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Content snapshot
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Violence
Very heavy
Serial killer murders; violence with horror elements; a scene of assault on the protagonist
Language
Some
Moderate language
Sexual Content
Some
Moderate; adult relationships; an assault
Substance Use
Some
Moderate; period drinking culture
Emotional Intensity
Very heavy
Very strong; suburban dread as Straub's specialist subject; the literary mystery at the novel's heart; the horror of ordinary-seeming violence
What this book is about
Peter Straub's 1996 standalone thriller follows Nora Chancel, whose quiet suburban life is disrupted when she witnesses an accident that may not have been one, and begins pulling on a thread that leads to a serial killer, a literary mystery involving Hugo Driver (a Salinger-like reclusive novelist), and the dark history of Millhaven. Straub weaves horror atmosphere into psychological thriller territory with the patience of a master.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Serial killer murders with graphic elements
Sexual assault
Horror violence
Reader Verification
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