"An exciting work"
Overcoming the nightmare of his childhood (see SUMMER
OF NIGHT), Dale Stewart became a successful literature
professor and novelist, though his Jim Bridge: Mountain Man
books do not attain the literary standard he desires.
However, he threw away a loving family life with a
cherished wife and daughters for an affair with a student
that ended badly. Filled with self-recrimination, Dale
takes a sabbatical from the University of Montana and flees
Missoula to stay at the farmhouse of his deceased childhood
friend Duane McBride to write his first real novel. While battling with guilt, Dale writes Internet
articles exposing the Big Sky neo-Nazi skinheads, which
brings him to the attention of their Illinois brethren. As
he settles in the McBride farmhouse, he begins to fall
further apart and begins to realize that more than a bunch
of extremists want his skin peeled. There are forces
turning the screws, but is it inside his head or outside
his head's understanding? The sequel to the scary SUMMER OF NIGHT (to be re-
released shortly), A WINTER HAUNTING, is a great tale that
keeps the reader wondering if the plot is a psychological
thriller or a modern day Turn of the Screw. The story line
starts off in an eerie manner as the long dead Duane begins
the narration of seeing Montana through Dale's eyes though
he never left Illinois. Dan Simmons is at his most
frightening best guiding his audience into deciding whether
middle aged Dale is breaking down or haunted. This novel
and its previous tale are winners and worth reading by fans
relishing psychological thrillers or haunting stories
because the plots play on multiple levels. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted January 25, 2002
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