The Unloved » (Abridged, 5 CDs, 6 hrs.)

House of Reckoning is John Saul’s thirty-sixth novel. His first novel, Suffer the Children, published in 1977, was an immediate million-copy bestseller. His other bestselling suspense novels include In the Dark of the Night, Perfect Nightmare, Black Creek Crossing, Midnight Voices, The Manhattan Hunt Club, The Right Hand of Evil, Guardian, and Faces of Fear. Saul divides his time between Seattle, Washington, and Hawaii.

The House: Lush and deceptively tranquil, with its pristine beaches and blossoming vegetation, the island basks in splendid isolation off the South Carolina coast. Here, where sudden storms unleash the murderous rage of wind and sea, stands the Devereaux mansion, a once-great plantation house now crumbling amid ancient oaks dripping with Spanish moss. Here, Marguerite Devereaux, fifty and childless, has cast off her dreams to care for her aged, demanding mother.

The Family: Now, for the first time in twenty years, Kevin Devereaux has returned home to this secluded place with his wife and two children. They have come to visit Kevin's mother - hated, frightening Mother, with her slash of red lipstick, mask of bone-white powder, and a tongue that has always cut to Kevin's heart...and into his darkest nightmares. She said she was ill - but is that the real reason the old woman summoned the son she has not seen in so many years?

The Horror: Suddenly, horribly, Mother dies inside the locked nursery. And now there will be no escape. For now, all the secrets of this once-proud southern family emerge like tortured spirits from the sinister past to wrap their evil around the unsuspecting children. Until, in the shadowed corridors and dust-covered rooms of this decaying old house, they learn the true terror of The Unloved.

Library Journal

At the request of his dying mother, Kevin returns to his childhood home with his wife, Anne, and their children, but the brief visit turns into a nightmare when his mother's death is followed by seven more-including the demise of Anne. Was her death really accidental? Is the old homestead cursed? Is Kevin's sister insane? Using a wide variation in tone and pitch, reader Sandra Burr adds to the ambiance created by Saul's riveting and descriptive tale by conveying the distinctive voices of a wide cast of characters. Burr's speech is accent free with the exception of a Southern drawl for specific players, and her delivery is paced to match each character's mood and personality. Professionally produced, with no distracting background noises. Though expensive, this program will be in demand by horror and Saul fans; recommended for public libraries.-Laurie Selwyn, Grayson Cty. Law Lib., Sherman, TX Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.