John Conger viola y asesina a su hija pequeña en el bosque. Cien años después Rose y Jack Conger tienen dos hijas: la pequeña, Sarah (que sufre una esquizofrenia y no habla desde que un día fue al bosque con su padre), y Elisabeth. Jack y Rose sufren las consecuencias de la enfermedad de Sarah y la única que parece sobrellevarlo bien es Elizabeth. Cuando Sarah empieza a aparecer cubierta de lodo y los niños del pueblo empiezan a desaparecer, sospechan que ella tiene algo que ver.

This book was pretty creepy. I wasn't quite ready to read about children violently killing other children, but I managed to get through it. The story is about the Conger family who have lived in Port Arbello, a small town somewhere along the Atlantic Ocean, for centuries under a curse. The curse is based on a vague legend that even the present-day Congers don't seem to know much about, except it involves several tragic disappearances, a woman who fell asleep and dreamed for two days, and a creepy portrait of a girl that never existed that they still keep in the attic - just because. Anyway, one thing leads to another and mayhem abounds. It's a rather morbid scary story with a sad ending. ( )

bad occult novel

Story about a prominent family (the Congers) who live in a New England coastal town (Port Arbello). Eleven-year-old Sarah Conger is mute from a trauma which happened to her a year ago. Her thirteen-year-old sister (Elizabeth) seems like the perfect daughter, or is she? Sarah and Elizabeth’s parents are having marital problems. There is also a family curse on the Congers. Now, children in the community are going missing. And what about the legend of the secret cave?

This story was creepy and disturbing, with some really unpleasant and gruesome moments. But I found this book very hard to put down, it was so captivating. The story was quite atmospheric, I felt like I was in the coastal town by the sea. But I was disappointed with the ending of this book. I felt bad for Sarah. And I didn’t like how crazy Elizabeth seemed to get away with everything and never got caught.

An okay read by John Saul. ( )

Terrific book! Solid psychological horror with enough gore to satisfy almost anyone. I don’t want to be, nor want to meet, some of these characters! 5 stars ( )