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"Hill House, not sane, stood by itself against its hills, holding darkness within; it had stood so for eighty years and might stand for eighty more." ~ Shirley Jackson (1916-1965), American author, The Haunting of Hill House
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New and Recently Released!
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| The Supernatural Enhancements: A Novel by Edgar CanteroA. Wells, a 23-year-old student and a member of the European branch of his family, goes to Virginia to claim an estate he's inherited. Along with his companion, a mute Irish punk girl named Niamh, he finds an opulent mansion but wonders about the suicide of his distant relative. The pair gradually learns about old family secrets and finds a mysterious basement vault. A. relates his tale through letters, journal entries, emails, ciphers, hand-written notes, and transcriptions of video and audio recordings. This engaging and offbeat narration raises chill bumps as A. and Niamh trace clues right up to the twisty ending. "Cantero's yarn pleases at every turn," says Kirkus Reviews. |
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| The String Diaries by Stephen Lloyd JonesFrantically driving her injured husband and her daughter to a secure house in Wales, Hannah Wilde hopes to escape a monstrous enemy who has menaced her family for centuries. When they arrive at the remote location, they may be safe, but can they trust anyone even there? In author Stephen Jones' debut novel, the narration switches between 1870s Hungary, 1970s Oxford, where Hannah's parents met, and the present day, gradually adding details to explain the unsettling events of each time period. The String Diaries rivets our attention until "we couldn't look away even if we tried" (Booklist). |
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| Searchers After Horror: New Tales of the Weird and Fantastic by S.T. Joshi, editorIn these 21 stories by horror novelists Ramsey Campbell and Caitlín R. Kiernan; short story specialists such as John Shirley; and newer voices including Englishman Gary Fry and American Darrell Schweitzer, weirdness reigns. Edited and introduced by S.T. Joshi -- known for his expertise in the works of H.P. Lovecraft -- the tales in Searchers After Horror (most previously unpublished) take place in settings that range from a deadly ice storm to a boarding school to cyberspace…and other, seemingly innocent places. This is a great sampler for readers new to horror fiction, and "a must-read" for those already familiar with the genre, says Publishers Weekly. |
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| The Ghost in the Electric Blue Suit: A Novel by Graham JoyceIn 1976, college student David Barwise takes a summer job at a decaying resort on the English coast. His family opposes his going because 15 years earlier his father had died there. But David feels a strong pull to the town; after he arrives, he experiences ghostly visions of a man with a little boy and falls in love with a married woman. An oppressive heat wave and extremist anti-immigrant tension add to the disturbing mood, and the strangeness gradually builds to terror as the secrets David's family had kept emerge from the shadows. Along with the creepy suspense, a well-crafted plot and attractive characters make this tale irresistible. |
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| Hellboy in Hell: The Descent by Michael MignolaHellboy, the durable hero of several graphic novel series by Michael Mignola, has died after battling a dragon and now finds himself in the underworld. The unsurpassed paranormal investigator has returned, along with familiar enemies, to take his place on the throne of Hell -- though he would rather not! His horrific adventures unfold through the superbly drawn panels of Mignola's artwork, compelling the reader's close attention and delighted (if horrified) response. Those unfamiliar with the acclaimed adventures of Hellboy don't need to seek out earlier volumes to enjoy this episode -- but everyone will look forward to additional entries in this new Hellboy in Hell series. |
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| Brother Odd: A Novel by Dean KoontzIn this 3rd in the series, Odd Thomas, a young man who can see ghosts, retreats to a monastery where the monks and nuns care for children with special needs. After a few months, his retreat is interrupted when he senses danger from evil spirits only he and his dog Boo can detect -- and the spirits are targeting one of the children's dormitories. Odd scrambles to identify the source of the threat and head it off before disaster strikes. Readers unfamiliar with the Odd Thomas books don't need to read the previous volumes to appreciate this one, though you may want to after reading Brother Odd. |
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| The Ridge by Michael KorytaFrom a lighthouse he built on top of an eastern Kentucky ridge, a man named Wyatt French makes two rambling phone calls about murder and suicide, one to police officer Kevin Kimble and the other to journalist Roy Darmus. When they find him dead in the lighthouse and discover old photographs and maps with names written on them, they realize Wyatt had been collecting information about mysterious and deadly events in the area going back to the 19th century. After Wyatt's death, the disturbing phenomena intensify, and Kimble and Darmus find they are confronting an old, old evil that will give readers "goosebumps the size of golf balls" (Kirkus Reviews). |
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| No Doors, No Windows: A Novel by Joe SchreiberScott Mast, a greeting-card writer who longs to be a published novelist, returns to his New Hampshire hometown for his father's funeral and discovers that Dad once had the same desire -- and had even left behind an unfinished manuscript. Entitled The Black Wing, it's a horror story based on events that occurred at nearby Round House, a residence distinguished by its lack of angles. Hoping to complete his father's book, Scott rents the house and moves in, but his research into Round House's history -- which dovetails with his own family's story -- reveals a past that's better left buried. |
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| Mrs. God by Peter StraubAmerican professor William Standish accepts an invitation to take up a prestigious fellowship in a stately home in England, planning to complete his scholarly research on an obscure poet named Isobel Standish (a distant relative). But the house at Esswood harbors secrets, and William has personality quirks that make him more susceptible to the sinister atmosphere. Gradually, the menace behind the house's elegant veneer asserts itself, leading to a "downright creepy" (Publishers Weekly) ending. Author Peter Straub employs subtle suggestion to build psychological tension in this novella; a shorter version of Mrs. God originally appeared in 1990. |
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| The Fate of Mercy Alban by Wendy WebbGrace Alban, now a divorced mother with a teenage daughter, left her Minnesota hometown 20 years earlier to escape reminders of her brothers' drowning and her father's suicide in Lake Superior. After Grace's mother, Adele, dies unexpectedly, Grace and her daughter return home to handle the funeral arrangements and wind up the Alban estate. Discovering love letters from the 1950s addressed to Adele, Grace realizes there's a mystery in her family's past. The mystery deepens and darkens as she searches further, finding an unpublished manuscript she hopes will explain the eerie presences, multiple deaths, and other strange events associated with the Alban house. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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West Babylon Public Library 211 Route 109 West Babylon, New York 11704 (631) 669-5445http://wbpl.us |
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