Unavailable
Unavailable
Unavailable
Audiobook (abridged)5 hours
Nightshade
Written by John Saul
Narrated by Lee Meriwether
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this audiobook
A master of horror and psychological suspense, John Saul taps into our darkest, most deeply guarded fears. Now the New York Times bestselling author of The Blackstone Chronicles and The Right Hand of Evil has created his most gripping novel yet, the terrifying story of an innocent teenager who must confront the sins of the past and a corrupting evil that threatens to consume his entire world. . . .
Fifteen-year-old Matthew Moore seems to have it all: a loving mother, Joan; a caring stepfather, Bill, who treats Matt like his own son; residence at a sprawling estate in Connecticut; and a growing relationship with the most beautiful girl at school. All signs point to a bright future. Until fate intervenes.
A sudden fire leaves Matt's ailing grandmother homeless. After moving in with the family, the caustic Emily insists on recreating the bedroom of her deceased daughter, the favored child who died tragically more than a decade ago. Joan and her older sister had always shared an uneasy bond and a shameful secret that would forever join them . . . even from beyond the grave.
Then Matt's life insidiously begins to change. He starts to smell his aunt?s pungent perfume, so strong and immediate that it is as if she has returned from the dead. At night, he finds himself haunted by nightmares of unimaginable terror. While his grandmother drives a wedge between his once devoted parents, Matt transforms from a gregarious teenager to a hostile loner, tortured by chilling memories and prone to fits of rage.
Then a shocking tragedy shatters the family beyond repair, propelling Joan and Emily into a final, explosive confrontation . . . a showdown in which old wounds will be viciously torn open?and a horrific shadow from the past will spring an implacable life of its own, clawing toward Matt with the ferocious inevitability of death itself.
From the Hardcover edition.
Fifteen-year-old Matthew Moore seems to have it all: a loving mother, Joan; a caring stepfather, Bill, who treats Matt like his own son; residence at a sprawling estate in Connecticut; and a growing relationship with the most beautiful girl at school. All signs point to a bright future. Until fate intervenes.
A sudden fire leaves Matt's ailing grandmother homeless. After moving in with the family, the caustic Emily insists on recreating the bedroom of her deceased daughter, the favored child who died tragically more than a decade ago. Joan and her older sister had always shared an uneasy bond and a shameful secret that would forever join them . . . even from beyond the grave.
Then Matt's life insidiously begins to change. He starts to smell his aunt?s pungent perfume, so strong and immediate that it is as if she has returned from the dead. At night, he finds himself haunted by nightmares of unimaginable terror. While his grandmother drives a wedge between his once devoted parents, Matt transforms from a gregarious teenager to a hostile loner, tortured by chilling memories and prone to fits of rage.
Then a shocking tragedy shatters the family beyond repair, propelling Joan and Emily into a final, explosive confrontation . . . a showdown in which old wounds will be viciously torn open?and a horrific shadow from the past will spring an implacable life of its own, clawing toward Matt with the ferocious inevitability of death itself.
From the Hardcover edition.
Unavailable
Author
John Saul
John Saul’s first novel Suffer the Children became an instant bestseller, as have many of the thirty-three novels of dark suspense he has published since. Amidst this busy writing schedule, he divides his time between Seattle, Washington and Hawaii.
More audiobooks from John Saul
In the Dark of the Night Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Suffer the Children Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Devil's Labyrinth: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Perfect Nightmare: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Shadows Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Black Creek Crossing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Darkness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Punish the Sinners: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5When the Wind Blows Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Brainchild Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Presence Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hellfire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Homing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Comes the Blind Fury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cry for the Strangers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Right Hand of Evil Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nathaniel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nightshade Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Midnight Voices Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Black Lightning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Manhattan Hunt Club Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5House of Reckoning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Guardian Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sleepwalk Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The God Project Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Unloved Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Unwanted Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to Nightshade
Related audiobooks
Banished: An Amish Romance: The Long Road Home, Book 1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lost Seeds Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Single Mums' Secrets Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsI Am Heathcliff: Stories Inspired by Wuthering Heights Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Forgotten Orphan Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Once Upon an Effing Time Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Lost Girls of St Ann's Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAgainst My Window: Book 3: Jameson Family Series Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fallen Poppies: A NOVEL: A Dark Coming of Age Family Saga Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSins of Fathers: A Spectacular Break from a Dark Criminal Past Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAll That Glitters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Undead AF Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5So Close to Home Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Good Wife: A historical tale of love, alchemy, courage and change Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Things We Never Said Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Street Corner Dreams: A Novel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Last Summer Sister Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBeyond the Brazos: Final Episode Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDeath in Slow Motion: A Memoir of a Daughter, Her Mother, and the Beast Called Alzheimer's Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Best New True Crime Stories: Crimes of Passion, Obsession & Revenge Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary of Roseanne Montillo's Deliberate Cruelty Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTrue Crime USA: Real Crime Cases From The United States Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lying Game #3: Two Truths and a Lie Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summary of Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell: Hamnet Book´s Complete Analysis & Study Guide Chapter by Chapter Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSecrets of Silvergum Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Eloquently Hanging by Threads Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLast One to Lie: 'The Family' Psychological Thriller Trilogy Book 3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Suspense For You
Holly Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last Thing He Told Me: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Teacher Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Silent Patient Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5None of This is True: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fairy Tale Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Leave the World Behind: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Then She Was Gone: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Misery Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/511/22/63: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Last Mrs. Parrish: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Perfect Marriage: a completely gripping psychological suspense Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Institute: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Guest List: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wrong Place Wrong Time: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Housemaid Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mr. Mercedes: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Billy Summers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Dead Zone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Outsider: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hunting Party: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I Know You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Fury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All the Missing Girls: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fool Me Once Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Talisman Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ghost Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Paris Apartment: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bright Young Women: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Nightshade
Rating: 3.5459163265306124 out of 5 stars
3.5/5
98 ratings10 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hapgoods appear for all the world to be a loving, happy, content family. That all shatters quite quickly when grandma Emily, suffering from Alzheimer's and seemingly intent on making everyone around her feel lower than a snake's belly, moves into the Hapgood's estate. Constantly comparing Joan Hapgood to her beautiful, smart but dead older sister, Cynthia, Emily strikes out to totally deflate her younger daughter. Teenage grandson, Matt, starts having violent, erotic dreams that plague him. Then the body count starts to rise.
John Saul weaves a fascinating prose with dark family incidents. Trepidation, dread, doom all gathering. It's a enjoyable read of horror and suspense. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Not for the faint of heart! The underlying subject of this entire story is child abuse. There is also the exposure of the vivid portrayal of bullying that can occur after one family has experienced a horrifying tragedy and the child(ren) still need to attend school and how judgments of well-meaning parents create the backdrop of the bullying. John Saul exposes evil with graphic images, gripping details, in a fast-paced, page-turning novel. Particularly in the climate of America at this time (2016), the novel cries out, "Let the innocent be innocent when one doesn't know all the facts!" I tried to solve the mystery as there are clues all along the way but I never suspected the ending.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I loved this book and as always love John Saul
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Well what to say about this book......sigh.I am going to have to put it down and that is super rare for me not to finish a book by author, John Saul. I have read a lot of his books and usually give his work high ratings as I love his stories, but this book was just super slow with lots of repetition with things happening to the characters. The same things would happen and it just went out like that for most of the book as I did read up to about halfway. I also did not find the story to be that spooky - I was not scared out of my wits like I normally am with ghost stories written by this author.The other reason I am laying it down as there is quite a bit of emotions with one of the characters that has Alzheimer's as that rings too close to home for me as I was my mother's caretaker up till she passed away as she had Alzheimer's and everything that happens in this story with that character just brings back too much of what I went through with my mom. It was heartbreaking to see my mom go through that and to read a story about it just brings all that heartache back, so I just cannot read this book as it is very emotional for me.I gave it one star but normally I do not rate books I do not finish - I just made an exception this time.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Not for the faint of heart! The underlying subject of this entire story is child abuse. There is also the exposure of the vivid portrayal of bullying that can occur after one family has experienced a horrifying tragedy and the child(ren) still need to attend school and how judgments of well-meaning parents create the backdrop of the bullying. John Saul exposes evil with graphic images, gripping details, in a fast-paced, page-turning novel. Particularly in the climate of America at this time (2016), the novel cries out, "Let the innocent be innocent when one doesn't know all the facts!" I tried to solve the mystery as there are clues all along the way but I never suspected the ending.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Meet New Hampshire couple Bill and Joan Hapgood and their teenage son, Matt. They have a huge home, many friends, and the glow of Matt's glory as a high school football star. Life couldn't be sweeter, right? Wrong!
Trouble begins when Joan's mother, Emily, accidentally burns down her own house and moves in with the Hapgoods. Matt is terrified of his foul-tempered grandmother, who refers to him as "Joan's bastard." Emily's odd behavior reaches a fever pitch when she insists that the bedroom of her long-dead (and much-favored) elder daughter, Cynthia, be recreated, prom dress, dolls, and all. The household's normal warmth vanishes, "the sense of welcome and comfort was gone." Matt complains of strange, perverted dreams in which the staggeringly beautiful Cynthia visits him, leaving behind the pungent scent of her Nightshade perfume. Joan also feels the presence of her dead sister, and has painful flashbacks to a childhood best left forgotten. A murder and three disappearances befall the small town, Matt spirals into depression, and Joan loses her mind. Throw in child abuse, torture, and a wickedly irritable ghost, and we have one whopper of a nightmare. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Very good and eerie mystery starting off with an abused child and cycling up into horror. The story centers around teen Matthew Moore, whose life and whose mother is turned upside down when his grandmother, in early stages of Alzheimer's, moves into their home. The story is well-written and as the mystery is revealed in stages, it keeps you hooked.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The story centers on a family (literally) haunted by a dead family member. This was my first novel by Saul, and given that what stopped me reading was the clunky style, above all, I imagine it will be my last. I hated Saul's way with point of view. A true, good omniscient point of view needs a strong voice and masterful style, or it comes across as just sloppy head-hopping, which is what we have here, as well as frequent rhetorical questions and other cheesy flourishes and melodramatic prose. There are far too many really well-written and gripping horror novels out there to waste your time on this one.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5When the very first chapter of a John Saul book features cruelty to a child, you know that he's playing to an old and successful formula. Nightshade is full of menace, with twists and turns, some more obvious that others. It's a story of paranoia, revenge, lust and betrayal, with a supernatural curve of course. Gripping from start to finish, and Nightshade is no short story, Saul has penned another decent horror tale. Recommended for any horror fan, especially if you're bored of the torrent of vampire and zombie books which currently fill the bookshelves.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This book is a very adapted taste. It was very well written and will keep you guessing till the end. There are parts of the story that are very strange and unnecessary, but the book as a whole is amazing. If you are looking for a thiller that will give you chills, this is the book for you.