsome, with an enviable record from school, army and university. A future career as a talented archaeologist seems assured. That is, until he travels to Greece and meets Chriseis. Chriseis is beautiful, mesmerising and mysterious, but also evil. A spellbound Richard is lured into her dark world of vice, vampirism and ritual, high up in the Cretan mountains. When his rescuers finally reach him, he has changed beyond all recognition and is seemingly destined for a tragic end. The final act at a double funeral provides a tumultuous climax to a shocking story.