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Night Things
When Lauren Ransom and her young son spend a summer in an Adirondacks mansion, small signs point to an eeriness about the dwelling and soon find themselves the victims of an unspeakable horror
274 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 1988
31 people are currently reading
1105 people want to read
About the author
Michael Talbot
52 books300 followersMichael Talbot was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1953. As a young man, he moved to New York City, where he pursued a career as a freelance writer, publishing articles in Omni, The Village Voice, and others, often exploring the confluence between science and the spiritual.
Talbot published his first novel, The Delicate Dependency: A Novel of the Vampire Life as an Avon paperback original in 1982; though never reprinted, it is regarded a classic of the genre, frequently appearing on lists of the best vampire novels ever written, and secondhand copies have long been expensive and hard to find. His other horror titles, both cult classics, are The Bog (1986) and Night Things (1988).
But despite the popularity of his fiction among horror fans, it was for his nonfiction that Talbot was best known, much of it focusing on new age concepts, mysticism, and the paranormal. Arguably his most famous and most significant is The Holographic Universe (1991), which examines the increasingly accepted theory that the entire universe is a hologram; the book remains in print and highly discussed today.
Michael Talbot died of leukemia in 1992 at age 38.
Talbot published his first novel, The Delicate Dependency: A Novel of the Vampire Life as an Avon paperback original in 1982; though never reprinted, it is regarded a classic of the genre, frequently appearing on lists of the best vampire novels ever written, and secondhand copies have long been expensive and hard to find. His other horror titles, both cult classics, are The Bog (1986) and Night Things (1988).
But despite the popularity of his fiction among horror fans, it was for his nonfiction that Talbot was best known, much of it focusing on new age concepts, mysticism, and the paranormal. Arguably his most famous and most significant is The Holographic Universe (1991), which examines the increasingly accepted theory that the entire universe is a hologram; the book remains in print and highly discussed today.
Michael Talbot died of leukemia in 1992 at age 38.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
June 26, 2015
a nerdy 12-year-old and his parents move into a bizarre mansion in the Adirondacks. he makes a new friend: a shadowy darkness in the shape of a man. unpleasant adventures ensue. key phrase: honey trap - except the bait is not a lovely lass or strapping lad, it is the house itself. but who is this trap for exactly?
stories about strange houses are the best! really I think they are my favorite sort of horror novel (or gothic novel. or, in the case of Bellefleur, literary novel). I should make a shelf for them. these tales seem to come in two basic formats: bad house with a bad history is haunted or bad house with a bad history is a gateway to somewhere. Michael Talbot decided not to skimp and just chose both options, and he throws in a fog-shrouded lake and an unsettling forest to boot. really, it's an embarrassment of creepy riches. he does all the usual things such as slowly exploring the house's weird rooms and hallways, just as slowly revealing the house's history of horror, having one of the family crack under the pressure (but not for long; I appreciated how quickly she bounced back), and of course having unsettling visitors turn up to menace the residents.
I was very happy to see Talbot give a completely logical reason for the family to stay in a house where bad things are happening - too often that is just skirted over or even ignored.
favorite bit of eeriness: mother and son realizing that it takes less steps to walk the length of the house when they are outside than walking the same distance while they are inside.
Talbot is a pretty solid writer. I may have appreciated the novel a bit more if the prose were more sophisticated or even more mannered, but Talbot's straightforward style in this book is perfectly fitting. prior to this novel, he was a complete unknown to me. thanks to the phenomenal Valancourt Books and their amazing catalog, I took a stroll through his list of books and this one caught my eye first. I definitely plan on reading more by him.
I would be remiss if I didn't say that if you are a fan of that distinct subset known as 80's horror fiction then this book is one that fits comfortably within that subgenre. although it is fairly restrained in comparison to some of the more showy examples from that era, it definitely has that style by the end of the book, which includes a lunatic conducting his first home invasion, a sinister immortal, a gateway to another dimension, a magical battle, and an attack by demonic locusts wearing little suits of armor (and how adorable is that). the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach is so 80's and Talbot doesn't skimp when it comes to his climax. speaking of so 80's, check out the author:
classic 80's-style hunk. yowza?
stories about strange houses are the best! really I think they are my favorite sort of horror novel (or gothic novel. or, in the case of Bellefleur, literary novel). I should make a shelf for them. these tales seem to come in two basic formats: bad house with a bad history is haunted or bad house with a bad history is a gateway to somewhere. Michael Talbot decided not to skimp and just chose both options, and he throws in a fog-shrouded lake and an unsettling forest to boot. really, it's an embarrassment of creepy riches. he does all the usual things such as slowly exploring the house's weird rooms and hallways, just as slowly revealing the house's history of horror, having one of the family crack under the pressure (but not for long; I appreciated how quickly she bounced back), and of course having unsettling visitors turn up to menace the residents.
I was very happy to see Talbot give a completely logical reason for the family to stay in a house where bad things are happening - too often that is just skirted over or even ignored.
favorite bit of eeriness: mother and son realizing that it takes less steps to walk the length of the house when they are outside than walking the same distance while they are inside.
Talbot is a pretty solid writer. I may have appreciated the novel a bit more if the prose were more sophisticated or even more mannered, but Talbot's straightforward style in this book is perfectly fitting. prior to this novel, he was a complete unknown to me. thanks to the phenomenal Valancourt Books and their amazing catalog, I took a stroll through his list of books and this one caught my eye first. I definitely plan on reading more by him.
I would be remiss if I didn't say that if you are a fan of that distinct subset known as 80's horror fiction then this book is one that fits comfortably within that subgenre. although it is fairly restrained in comparison to some of the more showy examples from that era, it definitely has that style by the end of the book, which includes a lunatic conducting his first home invasion, a sinister immortal, a gateway to another dimension, a magical battle, and an attack by demonic locusts wearing little suits of armor (and how adorable is that). the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach is so 80's and Talbot doesn't skimp when it comes to his climax. speaking of so 80's, check out the author:
classic 80's-style hunk. yowza?
February 6, 2015
Lake House is like some dark amalgamation of the Winchester House and Hill House. The angles are all off, there seems to be more room on the inside than the outside indicates, and Lake House has its own dark history. Unfortunately, most of the family staying over the summer are not aware of it.
I won't delve into the story description too much, since the synopsis already does that. I will say that I thought this was an extremely well written, fast paced story. It doesn't have the literary impact of say, Hill House, but it does indeed have an impact.
I loved the 2-3 story lines going on because they always left the me guessing. The character interactions between the wife and her new husband were kind of cliche, but I didn't mind that so much because the narrative only stayed with them briefly and then quickly moved on to the mysteries within Lake House. There were a few of them, and they were out of this world.
For me, it's rare that the ending of a haunted house story delivers. Usually the endings are sort of hokey and they're mostly the reason I don't read many HH tales these days. This book was a delight, well written and well paced, surprising and just plain fun.
Highly recommended to fans of literary horror fiction and haunted houses!
*I received a free copy of this book from Valancourt Books in exchange for an honest review. This is it.*
I won't delve into the story description too much, since the synopsis already does that. I will say that I thought this was an extremely well written, fast paced story. It doesn't have the literary impact of say, Hill House, but it does indeed have an impact.
I loved the 2-3 story lines going on because they always left the me guessing. The character interactions between the wife and her new husband were kind of cliche, but I didn't mind that so much because the narrative only stayed with them briefly and then quickly moved on to the mysteries within Lake House. There were a few of them, and they were out of this world.
For me, it's rare that the ending of a haunted house story delivers. Usually the endings are sort of hokey and they're mostly the reason I don't read many HH tales these days. This book was a delight, well written and well paced, surprising and just plain fun.
Highly recommended to fans of literary horror fiction and haunted houses!
*I received a free copy of this book from Valancourt Books in exchange for an honest review. This is it.*
January 20, 2015
This book had quite a different feel than most horror that I've read. The prose was clean and clear, with simultaneous childlike simplicity and literary sophistication - hard to explain.
With only a few restrained sexual references and limited violence contained within its pages, I think this could easily be a book early teens would enjoy.
The author was quite adept at skipping around various characters POVs in third person omniscient. The only confusion I experienced was at the beginning at the third and final section, where I confused a new character with an established one for several pages.
I'll not rehash the plot as it's covered in other reviews. Suffice it to say that I found this a pleasure and a breath of fresh air, even if the resolution (and the somewhat silly epilogue) leave a bit to be desired.
If you're looking for a paranormal book that is more clean and innocent than the average fare, this might fit the bill.
I look forward to reading other works by this author.
With only a few restrained sexual references and limited violence contained within its pages, I think this could easily be a book early teens would enjoy.
The author was quite adept at skipping around various characters POVs in third person omniscient. The only confusion I experienced was at the beginning at the third and final section, where I confused a new character with an established one for several pages.
I'll not rehash the plot as it's covered in other reviews. Suffice it to say that I found this a pleasure and a breath of fresh air, even if the resolution (and the somewhat silly epilogue) leave a bit to be desired.
If you're looking for a paranormal book that is more clean and innocent than the average fare, this might fit the bill.
I look forward to reading other works by this author.
February 16, 2018
NIGHT THINGS, by Michael Talbot, is a "haunted house" book that in some parts reminded me of Shirley Jackson's THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE, but without the evocative prose. That isn't to say that this wasn't a good story in its own right, it just wasn't "as" potent in building that subtle sense of unease throughout.
Lake House, itself, has a sordid reputation. With its odd architectural design, stairs that lead nowhere, and odd-demensioned rooms, this particular house is a character in its own right. The scenes with the house as center-focus were amazing in their atmospheric pull! There was so much potential in this one, that I think I let the back story of Laura and her son pull me out of the main theme too often. My real issue was not in the writing style or the house, but in the fact that I just never got over the fact that this woman married a famous musician suddenly, and expected things to go over well as a family, when she had an eleven year-old son that he couldn't stand.
So perhaps this was more of "I focused on the wrong things" readings, than an accurate coverage of the theme presented. As far as the writing, it was fast-paced enough to keep the flow going, and once past the first half of the book, I really began to get more "into" the story and possible theories centering around the house. Talbot did some great work in showing us the oddities in some of the rooms, as well as keeping the main purpose hidden for the majority of the tale--this really helped boost the anticipation of the climax. The ending was much better than I was expecting, and overall, I feel the idea behind this was done in a "unique" way.
Again, my only real criticism was in the cliched arrangement of main characters, and the situation that brought them together was just not "believable" to me. Otherwise, a solid novel with some good, literary writing.
Lake House, itself, has a sordid reputation. With its odd architectural design, stairs that lead nowhere, and odd-demensioned rooms, this particular house is a character in its own right. The scenes with the house as center-focus were amazing in their atmospheric pull! There was so much potential in this one, that I think I let the back story of Laura and her son pull me out of the main theme too often. My real issue was not in the writing style or the house, but in the fact that I just never got over the fact that this woman married a famous musician suddenly, and expected things to go over well as a family, when she had an eleven year-old son that he couldn't stand.
So perhaps this was more of "I focused on the wrong things" readings, than an accurate coverage of the theme presented. As far as the writing, it was fast-paced enough to keep the flow going, and once past the first half of the book, I really began to get more "into" the story and possible theories centering around the house. Talbot did some great work in showing us the oddities in some of the rooms, as well as keeping the main purpose hidden for the majority of the tale--this really helped boost the anticipation of the climax. The ending was much better than I was expecting, and overall, I feel the idea behind this was done in a "unique" way.
Again, my only real criticism was in the cliched arrangement of main characters, and the situation that brought them together was just not "believable" to me. Otherwise, a solid novel with some good, literary writing.
February 5, 2015
Mixing the mad geometry of Winchester House with the madder mythologies of the pre-biblical Lost Book of Enoch, Talbot creates a fast paced, creepy haunted house tale that is a prime example of the best of 80s style weirdness.
July 10, 2017
A real classic with reference to Lovecraft! I love the story around Lakehouse and its role to keep the evil out. Fantastic showdown in the end. What a mysterious character of June. This pageturner is an absolute recommendation who's in for a thrilling horror story!
September 13, 2017
The best thing about this one was the narration by Eric Bryan Moore who nailed the pacing ad tone of the story. The premise itself was not completely unfortunate, it just did not really work for me. It felt like a Goosebumps tale and skirted around the more interesting concepts of the story and never realized them as I would have liked. Ended up as a just ok story with above average narration.
November 18, 2023
I really like Talbot's writing style and his pacing, but with this and The Bog, I am less enchanted with his plots. Night Things started out as a rather tropey haunted house story. Recently married Lauren and Stephen, along with Lauren's 11 year old son Garrett, drive out to a huge mansion in the Adirondacks which Stephen rented for the summer. Stephen, a pop music star, swept Lauren off her feet just a few months ago and they are still in their honeymoon period.
The house is magnificent, built in the 19th century, but has a rather sinister past to be sure, involving lots of murders and so forth. The original owner created a trust to maintain it in all its glory and also rents it out to rich people just like Stephen. Right off the bat they deduce the house is more than a little strange and little Garrett gets visited by a ghost or something his first night there. Further, Lauren keeps getting a feeling that someone is watching her, and one evening seems to see a human figure with glowing eyes in the yard.
I like a good haunted house story, but Talbot wanted to make this something epic. There are spoilers below, so be warned!
Just like his The Bog, Talbot goes all cosmic on this one, with the house being key in the ultimate struggle between good and evil. While 'good' triumphed in the past and banished the evil, the evil keeps trying to get free and do, you know, evil things. Here, the 'ghost' Garrett sees is really a 'watcher', e.g., a 'fallen angel', who is either good or evil, but in any case seems to go with the house. The first 2/3s of the novel keeps firmly within a haunted house trope, but the rest is straight out cosmic good versus evil, with part two being deemed 'the master', where we are introduced to the evil one. I was never that much on board with the entire good versus evil motif and cosmic showdowns and such, but that seems to be Talbot's bag. If you dig that type of stuff, you will probably really like this. Finally, the wishy washy characters also dragged this down a bit. Lauren, who has been burned more than once in relationships, somehow believes Stephen is not like the rest; when she finds out he is an asshole, she is too surprised. Garrett was probably the best character and he is only 11. I will give Talbot another go, however. This could have been great, but alas, not for me. 3 spooky stars.
The house is magnificent, built in the 19th century, but has a rather sinister past to be sure, involving lots of murders and so forth. The original owner created a trust to maintain it in all its glory and also rents it out to rich people just like Stephen. Right off the bat they deduce the house is more than a little strange and little Garrett gets visited by a ghost or something his first night there. Further, Lauren keeps getting a feeling that someone is watching her, and one evening seems to see a human figure with glowing eyes in the yard.
I like a good haunted house story, but Talbot wanted to make this something epic. There are spoilers below, so be warned!
Just like his The Bog, Talbot goes all cosmic on this one, with the house being key in the ultimate struggle between good and evil. While 'good' triumphed in the past and banished the evil, the evil keeps trying to get free and do, you know, evil things. Here, the 'ghost' Garrett sees is really a 'watcher', e.g., a 'fallen angel', who is either good or evil, but in any case seems to go with the house. The first 2/3s of the novel keeps firmly within a haunted house trope, but the rest is straight out cosmic good versus evil, with part two being deemed 'the master', where we are introduced to the evil one. I was never that much on board with the entire good versus evil motif and cosmic showdowns and such, but that seems to be Talbot's bag. If you dig that type of stuff, you will probably really like this. Finally, the wishy washy characters also dragged this down a bit. Lauren, who has been burned more than once in relationships, somehow believes Stephen is not like the rest; when she finds out he is an asshole, she is too surprised. Garrett was probably the best character and he is only 11. I will give Talbot another go, however. This could have been great, but alas, not for me. 3 spooky stars.
April 27, 2021
Night Things by Michael Talbot. . .
To be fair, the IDEA for this story is really good. A loving nod to the Winchester house that traps evil. Ok, that sounds good and works. However, where this book bombed so hard for me was the characters. OMG the characters.
Steven Ransom- a pop star millionaire. How old is this guy? He is the worst ever but apparently...
https://youtu.be/NuKn03caD70
Lauren Ransom- newly weds but OH NO!! She has a kid! Off to military school for him!
Garrett- the kid. The only smart one in the whole damn book.
We also have a wizard that wants to unlock the secrets of Lake House but he doesn't know how so he's going through ever spell he knows until one works. I am not kidding.
I like Michael Talbot. I liked The Bog and The Delicate Dependency: A Novel of the Vampire Life but this one was awful.
To be fair, the IDEA for this story is really good. A loving nod to the Winchester house that traps evil. Ok, that sounds good and works. However, where this book bombed so hard for me was the characters. OMG the characters.
Steven Ransom- a pop star millionaire. How old is this guy? He is the worst ever but apparently...
https://youtu.be/NuKn03caD70
Lauren Ransom- newly weds but OH NO!! She has a kid! Off to military school for him!
Garrett- the kid. The only smart one in the whole damn book.
We also have a wizard that wants to unlock the secrets of Lake House but he doesn't know how so he's going through ever spell he knows until one works. I am not kidding.
I like Michael Talbot. I liked The Bog and The Delicate Dependency: A Novel of the Vampire Life but this one was awful.
March 8, 2018
This had some great creepy house atmosphere. I did become invested in our characters Lauren and her son Garrett. I was quite irritated with Lauren in the beginning, but she came to her senses by the end of the novel and I am good with that. She actually became very brave, kudos Lauren. I felt bad for Garrett and not sure if I completely buy his relationship with the house. But I got over it. I did appreciate the ending and am glad that Rocker Ransom came to his own terms with the house. I am sure I would have really loved this when I was like 15-25. The older me rolled her eyes a few times and might have added some of her own groans to the houses creepy noises. It is really a decent little story and if you are fond of creepy, Gothic, house stories, this should be considered for your reading pleasure. The young me would have given this 4-5 stars. So in deference to her I choose 4, but the older me gives it more of a 2-3 star. Sometimes, being older and wiser takes away all the fun...
February 22, 2018
Lauren Montgomery, her son Garrett and her "I love myself so much" rock star husband Stephen Ransom have rented a large palatial mansion in the Adirondacks in North Eastern New York. It soon becomes apparent that something terrible is going to happen in "Lake House" which has a reputation for murder and bloodshed. Garrett becomes attuned to the sounds and ghostly apparitions that frequent the house, Lauren becomes more and more concerned about the welfare of herself and her son, and the lovely Stephen with "his mane of dark ringlets" portrays a misogynistic attitude towards women only ever really concerned for his own selfish wellbeing...."we're playing in the big leagues here. You got to do it to them before they do it to you."......
Some beautifully strong characters make Night Things a joy to read and in particular I was drawn to the evil and aptly named Elton Fugate who has some very strange habits as young Garret learns when he observes him from a secret location....."For it was not a space being, or even something living, that Fugate was choking, but some sort of grotesque doll, or manikin of a woman....it was completely rigid and appeared to be constructed out of vinyl and inflated like a beach ball. It was also naked and possessed a frowsy and garishly made-up face and had scruffy patches of lurid yellow hair on both its head and its pubic area."..... Lake House is a place where evil is enticed in and soon it will become the focus of a battle between what is good and what is bad...."There were things that were evil in the universe, unfathomably evil. And there were things that were good".... The final Epilogue is like a story within a story, where Stephen will come to regret giving a lift to a rather petite blond woman called June with...."her sagging, middle-aged body gleaming in the moonlight"...and her friend Arnie.
Many thanks to the good people at Valancourt Books for sending me a gratis copy in exchange for an honest review and that is what I have written. The wonderful Valancourt Books are an independent small press who specialize in the rediscovery of rare, neglected and out of print fiction.
Some beautifully strong characters make Night Things a joy to read and in particular I was drawn to the evil and aptly named Elton Fugate who has some very strange habits as young Garret learns when he observes him from a secret location....."For it was not a space being, or even something living, that Fugate was choking, but some sort of grotesque doll, or manikin of a woman....it was completely rigid and appeared to be constructed out of vinyl and inflated like a beach ball. It was also naked and possessed a frowsy and garishly made-up face and had scruffy patches of lurid yellow hair on both its head and its pubic area."..... Lake House is a place where evil is enticed in and soon it will become the focus of a battle between what is good and what is bad...."There were things that were evil in the universe, unfathomably evil. And there were things that were good".... The final Epilogue is like a story within a story, where Stephen will come to regret giving a lift to a rather petite blond woman called June with...."her sagging, middle-aged body gleaming in the moonlight"...and her friend Arnie.
Many thanks to the good people at Valancourt Books for sending me a gratis copy in exchange for an honest review and that is what I have written. The wonderful Valancourt Books are an independent small press who specialize in the rediscovery of rare, neglected and out of print fiction.
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March 29, 2017I just can't help myself -- I seriously cannot resist a good haunted house story. I have no clue why, it just is what it is. Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House is at the top of my list, followed by Nazareth Hill by Ramsey Campbell, with many, many more books lining up after these two. For me, it's all about the atmosphere, the creepiness, and the surprises that the characters discover inside, all of which are part and parcel of Night Things, which has the added bonus of an eerie, bizarre mystery at its very core.
The mystery behind this strange house is slowly revealed around the story of the dynamic of a strained family relationship, as Lauren Montgomery finds herself caught in the middle between her new husband and her son. It's a good book and it had me going right up until the last section when this family tension causes new husband Stephen Ransom to take off, leaving Lauren and her son Garrett behind. With no car and the two stuck in the middle of nowhere, Talbot had a great opportunity here but in my opinion sort of missed it with how he ends the novel, which I won't disclose. Let's just say that I get it and the mystery of the house is solved to my great satisfaction, but I felt that rather than making the final reveal a bit more in keeping with the creepy atmosphere and the ratcheting suspense up to this point, Talbot's final section was more of a standard '80s horror fare ending. And before you say "well duh - it was written in the '80s, what do you expect?" what I'm trying to say here is that having read his Delicate Dependency, I think Talbot was capable of much more than he gave me here. Still, I can't complain, since in any book it's all about the journey for me, and it was a really good one all along the way and I had a LOT of fun with it. I'd certainly recommend it to other fans of haunted house stories and to people like me who enjoy their horror on the tamer, less bloodcurdling side.
http://www.oddlyweirdfiction.com/2017...
The mystery behind this strange house is slowly revealed around the story of the dynamic of a strained family relationship, as Lauren Montgomery finds herself caught in the middle between her new husband and her son. It's a good book and it had me going right up until the last section when this family tension causes new husband Stephen Ransom to take off, leaving Lauren and her son Garrett behind. With no car and the two stuck in the middle of nowhere, Talbot had a great opportunity here but in my opinion sort of missed it with how he ends the novel, which I won't disclose. Let's just say that I get it and the mystery of the house is solved to my great satisfaction, but I felt that rather than making the final reveal a bit more in keeping with the creepy atmosphere and the ratcheting suspense up to this point, Talbot's final section was more of a standard '80s horror fare ending. And before you say "well duh - it was written in the '80s, what do you expect?" what I'm trying to say here is that having read his Delicate Dependency, I think Talbot was capable of much more than he gave me here. Still, I can't complain, since in any book it's all about the journey for me, and it was a really good one all along the way and I had a LOT of fun with it. I'd certainly recommend it to other fans of haunted house stories and to people like me who enjoy their horror on the tamer, less bloodcurdling side.
http://www.oddlyweirdfiction.com/2017...
June 24, 2021
A fun enough read but just so, so stupid. Criminally stupid. Once they introduce magic and dimensional portals into the haunted house story my brain goes into fight or flight. It’s so easy to just leave a scary story ambiguous and creepy and unexplainable but every author just has to be like “ok SO there are interdimensional angels and demons engaged into a centuries long battle between light and darkness and now they’re fighting with energy swords and fireballs” and I could not be less interested in your weird Dungeons and Dragons fan fic explanations for why scary things are happening. Why can’t anybody on planet earth write better horror novels than Stephen King!!! He’s not even good at it himself!! Ok Joey out, if you have any recommendations for actual scary books leave them in the comments section below thank you
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 12, 2019
Great Idea, Clumsy Execution
This novel is a kind of spiritual ancestor to "House of Leaves," about a old dwelling bigger on the inside than on the outside. The main themes concern trust and faith, and the labyrinthine journey to get to the truth of things. The author, Michael Talbot, had been very interested in the unseen reality behind appearances, and four years after publishing "Night Things," his speculative non-fiction work that postulates that the universe is a hologram appeared on shelves to blow the minds of crystal-carrying new age ex-hippies everywhere.
I appreciated the concepts and ideas behind this novel, and exploring the neverending halls and rooms of the old Great Adirondack Camp with the main characters sent a chilling joy through me as I read. For some odd reason, it's been a fantasy of mine to own a giant mansion all to myself with more rooms than I have time to explore, some rooms untouched for years and harboring forgotten secrets from previous generations.
But somehow the sense of awe that the vastness of the house should have evoked got lost in the narrative. The story seems to breeze by very quickly, though not because it is exciting or suspenseful. In fact, nothing much seems to happen in this novel, so I really am at a loss for why it felt so rushed. Just like the giant Lake House, the novel seems to distort space and time while reading it, but in reality it felt like whole chapters or sections were left out by some ambitious editing.
There is very little sense of threat in the novel either. There are three "scary" characters in the story, but when they act and speak, they sound like befuddled grumpy old men and don't seem to have their hearts set on doing anything really terrible to anyone. That's okay, since I am thankful to just read a spooky story without torture porn, rape, or gore for a change. But believe me, this book is TAME.
All in all, this was a pleasant little novel to read on rainy nights in your comfy slippers. But it had a lot of potential to be something much more and missed the mark somewhere in its development.
This novel is a kind of spiritual ancestor to "House of Leaves," about a old dwelling bigger on the inside than on the outside. The main themes concern trust and faith, and the labyrinthine journey to get to the truth of things. The author, Michael Talbot, had been very interested in the unseen reality behind appearances, and four years after publishing "Night Things," his speculative non-fiction work that postulates that the universe is a hologram appeared on shelves to blow the minds of crystal-carrying new age ex-hippies everywhere.
I appreciated the concepts and ideas behind this novel, and exploring the neverending halls and rooms of the old Great Adirondack Camp with the main characters sent a chilling joy through me as I read. For some odd reason, it's been a fantasy of mine to own a giant mansion all to myself with more rooms than I have time to explore, some rooms untouched for years and harboring forgotten secrets from previous generations.
But somehow the sense of awe that the vastness of the house should have evoked got lost in the narrative. The story seems to breeze by very quickly, though not because it is exciting or suspenseful. In fact, nothing much seems to happen in this novel, so I really am at a loss for why it felt so rushed. Just like the giant Lake House, the novel seems to distort space and time while reading it, but in reality it felt like whole chapters or sections were left out by some ambitious editing.
There is very little sense of threat in the novel either. There are three "scary" characters in the story, but when they act and speak, they sound like befuddled grumpy old men and don't seem to have their hearts set on doing anything really terrible to anyone. That's okay, since I am thankful to just read a spooky story without torture porn, rape, or gore for a change. But believe me, this book is TAME.
All in all, this was a pleasant little novel to read on rainy nights in your comfy slippers. But it had a lot of potential to be something much more and missed the mark somewhere in its development.
March 5, 2018
Engaging and well done. I will be reading more from the author.
March 16, 2023
3 stars--I liked the book. A really solid 80s horror novel--quick to read, solidly written, and unique. The house is wonderful (larger inside than out, containing holy/weird architecture) and the characters realistic. I enjoyed the supernatural elements (angels, demons, interdimensional portals) and man, just look at that 80s epic cover art!
May 29, 2021
Night Blood - Michael Talbot
"Someday you'll want to trust someone and someone you know is going to warn you not to, and you're going to find out - it isn't always easy to know what to do"
First of all, I bought this book entirely based on the cover. I love the vivid contrast of colours and the whirring ghostlike man picture. These covers definitely hold a cult following! Valancourt books are really giving us horror nerds the books we dream of. Talbots other books are certainly on my TBR pile after this one. Mysticism and how this reality is a hologram/portal to another one are seemingly explored throughout his other novels, Wiki tells me.
So, to the story itself. I really enjoyed the second half of this book. There's only 218 pages in the whole story, and despite it being broken up into three sections, the second half really felt segmented from the first. We meet Lauren Ransom, recently married to Stephen Ransom, a famous music star and producer. Lauren is the typical 'woman who needs a man but can never make it work' trope. Stephen is a dickhead who gaslights her at every chance. Lauren has a son, Garrett, from a previous relationship, and Michael Talbot can really write this kid. I liked Garrett more than any other character, and felt that Lauren and his relationship didn't need to rely on another shitty character to bring them together. Had Talbot fleshed out this book more, it could've been a longer novel with much more creepiness and haunted house vibes. There seems to be more of a story wanting to be told here but the author gets there super quickly. I loved the ending to this and commend Talbot for just going there.
The descriptions of the spooky house worked exceptionally well here and god knows I love a haunted house story. Once again, I kept looking at the cover like I would when I read Goosebumps as a kid and it really brings the story to life.
4 solid stars
"Someday you'll want to trust someone and someone you know is going to warn you not to, and you're going to find out - it isn't always easy to know what to do"
First of all, I bought this book entirely based on the cover. I love the vivid contrast of colours and the whirring ghostlike man picture. These covers definitely hold a cult following! Valancourt books are really giving us horror nerds the books we dream of. Talbots other books are certainly on my TBR pile after this one. Mysticism and how this reality is a hologram/portal to another one are seemingly explored throughout his other novels, Wiki tells me.
So, to the story itself. I really enjoyed the second half of this book. There's only 218 pages in the whole story, and despite it being broken up into three sections, the second half really felt segmented from the first. We meet Lauren Ransom, recently married to Stephen Ransom, a famous music star and producer. Lauren is the typical 'woman who needs a man but can never make it work' trope. Stephen is a dickhead who gaslights her at every chance. Lauren has a son, Garrett, from a previous relationship, and Michael Talbot can really write this kid. I liked Garrett more than any other character, and felt that Lauren and his relationship didn't need to rely on another shitty character to bring them together. Had Talbot fleshed out this book more, it could've been a longer novel with much more creepiness and haunted house vibes. There seems to be more of a story wanting to be told here but the author gets there super quickly. I loved the ending to this and commend Talbot for just going there.
The descriptions of the spooky house worked exceptionally well here and god knows I love a haunted house story. Once again, I kept looking at the cover like I would when I read Goosebumps as a kid and it really brings the story to life.
4 solid stars
June 23, 2017
Night Things is a perfect summer read. I loved Talbot's clinical, scientific prose. His characterization of Garret, the 11 year-old boy, was brilliant. Excellent prose, and the storyline and plot mechanisms represent vintage 80's horror in all the right ways. The exploration of the supernatural coupled with the real-life issues experienced by the characters, especially Garret, make for an irresistible, suspenseful haunted house/summer vacation read. Highly recommended to all.
February 25, 2023
To me, this had the feel of a young adult horror book. Kinda like Goosebumps or some such. Maybe a step above that. Very one-dimensional characters. The events were lack in any thrills and gave no real anticipation to what's to come. Even the synopsis on back was a little misleading.
The story was an easy one to plow through. It can be called a pot boiler or an uncomplicated read. Just wish it had a bit more meat on the bone.
The story was an easy one to plow through. It can be called a pot boiler or an uncomplicated read. Just wish it had a bit more meat on the bone.
January 14, 2016
This book may start out slow--though not boring; Talbot isn't capable of that--but where it takes you is incomprehensible and unable to be conjured up in your imagination. Plenty of creepy moments, too. Stay with it!
RIP Michael Talbot, who died in 1992 at 38. Leukemia.
RIP Michael Talbot, who died in 1992 at 38. Leukemia.
April 8, 2021
This is a very quick, deeply satisfying haunted house story that I'm very pleased to see Valancourt Books has republished. The story centers around three characters who take up residence in the innocuously named "lake house" as a summer getaway. The setup is perfect, given that the house is, of course, isolated in the Adirondacks, twenty miles from the closest outpost of civilization (a camp) and reliant on some very faulty generators, such that power may go out at any moment.
Into this setting come Lauren, a previously-married former reporter energized by her recent marriage to Stephen, a rockstar with great abs and very impressive sexual technique. Stephen is eager to get to know his new wife and, in the cutthroat music industry, stay on top of the charts. Lauren's 11-year-old son, Garrett, joining his mom and new dad at Lake House, provides a bit of a wrinkle: he's not sure that Stephen likes him or his completely nerdy interest in spiders, UFOs, and horror. And no one believes him when he reveals that a shadowy presence moves through the house at night.
I'm going to give away any more--if you're into horror, the Gothic, or even mystery, really, I think you'd enjoy this book. Written in 1988, it is masterful in the way that it fuses together the psychology of the characters, the occult and historic lore of the house, and things that are outright creepy. The epilogue is also lots of fun.
Read it!
Into this setting come Lauren, a previously-married former reporter energized by her recent marriage to Stephen, a rockstar with great abs and very impressive sexual technique. Stephen is eager to get to know his new wife and, in the cutthroat music industry, stay on top of the charts. Lauren's 11-year-old son, Garrett, joining his mom and new dad at Lake House, provides a bit of a wrinkle: he's not sure that Stephen likes him or his completely nerdy interest in spiders, UFOs, and horror. And no one believes him when he reveals that a shadowy presence moves through the house at night.
I'm going to give away any more--if you're into horror, the Gothic, or even mystery, really, I think you'd enjoy this book. Written in 1988, it is masterful in the way that it fuses together the psychology of the characters, the occult and historic lore of the house, and things that are outright creepy. The epilogue is also lots of fun.
Read it!
September 21, 2024
Daaaaamn. This book is near perfect. It transported me back to the absolute joy I had in my youth to read a fantastic thriller / mystery. Could not put it down and was sucked right in to this well-crafted story. Thank you to the lists of "best thriller / mysteries" that always included this book. Hope it's put back into publication because it's not easy to find but if you do find it, pick yourself up a copy.
April 12, 2022
4 Stars i liked this book Great Horror and Vampire book
August 14, 2023
Review to come.
Read
February 8, 2022This book is not GOOD, I mean I am in fact capable of telling a book's technical merit, and I wish Goodreads had a two-rating system, because on the merit scale this is firmly just pulp horror with a predictable premise and a hilarious asspull of an ending, but man do I love this kind of garbage. These are my tater chips.
May 8, 2022
If I wasn't such a curious cat, I definitely would have dnf'd this in the first few pages but my damn self wanted to know more about the house so there I went reading the whole book in the hopes that we'd get to know more about why and how the house was constructed.
To say I was disappointed would be an understatement because not only did we not get any details about hows and whys but also this Master character who was supposed to be scary powerful dude was nothing of the sort.
I was simply bored and had it not been for the house itself, I won't have stayed with the book until the end. I was sure I'd give it a star but the epilogue was kinda good so an extra star for that!
To say I was disappointed would be an understatement because not only did we not get any details about hows and whys but also this Master character who was supposed to be scary powerful dude was nothing of the sort.
I was simply bored and had it not been for the house itself, I won't have stayed with the book until the end. I was sure I'd give it a star but the epilogue was kinda good so an extra star for that!
September 21, 2023
You know what isn't scary? A wizard fight.
Unfortunately, Michael Talbot doesn't realize this. He spends the book building a decent atmosphere and manages to get a few creepy scenes into the mix. But then the third act drops the ball so hard it becomes laughable. All that hard work and it's all tossed out with the bathwater.
The characters in the book are quite frustrating. They are naive to the point of being silly. I laughed out loud when Lauren muses that a child could never think up shadows that looked like a person. Any parent knows children come up with some crazy, creepy stuff, yet Lauren can't believe it. Even though she knows her son is in love with books and movies about UFOs and other creepy things. Talbot wants us to believe that Lauren thinks her son is creative, but also too stupid to create.
The horror elements of the story are rather complicated. At points, they work fantastically and Talbot's prose really makes them pop. I certainly had a hard time putting the book down during certain moments, mostly when young Garrett interacts with his shadow creature. But many of the horror elements are very poorly handled and come across as silly, such as anything involving The Master or Fugate's house.
One of the more interesting, but under-explored, elements is Lake House itself. Lake House is a M.C. Escher painting of a building with lots of disorienting and mind-altering angles and designs. This could make for a really fun setting. However, Lake House is mostly hand-waved away. The characters go through a couple disorientating hallways, and a room that creaks when you step into it, but that's really it. Worse, yet, is that we don't even get a good chase scene through the house - the story sets up the possibility but never pays it off.
Which is probably the biggest problem Night Things suffers from. There's a lot of interesting ideas being thrown around, but they never really pay off. I kept reading because the elements are promising, but Talbot fails to live up to that promise and the novel falls flat because of it.
Unfortunately, Michael Talbot doesn't realize this. He spends the book building a decent atmosphere and manages to get a few creepy scenes into the mix. But then the third act drops the ball so hard it becomes laughable. All that hard work and it's all tossed out with the bathwater.
The characters in the book are quite frustrating. They are naive to the point of being silly. I laughed out loud when Lauren muses that a child could never think up shadows that looked like a person. Any parent knows children come up with some crazy, creepy stuff, yet Lauren can't believe it. Even though she knows her son is in love with books and movies about UFOs and other creepy things. Talbot wants us to believe that Lauren thinks her son is creative, but also too stupid to create.
The horror elements of the story are rather complicated. At points, they work fantastically and Talbot's prose really makes them pop. I certainly had a hard time putting the book down during certain moments, mostly when young Garrett interacts with his shadow creature. But many of the horror elements are very poorly handled and come across as silly, such as anything involving The Master or Fugate's house.
One of the more interesting, but under-explored, elements is Lake House itself. Lake House is a M.C. Escher painting of a building with lots of disorienting and mind-altering angles and designs. This could make for a really fun setting. However, Lake House is mostly hand-waved away. The characters go through a couple disorientating hallways, and a room that creaks when you step into it, but that's really it. Worse, yet, is that we don't even get a good chase scene through the house - the story sets up the possibility but never pays it off.
Which is probably the biggest problem Night Things suffers from. There's a lot of interesting ideas being thrown around, but they never really pay off. I kept reading because the elements are promising, but Talbot fails to live up to that promise and the novel falls flat because of it.
October 5, 2020
I found this on a list of '50 best horror novels' as part of my yearly Halloween observance, and I'm sorry to say it does not remotely merit inclusion.
My major complaints:
1) The two main characters are a charmingly weird 12-year old boy, and his mother, a 'investigative journalist' who sleeps with a rock star she was sent to interview (do investigative journalists typically write celebrity puff pieces?) and marries him four weeks later. The guy hates her kid, of course, but she's a dodo, and doesn't really notice. She also acts like a hysterical, imperious jerk every time she interacts with anyone outside of her immediate family. I think it falls to bad writing. Talbot seems to have been going for an atmosphere akin to a fairy tale, but writing an oblivious parent who puts her kid in danger but remains sympathetic is a tightrope he's not able to walk.
2) The spooky doings of the plot unfold throughout the book up to the final couple of chapters, where a deus ex machina character appears to explain everything to us (it was all magic, y'see!).
There's no gradual unfolding. There's no sense that the characters are figuring things out, or demonstrating any agency. They hang around, stuff happens, they react a little, and then someone shows up to tell them what it all meant.
Decent prose, but characterization and plotting were weak. Not particularly recommended.
My major complaints:
1) The two main characters are a charmingly weird 12-year old boy, and his mother, a 'investigative journalist' who sleeps with a rock star she was sent to interview (do investigative journalists typically write celebrity puff pieces?) and marries him four weeks later. The guy hates her kid, of course, but she's a dodo, and doesn't really notice. She also acts like a hysterical, imperious jerk every time she interacts with anyone outside of her immediate family. I think it falls to bad writing. Talbot seems to have been going for an atmosphere akin to a fairy tale, but writing an oblivious parent who puts her kid in danger but remains sympathetic is a tightrope he's not able to walk.
2) The spooky doings of the plot unfold throughout the book up to the final couple of chapters, where a deus ex machina character appears to explain everything to us (it was all magic, y'see!).
There's no gradual unfolding. There's no sense that the characters are figuring things out, or demonstrating any agency. They hang around, stuff happens, they react a little, and then someone shows up to tell them what it all meant.
Decent prose, but characterization and plotting were weak. Not particularly recommended.
December 15, 2024
I’ve been reading a lot of stuff from the 80s horror boom and this is the kind of interesting author I need to find more of. Died tragically young; only wrote three novels; thought the universe was a hologram; wrote a nonfiction book about how humanity’s encounters with the paranormal are glitches in the matrix. A real eccentric, the type the current horror community needs more of. I’m excited to read his other books.
June 9, 2022
I give this 4 and not 5 because the way this guy writes the main female character is occasionally very "men writing women."
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