Black Valley [Mass Market Paperback]

Jim Brown (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 29, 2004

On the night of a raging electrical storm, a group of teenage boys gathers to bury one of their own . . . alive. It isn’t murder, though, because the “victim” is a willing participant, part of a gang-initiation stunt. But even the best-laid plans can go horrifically wrong.

Fast-forward twenty-two years: The events of that stormy night are a distant memory. And the boys involved are now respected men in their hometown— the sheriff, the mayor, a congressman, even a Nobel Prize–winning physicist. Yet in spite of his newfound prestige, Dr. Dean Truman is a haunted man, tied to his town by a personal horror even his old friends know nothing about. But when a mysterious drifter arrives, bringing a wave of grisly and bizarre killings with him, Dean’s battle with his conscience will give way to a much more desperate fight: for his sanity, for the survival of his friends and neighbors, and for his own life.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A madman terrorizes a small Oregon town in this chill-o-rama that ventures deep into the world of lurid fantasy. Residents of Black Valley think they got rid of the sadistic Whitey Dobbs by burying him alive on a wintry night 22 years ago. They're wrong. Dobbs-known for his bone-white hair, chilling laugh and skill with a switchblade-is spared from death by a miraculous radioactive effect that turns him into an immortal time-traveler, capable of visiting the past, present and future at will. Most frequently, Dobbs returns to Black Valley in all his murderous glory to seek vengeance on the five men who as teenagers stuffed him in a coffin and laid him to rest in a deep grave on haunted Hawkins Hill. Steadily, Dobbs begins slicing up his old enemies and anyone else who happens to stand in the way. The one he saves for last is Dean Truman, now a Nobel Prize-winning scientist and college professor who figures out how Dobbs has managed to come back to life with superhuman powers as well as the skill of being able to disappear whenever he pleases. Truman, aided by his vivacious colleague, Piper Blackmoore, knows it's going to require guts and cunning to take down the elusive Dobbs. Toward the end, the plot takes on an almost farcical quality as Brown (24/7) heaps on one outrageous twist after another, yet there is no doubt he knows his way around a nail-biter. His many cliffhangers teeter just right, his tone strikes a convincing balance between ominous and terrifying and many of his characters are just quirky enough to strike fleeting doubts about their sanity.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

From the author of the exciting 24/7 (2001) comes another slightly over-the-top thriller that puts ordinarily people in an extraordinary situation. The story begins with Whitey Dobbs, of Oregon's Black Valley, being buried alive by four of the town's well-off teenagers. It's all in good fun--Whitey bet them he could stay underground for a certain length of time--but it turns distinctly frightening when, on the little radio he took into the coffin with him, Whitey hears that the boys, the only four people who know he's six feet under, have been killed in a car accident. What he doesn't know is that the radio story was a scam. The four boys are alive, but when they return to dig up the coffin, they find it empty. Flash-forward 22 years: the four practical jokers are successful adults, and a lot of strange and dangerous things are suddenly happening in Black Valley. Is Whitey Dobbs behind the goings-on? And is he dead or alive? Creepy, spine-tingly, and look-over-your-shoulder suspenseful--a nice blend of thriller and horror. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (June 29, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 034544700X
• ISBN-13: 978-0345447005
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.9 x 6.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,832,304 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 4 1/2 Stars...By the Throat!, August 15, 2003

By 

Eric Wilson "novelist" (Nashville, TN United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Black Valley (Hardcover)

I grew up in Oregon, and fictional Black Valley is all too believable. The settings, characters, dialogue, are recognizable to any small-town Oregonians. Of course, Jim Brown used to anchor the news in the area where I lived, so he should be capable of painting an accurate picture.

Oh, and what a picture he paints!

"Black Valley" is the epitome of suspense fiction. Full of bizarre scenarios, walking dead men, and gruesome deaths, this book will take you by the throat and shake that slumber from your eyes. I tried to go to sleep a few times, but, no, "Black Valley" insisted that I press on to the wild finale.

As with Brown's "24/7," the story is tightly plotted, and he juggles his characters without dropping the reader in the process. Also, as in his debut novel, he allows only brief moments for us to care about these characters. Intermittently, I was touched by their inner dilemmas, but Brown relies on the plot to chase us through each chapter. In the end, despite the flurried page turning, I had little concern or connection with those thrust into this horrendous maelstrom of suspense.

If you want intelligent storytelling that takes your breath away, Brown is a master. Both his novels will satisfy. He comes up with terrific premises, and, just when you think the ideas are too farfetched to believe, he comes up with ways of making them palatable--even frightening. No time for deep characterization here, but no time for sleeping either. These books will grab you by the throat.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Highest Recommendation, August 2, 2003

By 

Mark Yoketta - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Valley (Hardcover)

I was riveted from the first sentence to the last. Black Valley is without a doubt one of the best books I've read this year. It kept me guessing, kept me terrified and, most importantly, kept me reading.

According to the bio, Jim Brown is a television anchor man (now I know what they do durrng the commercials -- they come up with bone chilling ideas -- or at least this one does.

I liked it so much I'm going and read his first novel, 24/7.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great story, great delivery, March 31, 2005

By 

L. Maynard (Dallas, Tx) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Black Valley (Mass Market Paperback)

I always take a moment to read other reviews before I write my own to get an idea how my opinion agrees or differs. I found with this book, people either loved it or hated it, there wasn't any in-between. I am one of those who loved it.

A young man is buried alive and years later, comes back to exact his revenge. The story was a cross between night of the living dead and Dr. Who!

This book had much to offer. The story moved along nicely, without any odd moments. The author didn't waste a lot of paper describing unimportant things just to have an epic novel. I like that in a book, just get to the point. The characters were believable and well developed. I find people are much too hard on horror writers. It's fiction at its finest and at no time needs to be believable. It's purpose is to entertain, and having said that, let me assure you that Mr. Brown did a bang up job entertaining this reader. It was not overly technical or hard to follow. I loved the book and hope you will too.