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Mystery/Thriller Book Reviews
Creepers
by David Morrell
CDS Books, September, 2005
Hardcover, 368 pages
ISBN: 159315237X
Ordering information:
Amazon.com
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Amazon.co.uk
"Creepers" is the slang term for
urban explorers who delve into abandoned building, subways and
the like to see what history has left behind. It's illegal and dangerous,
which is part of the thrill, of course. The real pros use professional
spelunking equipment and take safety precautions. Writer David
Morrell takes this real-life pastime and turns it into a spine-tingling
thriller. As the story opens on a brisk October night, five urban
explorers (they don't really like
the term "creepers") are packing up their gear and doing last minute
preparations for the night's adventure. Led by Professor Robert Conklin, the
explorers welcome a new guest tonight: Frank Balenger, who says he is
an investigative reporter for The New York Times. The group also includes
high school teacher Vincent Vanelli and married graduate students Rick and Cora Magill.
The group enters the abandoned luxury The Paragon Hotel which
was the queen of the Jersey shore in its day. Built by a millionaire
recluse who had hemophilia and a fear of going outside his
home, the hotel is shaped like a pyramid. Full of hidden
traps for the unwary, it also has its share of dark secrets which
could prove to be fatal for the urban explorers.
David Morrell has a way of grabbing the reader in the first paragraph of his
books and placing him right in the middle of the action. You can almost
hear the sound of the rising water and the curious rats in
the tunnels, and feel the cold wind on your neck as
you follow the creepers on their fateful expedition. As the story unfolds, it becomes
clear that not only does the hotel have secrets that it is hiding: the explorers
also have things that they are hiding from one another. Morrell keeps the suspense
level high and the atmosphere creepy. He also adds enough plot twists and
turns to keep even the most jaded mystery reader guessing what will happen next right up until the last page.
Creepy, fascinating and very, very entertaining, Creepers will keep you up all night.
--Claire E. White
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