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Late at Night
Book by Schoell, William
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 1, 1986
5 people are currently reading
257 people want to read
About the author
William Schoell
77 books42 followersWILLIAM SCHOELL was born in Manhattan where he resides. He is the author of over thirty-five books in various genres, including celebrity biographies (some written with co-author Lawrence J. Quirk); horror-suspense novels; biographies of such people as Edgar Allan Poe and Giuseppe Verdi for young people; and books on the performing arts and pop culture. He has been a radio producer and talk show host, worked for Columbia pictures, and is a blogger, playwright, and activist.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
March 15, 2020
I read this a few years back and thought it was decent enough, but the other night I was flipping through it after spotting it on my shelf, and the next thing I knew I'd devoured nearly the whole thing yet again. On the surface it's seemingly a typical "And Then There Were None"-style slasher, where a group of vacationers on a legendary/cursed deserted island get taken out one by one. The twist here is that the visitors find a trashy paperback novel hidden in an old guesthouse there, and all of them are characters in the book, described to a tee. Peculiar, but even more so is the fact that it appears to predict each of their future deaths on the island. Too bad it keeps going missing, and they're all stuck on the island for several days.
Who wrote the mysterious book? Was it one of the vacationers? None of them knows everyone well enough to the point where they could depict each person in such great detail, including what they'd been doing on the island earlier that day while no one else was around. How is that even possible? And it seems that not even the knowledge gleaned from their occasional glimpses of the novel can help them survive.
I really dug the premise here, and it was executed very well. There are a LOT of characters to keep track of, but the focus soon shifts to mostly a few main characters. Schoell does a great job of both keeping the reader guessing which of the party is the killer and/or author of the book -- if it even is one of them -- as well as wondering what sort of supernatural forces are at play, if any. Though I wasn't overly impressed with my only other Schoell read, Spawn of Hell, that was his debut and his chops look to have improved quite a bit since then, so I'll certainly be checking out more from him.
The characterization here is somewhat superficial for the most part, but it's Fast, Fun, and Freaky -- the three F's I'm always hoping for when choosing one of these 80s paperback originals to read. I'd say it's well-worth digging into for fans of pulpy B movie-style horror novels and whodunnits.
4.0 Stars.
[BTW I love the faux beat-up look of this book. I used to think all the online pics were of poor copies until I came across it and soon realized it's supposed to represent the novel found in the story. Very clever. Alas, the artist is uncredited. From what I can make out, it appears to be signed "Gerber," which would be Stephanie and Mark Gerber, who did a number of horror covers back in the day.]
Who wrote the mysterious book? Was it one of the vacationers? None of them knows everyone well enough to the point where they could depict each person in such great detail, including what they'd been doing on the island earlier that day while no one else was around. How is that even possible? And it seems that not even the knowledge gleaned from their occasional glimpses of the novel can help them survive.
I really dug the premise here, and it was executed very well. There are a LOT of characters to keep track of, but the focus soon shifts to mostly a few main characters. Schoell does a great job of both keeping the reader guessing which of the party is the killer and/or author of the book -- if it even is one of them -- as well as wondering what sort of supernatural forces are at play, if any. Though I wasn't overly impressed with my only other Schoell read, Spawn of Hell, that was his debut and his chops look to have improved quite a bit since then, so I'll certainly be checking out more from him.
The characterization here is somewhat superficial for the most part, but it's Fast, Fun, and Freaky -- the three F's I'm always hoping for when choosing one of these 80s paperback originals to read. I'd say it's well-worth digging into for fans of pulpy B movie-style horror novels and whodunnits.
4.0 Stars.
[BTW I love the faux beat-up look of this book. I used to think all the online pics were of poor copies until I came across it and soon realized it's supposed to represent the novel found in the story. Very clever. Alas, the artist is uncredited. From what I can make out, it appears to be signed "Gerber," which would be Stephanie and Mark Gerber, who did a number of horror covers back in the day.]
December 13, 2022
This was my fourth Schoell novel and so far the best of his I have read. While present in his other works, what made this one really stand out was the self-consciousness of the author enjoying writing a fun, trashy horror paperback. There is dark humor here in spades, some spectacularly gruesome sequences and a mystery at the heart of it all that tied everything together. Lynn, a 20 something woman in Boston recently received news that after an aunt's passing, she inherited an island off the coast of Maine. The island has a rather sinister history, with murders, madmen, massacres and such, going back 100s of years. Yet, her aunt lived there in the summers in the 'guest house' until she died. Lynn and her lawyer (also her current lover) decide to check the place out and round up more than a dozen people to do just that. You know this is going to end badly just from the start, but the devil is in the details and Schoell gives us this with aplomb.
Schoell employs some familiar horror tropes here-- some of the guests have psychic abilities for example, and there seems to be an awful lot of people going out alone when they really should not be doing so. Yet, it is the novelty and humor which moves this along, and the fun cast of characters. The day of their arrival on the island, the cousin of the lawyer (a writer), a night owl, has a hard time getting to work, cannot sleep and eventually explores the guesthouse looking for something to read. He finds a trashy horror paperback titled Late at Night that looks interesting, but when he starts to read it he discovers that, outside of some name changes, the tale chronicles the exact same trip he and the others are currently on! Further, it is a pretty gruesome read, with characters being killed horribly left and right. While not finished, he eventually falls asleep, but in the morning the book is gone. Later in the day, however, the exact events seem to be playing out...
I wish Schoell has written more horror novels, but such is life. Recommended for horror fans! 4.5 trashy stars, rounding up for the ending!
Schoell employs some familiar horror tropes here-- some of the guests have psychic abilities for example, and there seems to be an awful lot of people going out alone when they really should not be doing so. Yet, it is the novelty and humor which moves this along, and the fun cast of characters. The day of their arrival on the island, the cousin of the lawyer (a writer), a night owl, has a hard time getting to work, cannot sleep and eventually explores the guesthouse looking for something to read. He finds a trashy horror paperback titled Late at Night that looks interesting, but when he starts to read it he discovers that, outside of some name changes, the tale chronicles the exact same trip he and the others are currently on! Further, it is a pretty gruesome read, with characters being killed horribly left and right. While not finished, he eventually falls asleep, but in the morning the book is gone. Later in the day, however, the exact events seem to be playing out...
"No, Ernie. I believe you. I really do. It's not just your honest face," she smiled, and he couldn't help but respond in kind, if only briefly.
"There's something in the air," she continued. "I can sense it. I sense the presence of a disruptive element. It could be the book, it could be whomever it belongs to. I don't know. But one thing I am sure of. We're all in terrible danger."
Ernie wanted to ask her exactly what she meant, how she knew. But her bearing, her evident self-confidence, intimidated him. He was beginning to be in awe of her. Or was it just that he wasn't sure if she as really a gifted psychic-- which would be impressive enough-- or a self-deluding, dangerous mental case. Which would also be impressive, but rather disillusioning.
I wish Schoell has written more horror novels, but such is life. Recommended for horror fans! 4.5 trashy stars, rounding up for the ending!
June 11, 2015
This book was a nice little treat. The gore was spot on, almost had me sick at one point. The characters were likeable, well some of them. And I couldn't figure out who the necromancer was until the very end. Even the ending was a little mystifying. Great novel overall! Would like to read more from this author, not to mention the cover is fantastic! Probably the reason I bought it to begin with.
November 1, 2022
Lammerty Island, off the coast of Maine is said to be haunted, with a long, sordid history going back to the 1500's. It's said the island is a magical place, where demons can be summoned and evil forces lay waiting to be tapped. Late at night, ancient, alien things are said to walk the grounds looking for soulmates and screaming in frustration over a lack of victims.
Finally in 1983, Lammerty's last owner, Gladys Hornbee, was found dead in her bedroom, face frozen in terror. Today, the island is abandoned and overgrown, and through inheritance, has made its way into the hands of Lynn Overman, Gladys' niece.
One weekend, Lynn and 13 others, including her friends, her boyfriend, John, and his employees, are dropped off on her new island, to scout it out. None said it out loud, but each guest shared the same thoughts about the bad vibes they felt from the island.
That night, unable to sleep, Ernie - John's cousin - checks out the library where he finds a book called "Late at Night," by Max Schumann, and he gets a chill when he reads the description on the back - a horror novel about a group of people coming to an island to investigate its occult reputation. A man, Andrew, discovers a forbidden book that fortold the deaths of everyone on the island - then the terrible events in that book began to come true - until no one was left but Andrew and a crazed killer, determined to use the forces of the island for him or herself.
When Ernie thinks of the strange things that have already happened since they arrived, this book sounds a lot like his current situation. Two characters taking a walk after dinner to look at a shipwreck. The housekeeper screaming, while she has a vivid hallucination. Not to mention, everyone described in the book is the exact same as he and the other guests, albeit with different names.
Meanwhile, the Necromancer is pulled from sleep as it senses someone in the house has found and moved "the object" - the one its been searching for. It is the Necromancer's duty to get the object from the person - even if it means killing them to do so.
"The object, because of some mystical properties, the nature of which the Necromancer had yet to ascertain - could focus/channel the islands power into an irresistible and unstoppable force. Truth be known, the Necromancer could not yet quite imagine how it would use that power; only that anybody who had ever wronged the Necromancer would pay and pay dearly."
Totally engrossed with finding out the fate of the characters, but too exhausted to read on, Ernie goes to sleep. In the morning, the book is nowhere to be found; he has no idea if someone has taken it and moved it, or if he dreamed the entire thing. However, when the people on the island begin getting picked off one by one, exactly how it said they would in the book, Ernie knows what he read was somehow real. He confides in a woman on the island, Angela, who has psychic powers, and together the two of them begin desperately trying to find the book and figure out who's behind the gruesome deaths. Will they find the book in time, or will the Necromancer kill them first?
------------------
I love a good ole "being picked off one by one" "who's the killer?" type book, and this one was really fun. Super fast paced, very entertaining. It gets a little confusing with some of the explanations, but besides that, a great book.
Finally in 1983, Lammerty's last owner, Gladys Hornbee, was found dead in her bedroom, face frozen in terror. Today, the island is abandoned and overgrown, and through inheritance, has made its way into the hands of Lynn Overman, Gladys' niece.
One weekend, Lynn and 13 others, including her friends, her boyfriend, John, and his employees, are dropped off on her new island, to scout it out. None said it out loud, but each guest shared the same thoughts about the bad vibes they felt from the island.
That night, unable to sleep, Ernie - John's cousin - checks out the library where he finds a book called "Late at Night," by Max Schumann, and he gets a chill when he reads the description on the back - a horror novel about a group of people coming to an island to investigate its occult reputation. A man, Andrew, discovers a forbidden book that fortold the deaths of everyone on the island - then the terrible events in that book began to come true - until no one was left but Andrew and a crazed killer, determined to use the forces of the island for him or herself.
When Ernie thinks of the strange things that have already happened since they arrived, this book sounds a lot like his current situation. Two characters taking a walk after dinner to look at a shipwreck. The housekeeper screaming, while she has a vivid hallucination. Not to mention, everyone described in the book is the exact same as he and the other guests, albeit with different names.
Meanwhile, the Necromancer is pulled from sleep as it senses someone in the house has found and moved "the object" - the one its been searching for. It is the Necromancer's duty to get the object from the person - even if it means killing them to do so.
"The object, because of some mystical properties, the nature of which the Necromancer had yet to ascertain - could focus/channel the islands power into an irresistible and unstoppable force. Truth be known, the Necromancer could not yet quite imagine how it would use that power; only that anybody who had ever wronged the Necromancer would pay and pay dearly."
Totally engrossed with finding out the fate of the characters, but too exhausted to read on, Ernie goes to sleep. In the morning, the book is nowhere to be found; he has no idea if someone has taken it and moved it, or if he dreamed the entire thing. However, when the people on the island begin getting picked off one by one, exactly how it said they would in the book, Ernie knows what he read was somehow real. He confides in a woman on the island, Angela, who has psychic powers, and together the two of them begin desperately trying to find the book and figure out who's behind the gruesome deaths. Will they find the book in time, or will the Necromancer kill them first?
------------------
I love a good ole "being picked off one by one" "who's the killer?" type book, and this one was really fun. Super fast paced, very entertaining. It gets a little confusing with some of the explanations, but besides that, a great book.
May 16, 2021
If you have read Schoell before......this is not one of his more gory and scary; scare fests. Modernized retelling of "Ten Little Indians" but with a supernatural (?) twist?
Here is my review on my Youtube channel; AreYouIntoHorror here:
https://youtu.be/lWAKMs7mN0g
This book is a very slow burning and mildly gross horror tale that takes place on an abandoned and rumored to be haunted former luxury resort island, where the guests start disappearing one by one in very graphic depictions almost situation by situation that is in a weird horror paperback that they find. Starts out where you are interested and you care about these guests, then it takes a slow and 'so what' kinda turn, until they start being taken out one (and sometimes in pairs!) at a time. Spider and bug trigger warnings here in this one! Definitely an 80's Leisure Horror read.
I gave it a solid 3.5 🩸🔪🪓
Here is my review on my Youtube channel; AreYouIntoHorror here:
https://youtu.be/lWAKMs7mN0g
This book is a very slow burning and mildly gross horror tale that takes place on an abandoned and rumored to be haunted former luxury resort island, where the guests start disappearing one by one in very graphic depictions almost situation by situation that is in a weird horror paperback that they find. Starts out where you are interested and you care about these guests, then it takes a slow and 'so what' kinda turn, until they start being taken out one (and sometimes in pairs!) at a time. Spider and bug trigger warnings here in this one! Definitely an 80's Leisure Horror read.
I gave it a solid 3.5 🩸🔪🪓
April 8, 2017
This is one of the best books I've read this year! Late At Night is a novel inside a novel. Sometimes this doesn't work so well but this did. It's a one part mystery. One part slasher movie, a good slasher movie. One part psychic phenomena. What ever you want to call it it's great. The death scenes are nice and gory. Very descriptive. I felt my skin crawling on more than one occasion. The ending was well thought out. I have nothing negative to say about this book except that I wish it could of been longer. If you like horror, this is for you.
November 15, 2023
4.1 Very fun read. A group of people go to an island that was just inherited by one of them. This island has a bad history surrounded by death. One of the group is a psychic and feels it and also another presence, who is evil. Now everyone is trying to survive and get off the island. Well written, very easy to follow. Fast paced and fun. Not to hard though to guess as to whom the bad guy is. Very enjoyable overall read though.
March 28, 2010
A nice supernatural riff on "Ten Little Indians" with an interesting ending suggesting the horror will never end for at least one character.
May 30, 2023
Whether you like this book depends on what you are looking to get from a 1980s horror paperback. Are you looking for a lost classic that is surprisingly deep in its themes and ideas like the works of McCammon or Tessier? Or are you looking for the pulp paperback equivalent of Evil Dead 2? If it's the latter, Schoell's twist on a by-now tired trope--a bunch of acquaintances find themselves on a spooky island as they all start being killed one by one--is a great example of that kind of fun, ridiculous escapism.
Schoell strands his characters on possibly the most haunted island you will ever encounter in literature and then begins killing them off in almost comically over the top horror setups. There are ghosts, a haunted pirate ship, a spooky old house, creature horror, body horror, an ax murder, and dueling psychics! Not to mention the McGuffin at the heart of the story, a magical book that just happens to be a description of what is in store for all the unlucky campers. That's right--a genuine precognitive psychic object that is sought out by a an out and out necromancer!
This thing checks a lot of boxes, but doesn't work overtime at doing so. Like many Leisure titles, its a workmanlike example of the best kind of 1980s horror pulp. Schoell is a fun author, and I probably will check out some of his other books. This book isn't anything life-changing, but if you were going camping and wanted something page-turny to throw in your bag that you won't feel too bad about reading buzzed in a hammock on a Saturday afternoon, this would be a great pick.
Schoell strands his characters on possibly the most haunted island you will ever encounter in literature and then begins killing them off in almost comically over the top horror setups. There are ghosts, a haunted pirate ship, a spooky old house, creature horror, body horror, an ax murder, and dueling psychics! Not to mention the McGuffin at the heart of the story, a magical book that just happens to be a description of what is in store for all the unlucky campers. That's right--a genuine precognitive psychic object that is sought out by a an out and out necromancer!
This thing checks a lot of boxes, but doesn't work overtime at doing so. Like many Leisure titles, its a workmanlike example of the best kind of 1980s horror pulp. Schoell is a fun author, and I probably will check out some of his other books. This book isn't anything life-changing, but if you were going camping and wanted something page-turny to throw in your bag that you won't feel too bad about reading buzzed in a hammock on a Saturday afternoon, this would be a great pick.
June 2, 2013
One of the scariest books I read, almost as good as a Stephen King novel.
August 2, 2017
Best book I ever read, wish I still had my copy of this book.
July 17, 2021
"Ten little Indians" with a supernatural twist.Fast paced,entertaining book.
December 26, 2021
Original hook and some great kills. Hard to follow all of the characters at first but rips once it gets cooking.
December 5, 2023
Adding an extra star for the nostalgia
December 2, 2018
""Betty!" she heard Tresinger yelling after her. "He was drunk. Don't listen to him. He's a fool, an asshole."
NO, she thought bitterly, her face turning crimson, her tears scorching her cheeks, I'M AN ASSHOLE. ME, ME, ME, ME ME!
And she ran into her room and slammed the door behind her."
This grade-school-level mix of ridiculous melodrama and pulp-comic horror has a stupid plot and zero substance, but still manages to be enthusiastic and entertaining, thanks to a clever structure and some creative flair.
"Which came first? The chicken or the egg? To ponder such things too long was to court madness."
NO, she thought bitterly, her face turning crimson, her tears scorching her cheeks, I'M AN ASSHOLE. ME, ME, ME, ME ME!
And she ran into her room and slammed the door behind her."
This grade-school-level mix of ridiculous melodrama and pulp-comic horror has a stupid plot and zero substance, but still manages to be enthusiastic and entertaining, thanks to a clever structure and some creative flair.
"Which came first? The chicken or the egg? To ponder such things too long was to court madness."
January 9, 2024
A group of friends head out to an island with an unpleasant history for a weekend vacation, only to encounter murder, black magic, and madness. And all of it is written down in an inexplicable paperback novel which records the whole unfolding story--including each friend's grisly demise--in unflinching detail. Will the friends be able to unmask the killer in their midst and solve the riddle of the weirdly prophetic novel before it's too late? The author has crafted a fascinating tale of mystery and horror that keeps the pages turning at a rapid clip as the reader just can't wait to find out what happens next--or at least this reader couldn't. The various friends are a believable cast of characters: some are likable, some are detestable, and others are somewhere in between. Just don't get too attached to your favorite, as nobody in this bloody story is safe from the truly horrific antagonist. This is a fast-moving, atmospheric and superbly creepy horror novel that will have you guessing to the final chapter. Definitely recommended!
March 20, 2025
I really enjoyed this and it pretty well matched my expectations of easy-to-read and fun horror fic from this era (1986). I appreciated the mystery element as well. I’m definitely curious to learn more about and read more from this author.
March 8, 2017
I've read all the 8 horror books from this author and loved them. Reminded me stories you could find in Lovecraft's books but in a modern world. it's a gender more and more rare to find theses days.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews