Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

The Dead Path

by Stephen M. Irwin (Goodreads Author)

3.73 of 5 stars 3.73 · rating details · 805 ratings · 191 reviews

Do you remember the last time a book gave you the chills? The Dead Path is the ghost story we’ve been waiting for.

A haunting vision in the woods sets off a series of tragic events, leaving Nicholas Close lost amid visions of ghosts trapped in their harrowing, final moments. These uniquely terrifying apparitions lead him on a thrilling and suspenseful ride to confront a...more

Hardcover, 384 pages

Published October 5th 2010 by Doubleday (first published May 10th 2010)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Complete Stories and Poems by Edgar Allan Poe

Best Books to Read for Halloween!

59th out of 223 books — 233 voters

Best Supernatural books, no romance, no series

21st out of 71 books — 18 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 2,482)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Nov 07, 2010 Mike rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It's no The Last Wave, probably veering more toward The Wicker Man, but the spooky post-hippie one with Edward Woodward rather than the crazy Nic Cage one with bees.*

It's full of casually fine detail and witty prose, which makes up for it being too long.

It's genuinely creepy and freaky in parts, some gorgeously unpleasant and yet beautiful images, many involving spiders, and generically reminiscent of a few too many previous bad-things-happened-when-I-was-a-kid-but-now-as-an-adult-I'm-back-to-...more

like 13 likes · see review

Nov 08, 2010 mandy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Even though I had suspected the ending earlier on, it did not detract its suspense and shock in any way possible. I loved this book; it managed to intrigue me, sadden me, disturb me, and honestly scare me in more ways than one. I do not usually fall prey to anything categorized with the word "horror" anymore, but this one made me quite nervous on more than one occasion. Absolutely loved the protagonist and the handful of characters I was introduced to, and of course, came to despise the villain...more

like 3 likes · see review

Apr 05, 2011 Erik rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like 5 likes · see review

Dec 14, 2011 Katy rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: fans of paranormal/horror

Recommended to Katy by: Amazon.com Vine

Shelves: vine-book

"The Dead Path" is a wonderfully creepy bit of horror given us by a new author - if this is his debut, I think we have some wonderful stories to look forward to in the future!

Nicholas Close has a wonderful life with a beautiful woman in a new flat that they are busily redecorating. Then on rainy night he goes out to go to the market and finds his car "parked in" and decides to take the motorcycle instead. Taking a curve too fast, he is distracted by what appears to be a strange face in the wood...more "The Dead Path" is a wonderfully creepy bit of horror given us by a new author - if this is his debut, I think we have some wonderful stories to look forward to in the future!

Nicholas Close has a wonderful life with a beautiful woman in a new flat that they are busily redecorating. Then on rainy night he goes out to go to the market and finds his car "parked in" and decides to take the motorcycle instead. Taking a curve too fast, he is distracted by what appears to be a strange face in the woods and ends up in an accident. He isn't terribly hurt - just a head bump, which causes him a headache for several days - but will be delayed - when he tries to call his wife, though, there is no answer. Upon returning home, he finds her dead - she has slipped off the ladder, fallen and broken her neck.

Several days later, Nicholas falls and hits his head - which gets rid of the ongoing headache, but suddenly he sees ghosts. Every person who ever died too young, in whatever manner, has left a ghost showing the last bits of their life leading up to their death and Nicholas cannot "shut off" this "gift." Feeling as though he is going mad, between the ghosts and the grief over his wife's death, he returns to his childhood home ... only to find himself in the midst of a series of disturbing disappearances and murders, all of which seem to link to him (as either suspect or target) as well as to a malignant evil that seems to exist in a patch of woods that exists in his hometown - and that has never been developed. In fact, every time it seems to be close to development, a rash of murders and disappearances hits the development company, shutting down the proposed development.

The wonderful thing about this book - for me, at least - outside of the terrifically creepy atmosphere is that it is true horror. It does NOT have a happy ending. Some people might be troubled by that. I don't know. I like it. One thing that bothers me is that the Green Man is shown is such a negative light through most of the book - the Green Man is one of the deities of Paganism and Wicca and is simply the Lord of the Woods - the male deity responsible for the wild places. As such he isn't good or bad, he just is. It is the works in his name that are the problem and I do wish it had been emphasized a bit more that it was the spells, not the Green Man, that was causing the problem (this minor spoiler disguised in such as way as to be more confusing than helpful - you're welcome).

At any rate - anyone interested in Paranormal and/or Horror, you will LOVE this book - get it NOW!!!(less)

like 5 likes · see review

Feb 18, 2013 shannon rated it 4 of 5 stars

I absolutely loved "The Broken Ones" and recommend it to everyone. This was also great, and the thing I really like about this author is how refreshingly he writes hauntings. the idea of a ghost being trapped in its final moments is truly terrifying -- and the image of the main character watching his wife fall off of a ladder over and over again was chilling and heartbreaking, sad in that way that sticks with you for awhile.

plot-wise, i found this interesting but not quite as riveting as "The B...more

like · see review

Nov 28, 2012 Melissa rated it 2 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The moral of this story is that even if you worship Pan for hundreds of years, sacrificing several children to him & asking nothing for yourself, he will still throw you over for a younger girl & make her set you on fire. So dark worship is really not worth it.

Nicholas Close sees dead people all over the place, reenacting the circumstances of their deaths over & over. His wife has been killed & this is all a bit much for him to take, so he moves back to his childhood home in Aust...more

like 3 likes · see review

Jul 04, 2012 Kane Gilmour rated it 5 of 5 stars

A 25-Year Single Malt of Spooky

Stephen M. Irwin's supernatural thriller debut, THE DEAD PATH, is without a doubt one of the finest things to come out of Australia in the last twenty years. With a slow, considered burn of a beginning, the story twists a few times before it really gets rolling, and you think you are in for a predictable The Sixth Sense kind of "I See Ghosts" tale. But Irwin has loftier things in store for you. The story moves effortlessly into different territories than where you...more A 25-Year Single Malt of Spooky

Stephen M. Irwin's supernatural thriller debut, THE DEAD PATH, is without a doubt one of the finest things to come out of Australia in the last twenty years. With a slow, considered burn of a beginning, the story twists a few times before it really gets rolling, and you think you are in for a predictable The Sixth Sense kind of "I See Ghosts" tale. But Irwin has loftier things in store for you. The story moves effortlessly into different territories than where you thought you were heading, and it sucks you in so deeply, that when it returns to issues brought up in the early part of the tale, you had completely forgotten about them, and the resulting impact is just what a terrific spookathon requires. The tale twists and turns, moving in directions you don't see coming until they are upon you. And by that point, the new direction is so wonderfully obvious, you question why you didn't see it coming in the first place. Because you are in the hands of a master, that's why.

This novel was also a surprise for me in another way, unrelated to the excellent tapestry of woven plot. The prose is lush, exotic, and so concise, that Irwin can evoke the heebie jeebies as easily as he evokes your misspent childhood with a simple sentence about the weather. I found, for the first time in 15 years, I was savoring the prose of a novel, dipping into it like a fine single malt whisky, letting each sentence roll over my tongue, and feeling the delicious burn of each chapter. I found myself going back and re-reading a sentence to marvel at its construction--at how perfect it was, and yet how simple. Like any master of a craft, Irwin makes it look easy. I made the first third of the book last weeks, because I refused to barrel through it at the pace the plot demanded. I wanted it to last. I hadn't done that with a book since I read John Banville's lavish espionage drama, THE UNTOUCHABLE, over a decade ago. There's a reason why, like Banville, Irwin is an award-winning author. He's just that good. After my fine sips began to come one after the next, with a delicious warm intensity, I started gulping, until I finished the book in a staggering bender of intoxicated reading.

We are living through a new renaissance of supernatural horror thriller fiction at the moment. Stephen M. Irwin is joining the ranks of the other new maestros: Joe Hill, Michael Koryta, and Justin Cronin. As the illustrious Stephen King spends more time tinkering with his magnum opus and knocking baseball novellas out of the park, these four authors are forging ahead with the genre, taking us places we've never been, but where we have been yearning to go. Any one of these authors could carry the legacy of Stephen King, with the fine chilling tales to which we have become accustomed. With Irwin's addition to the new spookmaster's club, readers of the genre are in fine hands.(less)

like 1 like · see review

Feb 21, 2012 Ryan rated it 3 of 5 stars

The Dead Path
Stephen M. Irwin
Hardback, 384 pgs.

I had needed a break from the rich tapestry of Martin and I found this during my local Boarders going out of business sale which offered 70% off hard backs. Why not? I never read horror and Fall was approaching rapidly. I had picked up a decent amount of Halloween reading but I don’t think I will get to the bulk of it until November once I have closed out a "Song of Ice and Fire." Oh well, that is why I have a stack of books.

On a side note, I need...more The Dead Path
Stephen M. Irwin
Hardback, 384 pgs.

I had needed a break from the rich tapestry of Martin and I found this during my local Boarders going out of business sale which offered 70% off hard backs. Why not? I never read horror and Fall was approaching rapidly. I had picked up a decent amount of Halloween reading but I don’t think I will get to the bulk of it until November once I have closed out a "Song of Ice and Fire." Oh well, that is why I have a stack of books.

On a side note, I need to find some book ends. The fancy little decorative things with a hefty weight. If you come across some for cheap, let me know. I should start checking garage sales.

'The Dead Path' was my first foray into horror beyond Mr. King and Miss Rice. I don't generally read horror at all simply for the fact that I find horror really subjective and writers seem to write about what is scary to them. If you align with the same fears it is generally a success, otherwise its just kind of dark fiction. For instance, in The Dead Path uses spiders. I hate spiders but they are not scary to read about for me so that is a complete miss, even if they are the size of a small dog.

The author Stephen Irwin is from Australia, he has a happy life and seems pretty ordinary as far as authors go. Irwin graduated from Queensland College with qualifications in Film and Television production. He has produced some movies but I don’t know of any of them and have not bothered to look. He has two kids and a loving wife, wonderful. He has one some praise for his shorts and had a second book published in Australia, it is unclear if this is a sequel to 'The Dead Path' or not.

The book starts off with a brief introduction to the main character, Nicolas Close. Nicolas is a 'picker.' Just like the History show he roams around looking for crap to sell to people with dramatic interior design desires. He makes a decent living and his wife and himself have just purchased a nice flat which they are renovating. Nicolas is off to the store to pick up some supplies. As he motorcycles down he gets into an accident and although he is fine, he immediately decides to phone his wife. As his wife travels down a latter to answer the phone, she slips and breaks her neck. Now, Nicolas sees ghosts of the murdered or suicide variety in vivid detail playing out their final moments over and over. Obviously this is drastically effecting him so he runs home to his mother to try and come to grips with the whole thing. Of course this is when things get crazier and weirder.

Overall the book wasn’t scary. A couple of weird things, some dibble dabble with old mythos and that is about it.
(less)

like 1 like · see review

Jan 08, 2012 Doug rated it 2 of 5 stars

I can’t say The Dead Path didn’t get its hooks into me: I finished the final hundred pages at a single sitting, anxious for one of its characters, in particular, to escape the morass. There are some clever aspects to how it works an old religion into a modern tale; Irwin’ prose is reliably serviceable and occasionally better than that.

But the aspects that annoyed me outweighed those that intrigued me. Even as worry for a character quickened my pulse, I felt manipulated by the specifics of the th...more

like 2 likes · see review

Jan 06, 2012 Misty Baker rated it 4 of 5 stars

Everyone has their reason’s for loving certain genres of literature. Maybe you are a fan of “romance” because you live for happy endings, maybe you like “paranormals” because you get enough of “reality” in your “real life.” Or maybe, just maybe…you are one of those people that like to read celebrity memoirs simply because, 9 times out of 10, they reinforce the thought that (despite not getting that new pair of Air Jordan’s in the 5th grade) you did indeed have a spectacular childhood.

Me? I’m the...more Everyone has their reason’s for loving certain genres of literature. Maybe you are a fan of “romance” because you live for happy endings, maybe you like “paranormals” because you get enough of “reality” in your “real life.” Or maybe, just maybe…you are one of those people that like to read celebrity memoirs simply because, 9 times out of 10, they reinforce the thought that (despite not getting that new pair of Air Jordan’s in the 5th grade) you did indeed have a spectacular childhood.

Me? I’m the person who loves horror novels because (more often then not) they are difficult to predict.

In “The Dead Path,” Stephen M. Irwin does justice to all of the wonderful features that make horror novels difficult to put down. It was creepy, twisted, filled with traumatic childhood memories, and haunted to the point of delirium.

Most of us believe that our souls quickly move from death to peace after our lives are stolen from us, but Nicholas Close knows better. After a freak accident that claimed the life of his wife, Close starts to notice things that no one else seems to see. For example: See that little girl in the front of the plane choking? Yeah, I didn’t think so. Why? Because she’s already dead. As a matter of fact she died a few weeks ago. Nicholas however, can describe to you in great details what she was wearing, the color of her eyes, and the look of terror that molded into her features as she died. See, Nicholas can see ghost, but not just any ghost, only the tortured ones; ones doomed to spend their last violent moments in a horrifically endless loop. Terrified by the thought of his sanity leaving him, Nicholas decides to return to his hometown, unfortunately he learns (very quickly) that there is no running from this sort of evil, and before he knows it, finds himself knee deep in missing children and murder investigations that all seem to lead back to one specific place. The woods.

The very first thing I noticed when diving into “The Dead Path” was Irwin’s spectacular use of language. While most horror novels default into descriptions of blood and mayhem to get their point across, Irwin approached his story from a different angle. One of intrigue and speculation. Instead of giving the answers away he forced you to find them for yourself, and in doing so, we (as readers) were led on a journey of (better than brilliant) adjectives. While I will be first to admit that this was not an overly “scary” read, as touted in the synopsis, I will go on record as saying the “atmosphere” created to accompany the characters throughout their journey was nothing short of what nightmares are made of (aka spiders, creepy old ladies, acres of abandoned woods, and dark magic.) The only (major) issue I feel the need to point out would be that the story was (even though written beautifully) a little wordy (in a few places) that could have benefited (action wise) from a more forward approach, but… if you are a person who enjoys details, this is can be easily overlooked as “newbie jitters” (meaning this is Irwin’s debut novel) and is in no way a deal breaker.

So…all in all? Great read, great writing and a fascinating exploration into the darker side of hauntings.

Happy reading my fellow Kindle-ites and remember: Unless you let your pain go, it will never fully leave you.(less)

like 1 like · see review

Sep 28, 2011 Robert Beveridge rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: amazon-vine, finished, owned-and-still-own

Stephen M. Irwin, The Dead Path (Doubleday, 2010)

Full disclosure: this book was provided to me free of charge by Amazon Vine.

I finished The Dead Path on June 10, 2011. I swear up and down on a stack of Vine books that I reviewed it a couple of days afterwards, but I can find neither hide nor hair of said review in my drafts document, and Amazon still has it listed as unreviewed, so I must have dreamed writing it. (I should have kept going and dreamed y'all gave me three hundred helpful votes, or...more Stephen M. Irwin, The Dead Path (Doubleday, 2010)

Full disclosure: this book was provided to me free of charge by Amazon Vine.

I finished The Dead Path on June 10, 2011. I swear up and down on a stack of Vine books that I reviewed it a couple of days afterwards, but I can find neither hide nor hair of said review in my drafts document, and Amazon still has it listed as unreviewed, so I must have dreamed writing it. (I should have kept going and dreamed y'all gave me three hundred helpful votes, or something.) But here we are on September 21, 2011, and I'm trying to get back to the headspace where I was just after finishing the book. I did like it, at times I liked it a great deal, though I think the comparisons are wrong; Mr. Irwin reminded me a great deal more of Ramsey Campbell than he did Stephen King, because Mr. Irwin is a more atmospheric writer, and has a that whole reverence-for-the-old-wives'-tales thing going on (the crucified-dead-animals thing could be straight out of a seventeenth-century folktale. Or Malleus Maleficarum, for that matter).

Plot: Nicholas Close was involved in a motorcycle accident. While injured, he attempted to call his wife, which resulted in another accident that caused her death. Another result of the accident: his head injury now allows him to see ghosts. Revenants, actually: spirits that continuously re-enact the final few moments of their lives. As you might be able to guess, this is a pretty nasty affliction for an antiques dealer to have, so he retires and heads back to the ancestral pile, a suburban house in Tallong, where he hopes to get away from the ghosts. That, however, would make for a very short novel. You see, Close has been haunted most of his life by the disappearance of his best childhood friend... and sure enough, that particular ghost is right where he left it. With only a skeptical sister (who's got her own problems at home) and a wayward teen who, like Close when he was younger, narrowly escaped the clutches of the Thing in the Woods(TM), Close has to set things right before the old powers, that harbor a grudge against Close for getting away all those years ago, set the balance right.

You'll hear a lot of talk about this being derivative, blah blah blah. Come on, folks, there's nothing new in horror except the way the old tales are retold. (And the not-so-old tales. You seriously didn't catch the Blacula references in 'Salem's Lot?) You don't read a horror novel for originality, you read it for the author's style, his timing, his pacing, his ability to build solid characters, place them into believable situations, and thus to scare the living shit out of you. Though I will only own up to actually being scared by two horror novels in the past thirty years. (No, I won't tell you which, but I will tell you that one of them is fast approaching that expiration date.) This was not one of them, but I don't take points off for that. I much more appreciate that Irwin is a solid writer than I am disappointed that the book didn't scare me. All the right cues are in all the right places. I'm just not easily scared.

[except by clowns.]

So instead of heralding Stephen Irwin as the Next Big Thing in horror, publishers, maybe you should have marketed him in the same way you marketed other amazing horror writers who have recently found themselves successfully trading old paths like Thomas Ligotti or Dale Bailey. Wait, you've never heard of those guys? Okay, point taken. But you should've done your research, because we, the horror-devouring public, have, and we revere them, and while Irwin is not in the same category yet, a bit more maturation of his talent and he will be. *** ½
(less)

like 1 like · see review

Apr 08, 2011 Tricia rated it 3 of 5 stars

The Dead Path
By: Stephen M. Irwin

This is a debut novel by Stephen M. Irwin, from Australia, released in the USA. The Darkening is the UK title released in 2009.

After the death of his wife, Nicholas Close sees dead people reliving their demise over and over till he looks away. Shortly thereafter, Nicholas moves home to Brisbane for comfort but finds memories of places and people to be unsettling. Even more biting, the recent abduction of a child brings painful memories of his childhood friend....more

like 1 like · see review

Apr 03, 2011 Lyssa rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like 1 like · see review

Feb 16, 2011 Tyson Adams rated it 3 of 5 stars

I picked this book up quite by chance. Basically I was in the local library and thought the cover looked interesting. I wasn't to know that this book had been nominated as the best Horror book of the year, nor that it was an Aussie book. Pretty good for a debut novel.

So why 3.5 stars for a "best horror nominated" book? Well, in the first half of the book I kept questioning whether I would bother to finish the book. There was nothing wrong with it, but I found it exposition heavy (not in the good...more

like · see review

Jan 19, 2011 Danielle rated it 3 of 5 stars

This well-paced and spider-licious tale is the sort of horror story that sent me scrabbling for the library catalogue to request anything else by the author - only to find that it's a debut novel! It sure reads like something written by someone with a few more novels under his belt.
First and foremost, I liked the characters, my litmus test for horror. If you don't like the characters, who's going to care if they get dragged off into the dark, dark woods? I was even tempted to skip to the end to...more

like 1 like · see review

Jan 14, 2011 fleegan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: thrillers

This book was so good and creepy. The cover got my attention (what with the dead bird with it’s legs cut off? and then shoved in the hole where the head should be? what?) and from the first page I was hooked. I guess it’s a supernatural thriller. The main charater, Nicholas can see images of dead people. This in itself is not so thrilling, but when he gets back to his childhood home in Australia is where the thrills hit the fan.

It was part fairy tale and part early Stephen King nightmare. No kid...more

like · see review

Jan 01, 2011 Yolanda Sfetsos rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror

This is one spooky book by Aussie author, Stephen M. Irwin. A story that chilled me to the bone and made me squirm in my seat with its vivid imagery, and often disturbing scenes. I was hooked from the beginning.

When Nicholas loses his wife after a freak accident, he blames himself and decides to leave London. He just can't handle seeing ghosts caught in their deathly cycles in London anymore. So, he returns to Australia, to the place where he grew up. The same place where a whole lot of horrible...more

like · see review

Dec 09, 2010 Monster added it

Shelves: ghosts-adult

Nicholas Close is still recovering from the unexpected death of his beloved wife. Since her passing he’s had the gift of seeing the undead, reenacting the last moments of their tragic deaths. Seeking comfort, he heads to his childhood home of Tallong, Australia. Instead, he’s forced to witness the death of his childhood friend over and over again- a death that should have been his own. He also sees spirits of several other children around the same age. Looking back through the town’s history Nic...more

like · see review

Aug 06, 2012 Donna rated it 4 of 5 stars

This one will go to my DNF shelf. Not because I didn't like it. Let me give you a bit of info about myself. I am an extreme arachnaphobe. I mean, twisted string on the carpet scares me... Can't go out on the porch at or after dusk. Can't walk out in the grass. If a spider crawled on me, it wouldn't have to be poisonous to kill me - cardiac arrest would do the job! So, with that said, I started this book. Got several chapters under my belt, then read a few more reviews. Now, I suffered through Fr...more

like · see review

May 06, 2011 Beth666ann rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

like 1 like · see review

Apr 15, 2012 Zane rated it 3 of 5 stars

Confession: upon conclusion of this book, I took in hand a rolled-up TV Guide and proceeded to kill three daddy-longlegs sitting idly on the ceiling of my room, a further four innocuous spiders in various locations both inside and outside the lower level of my house, and a poor moth who was unfortunate enough to cross my path during this rampage. If I wasn't arachnophobic before reading this book -- (by rule, I hate all the unpleasant species beginning with S: snakes, sharks, and spiders) but wa...more Confession: upon conclusion of this book, I took in hand a rolled-up TV Guide and proceeded to kill three daddy-longlegs sitting idly on the ceiling of my room, a further four innocuous spiders in various locations both inside and outside the lower level of my house, and a poor moth who was unfortunate enough to cross my path during this rampage. If I wasn't arachnophobic before reading this book -- (by rule, I hate all the unpleasant species beginning with S: snakes, sharks, and spiders) but wasn't what you would properly call 'phobic' of them -- then I certainly will be for the next 24-48 hours. Make no mistake: this book is creepy...but in a strangely satisfying way, like listening to PJ Harvey's 'White Chalk' on a sunny day, feeling a tingle up your spine, but still marvelling at the woman's talent. Or watching 'Cloverfield' multiple times until you sneer instead of jump with fright at the abrupt appearances of the crab-spiderlike aliens. This Irwin novel was so much more satisfying for me to read than his other work, "The Broken Ones". "The Dead Path" has appropriate levels of nostalgia and flashback, a sordid, tense, well-executed plot, believable characters, meticulously-detailed descriptions and imagery, and an extravagantly-malevolent villain at the novel's heart. It is in no way any less dark than "The Broken Ones" -- dealing with juvenile abductions, colonial hardships, convictions, domestic violence, adultery, rape, death, suicide, religion and deities, very peculiarly-behaving arachnids, and 6+ child murders spread over the course of 150 years. It also weaves notions of fate and premonition, sixth sense, and the occult very well onto the backdrop of what is once again a seemingly ordinary, innocent (albeit fictitious) Brisbane suburb: Tallong.
Widower Nicholas Close has always been labelled a 'highly sensitive' and 'easily affected' individual by his Aussie-battler mother, Katharine, throughout his adolescence and into adulthood. Nicholas is left guilt-ridden and questioning his own sanity following the death of his British wife that he feels responsible for. Subsequent ghostly viewings of his wife's death, and others long past, prompt him to return to Australia to try and escape these apparitions. However, not only do these ghost sightings continue, but Nicholas's return is accompanied by unfortunate happenstance, long-buried suspicions and fears. Nicholas's near-abduction at the Tallong woods as a child that resulted in the death of his best friend Tristam, is repeated in very similar circumstances. Suspicious, Nicholas and his sister Suzette -- who is no stranger to dabblings in the occult herself -- begin to search for answers. While Nicholas's sixth sense talents become more and more developed, mother Katharine battles with her own demons concerning the death of Suzette and Nicholas's father, and her own misgivings about her seemingly 'cursed' son. And, defying developers, industry -- urban progress itself -- the Tallong woods strangely remain as unchanged, and unfriendly as ever...
(N.B. John Marsden's "Winter" meets J.C. Burke's "Red Cardigan", with the brutality of Steig Larsson's 'Millennium Trilogy' and some offhand Greek mythology. ARACHNOPHOBES, YE BE WARNED!)

ZORDRAC.(less)

like · see review

Nov 02, 2010 E.J. Stevens rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010, fantasy, fiction, horror, paranormal, read-in-2010, supernatural, supernatural-horror, haunting, speculative-fiction, ghosts, dark-fantasy, magic, mystery, paranormal-suspense, urban-fantasy

Intelligently written paranormal suspense. The Dead Path is a haunting tale of tragedy, loss and all consuming evil. Filled with deftly written prose that will march you steadily along the path of madness into a world of horror that is at once believable and terrifying. Irwin's imagery is vivid and visceral. This is an author not afraid to thrust the reader into a living nightmare. Nicholas Close is a realistic character facing the guilt and sorrow of his wife's recent death, the terror of his n...more

like 5 likes · see review

Dec 28, 2012 Clashton rated it 3 of 5 stars

There was much about this book I liked and some I did not. There was a nice creepy atmosphere throughout most of it, and for the most part it was very well done.

There are some great, very evocative descriptions, really atmospheric and very creepy.

However, for me the ending did not entirely live up to the suspense built up in the early part of the book. The ending seemed to me to be partly written with an eye to being a possible future film.

Another drawback for me was that it went on a little to...more

like · see review

Jun 23, 2012 Kathy Jackson rated it 4 of 5 stars

I would love to give credit to whomever recommended this book to me but I honestly can't remember who it was. I hate when that happens - feel free to remind me because I am grateful you did.

The book started off a bit slow to me - it seemed as if it took quite a while for Nicholas to get to his hometown and the woods where it all begins and ends. A recent widower, Nicholas is both depressed and disinterested in life until the first child goes missing in the same way his best friend had decades be...more I would love to give credit to whomever recommended this book to me but I honestly can't remember who it was. I hate when that happens - feel free to remind me because I am grateful you did.

The book started off a bit slow to me - it seemed as if it took quite a while for Nicholas to get to his hometown and the woods where it all begins and ends. A recent widower, Nicholas is both depressed and disinterested in life until the first child goes missing in the same way his best friend had decades before. As Nicholas tries to unravel the mysteries around the woods, he finds himself drawn into a sinister web as old as time itself.

Irwin pulls you in so subtly that it isn't almost to the 50th page you realize you can't put the book down without knowing what happens next. Black magic, voodoo, witchery...Nicholas encounters it all. The use of spiders in the story gave me the willies. I am rather phobic about spiders so this story will, no doubt, be incorporated in bad dreams over the next few days. Irwin's writing style has the scenes jumping off the pages. Both disturbing and sinister, the book will keep you squirming in your seat - you might even gag a time or two before the end. I found myself swishing at invisible spiders crawling up my leg more than once - such vile little creatures.

I've read in other reviews that this is Aussie Stephen Irwin's debut novel and that it was in the running for the best horror book of the year. I'd like to know what book won for it is hard to imagine a spooky story more worthy. My only disappointment in the book was the ending - it did not go the way I had thought it would yet the ending did make a certain amount of sense. I'm not one who has to have happy endings and I'm not saying this wasn't one - but it wasn't the one I expected. Usually I can guess a book's ending pretty accurately but this one had a little twist I didn't see coming.

If you love spooky stories - ones where you swear you can feel spiders crawling down your spine - this is the book for you. I give the book an A!
(less)

like · see review

Oct 20, 2011 Julie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read2011

This is the perfect book for Halloween. Ghosts are everywhere as well as old black magic. It was really creepy and the cover even glowed in the dark so even if you weren't reading it was still creepy. I was intrigued by the characters and while some of the scenes were violent or sad that is what you expect when you read a scary book. I also liked that this book was set in Australia which is not a place I generally think of as a setting for a scary story. My only complaint is that I am not sure t...more

like · see review

Apr 05, 2013 Liz Wilkins rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

If you like a great Supernatural thriller then you are in for a treat with this book - its the first I've read from this author (I think it was his debut novel), I picked it up at my local bookshop, and I'm certainly going to look into reading his others. I have been remiss in my supernatural/horror reading lately - concentrating more on Urban Fantasy, Crime and YA stuff so determinedly picked this up from my to be read pile and dived in. The story grabs you straight away and its terrific for at...more

like · see review

Jun 18, 2011 Mfred rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror

Stephen M. Irwin’s The Dead Path is truly frightening, with some of the most distinctly scary imagery I have read in awhile. Imagine: Ghosts. Missing children. Serial killers. Witches. Evil forests filled with spiders and other unimaginable horrors.

Nicholas Close looses his wife in a horrible accident, only to find himself suddenly able to see the dead. He returns to his childhood home, hoping to escape the hordes of dead in London. Only, he quickly finds himself replaying the terrors of his ow...more

like · see review

Nov 25, 2010 Chibineko rated it 3 of 5 stars

There are some reviews that are comparing this guy to Stephen King. I don't think that's entirely a correct comparison. There are some similarities between this book & Stephen King's IT, but by large this guy reminded me more of Robert McCammon. (Trust me, that's a good comparison.)

Nicholas Close used to lead a somewhat charmed life. That all changed the day his wife died & he got into an accident that left him seeing ghosts. Not just any type of ghosts, but the images of people dying ov...more

like · see review

May 22, 2011 Ann Marie rated it 3 of 5 stars

I liked it...I picked it up not knowing anything about it...after reading the first ten pages or so I began to think I had made a mistake...it was way to wordy for me...but then the actual story took place and I began to think it interesting...then about half way thru I was like - - the author did not just write that - - I was about to put it down for good when I thought about all the days I had spent reading it...continuing I found myself satisfied when finished...the days spent were not wasted...more

like · see review

Feb 03, 2011 Amy Corwin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal, horror

Fascinating paranormal that is almost more of a mystery (which I love) than a straight horror or paranormal. And while it should probably be classed as horror, I would say that it is not excessively gory, which I really appreciated.

It gave a fascinating look at Australia (albeit a fake town) and various ancient legends. The writing is evocative and characters very, very real. The hero has lost his wife and is crushed by guilt as he feels it is his fault. He called her and she slipped from a ladd...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 82 83 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend it | Stats | Recent status updates

combine
Other Editions (12)

More editions...

Genres

Horror

105 users

Fantasy

13 users

Paranormal > Ghosts

11 users

Mystery

10 users

Thriller

9 users

Fantasy > Paranormal

8 users

Fantasy > Supernatural

6 users

Cultural > Australia

5 users

Adult Fiction

4 users

Fantasy > Magic

4 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

Floating Staircase
by Ronald Malfi
Manchester House
by Donald Allen Kirch
Haunted Legends
by Ellen Datlow (Editor)
The Unseen
by Alexandra Sokoloff
Audrey's Door
by Sarah Langan

About Stephen M. Irwin

Stephen has a background in film and documentary production, and continues to develop stories and screenplays for film and television producers. Stephen's short films and short stories have won awards and competitions around the world. He is the author of thrillers The Dead Path and The Broken Ones. He lives in Brisbane with his wife, two young children, and black cat. He regularly checks his d...more

More about Stephen M. Irwin...

Books by Stephen M. Irwin

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About The Dead Path

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from The Dead Path

“Tears sprang from her eyes and she bit her lip to stop herself from howling at the bright pain.” — 7 people liked it

“Laine slowly rolled out of bed. The queen size was one of the few new things in the house. But now, even the new bed felt tainted. It was an inner-spring monument to lies, a petri dish of mendacity she had shared with her faithless husband, and shared now with creeping dreams that flew from the light but left harsh scratches and diseased black feathers. Laine promised herself that, as soon as, she could, she would rid herself of this house, this bed, her clothes, her jewelry - everything but the flesh she lived in. She would scrub herself clean and flee to start a new life whose first and only commandment would be: Never let thyself be lied to again.” — 6 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: The Dead Path
avg rating	preview: The Dead Path Goodreads rating: 3.73 (805 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8362315-the-dead-path?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320454898l/8362315.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8362315-the-dead-path?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Dead Path by Stephen M. Irwin[/url]

The Dead Path

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website