House of Reckoning

By: John Saul

Narrated by: Angela Dawe

For more than three decades, John Saul has haunted the New York Times best seller list - and listeners imaginations - with his chilling tales of psychological suspense and supernatural horror. His instinct for striking the deepest chords of fear in our hearts and minds is unerring, and his gift for steering a tale from the light of day into the darkest depths of nightmare is at its harrowing best in House of Reckoning.

After the untimely death of her mother, 14-year-old Sarah Crane is forced to grow up quickly in order to help tend her family's Vermont farm and look after her grieving father, who's drowning his sorrow in alcohol. But their quiet life together is shattered when her father is jailed for killing another man in a barroom brawl and injuring Sarah in a drunken car crash.

Left in the cold care of a loveless foster family and alienated at school, Sarah finds a kindred spirit in classmate Nick Dunnigan, a former mental patient still plagued by voices and visions. And in eccentric art instructor Bettina Phillips, Sarah finds a mentor eager to nurture her talent for painting.

But within the walls of Bettina's ancestral home, the mansion called Shutters, Sarah finds something altogether different and disturbing. Monstrous images from the house's dark history seem to flow unbidden from Sarah's paintbrush - images echoed by Nick's chilling hallucinations.

Trapped for ages in the shadowy rooms of Shutters, the violence and fury of long-dead generations have finally found a gateway from the grave into the world of the living. And Sarah and Nick have found a power they never had: to take control, and take revenge.

©2009 John Saul (P)2009 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

one person's opinion

I'm a fan of John Saul and have read almost all of his books. I found this story tedious, long, and anti climactic. Not his best work.

Just Okay

Maybe my expectations were much higher, but I felt let down by this author's characters and plot. All the characters were drawn one-dimensionally, either really good or really bad. The whole business with the house seemed sketched and told instead of fully explored and shown.
There were a number of plot points with holes that you could drive a truck through even if suspension of disbelief is usually needed for paranormal stories. Spoiler Alert: One example would be the fate of all the bad guys. All legalities and investigations of the real world were just swept aside as everyone agrees case closed. There was just a mention that some deputies would return to look around. Oh, okay. A lot of people have just disappeared, but oh well.
Angela Dawe's narration was fine, if uninspiring.
This is the first book I've ever listened to by this author so I have nothing to compare it to. I would like to give some other of his books a chance.

John Saul fan

Where does House of Reckoning rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This was one of the first audio books I listened to and I enjoyed it, I would rate it towards the top of my list. It was not as short as some and not as longs as others so it fit just right for the time I had to listen at that point.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

I liked the ending but I wished there were more twists once the ending started.

What about Angela Dawe’s performance did you like?

I liked her performance and her voice.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

don't know

Predictable.

Felt like I was listening to something aimed at middle schoolers. Lots of loose ends. For example, people disappear with no repercussions to those who last saw them. That was only one example, there are several others. I have listened to other works by this author and they were better.

GREAT!

Haven't read a John Saul in a while but this one reminds me of why he is one of my favorites! Great Book, many interesting twist and turns!