The Burning [Paperback]

Bentley Little (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2006

Now comes the hottest horror yet from the Bram Stoker Award winner...

They're four strangers with one thing in common-a mysterious train choking the sky with black smoke, charging trackless across the American night...and carrying an unstoppable evil raised from the depths of history that will bring each of their worst fears to life.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the new book by Bram Stoker Award–winner Little (Dispatch), strangers across the U.S. are each pursued by different supernatural forces as they fall into the path of a ghost train rumbling into the present day from a dark chapter in American history. Switching among characters—college freshman Angela Ramos in Flagstaff, Ariz.; divorced park ranger Henry Cote in Canyonlands National Park, Utah; Jolene, fleeing her husband to Bear Flats, Calif., with eight-year-old Skyler in tow; and Dennis Chen, on his first cross-country road trip—Little turns the screws bit by bit, bringing his unfortunate charges face to face with multiple terrors, including haunted houses, mummified zombies, a pair of succubi and a room full of jarred human body parts. The novel draws from historical record and modern-day hot-button topics, bringing to bear immigration issues from the time of the Transcontinental Railroad to the present. Readers might tire of the revolving door structure—characters switch off on a per-chapter basis—before the stories converge in northern Utah, and might find the multiple strands a bit overstuffed and under-scary; still, this novel offers Steven King–size epic horror for those with the patience for it. (Aug.)
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Review

[Little] is on par with such greats as Stephen King, Clive Barker, and Peter Straub. -- Midwest Book Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Signet (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451219147
• ISBN-13: 978-0451219145
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #468,677 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Gripping, disturbing horror thriller by a master, August 4, 2006

By 

DanD - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Burning (Paperback)

Angela is a college freshman who has found herself in the center of a growing racial tension on campus; Henry is a park ranger who has nightly visits from two very mysterious (and dangerous) young women; Jolene is a mother starting a new life with her son, but who finds instead a mysterious mansion with disturbing secrets; Dennis is a young man who sets out to travel cross-country, but instead finds himself haunted by a horrifying tourist-trap. These four individuals are from different regions of the country, from different ethical/religious backgrounds...but they all have one thing in common: their lives are about to become a living hell.

"The Burning" is possibly Little's grandest novel, scope-wise. With so many main characters (half-way through the book, we are even re-introduced to FBI Agent Greg Rossister, who has made appearances in a couple previous Little novels), it'd be easy for the tale to fall off-track (ignore the train pun). But it doesn't. Bentley Little is usually not into subtlety; if he wants to scare you, he doesn't dilly-dally around--he goes right out and scares your socks off. "The Burning" is more about atmosphere. Granted, there are gross-out moments, genuine shockers that even Stephen King would be hard-pressed to create. But the best thing about "The Burning" is its tension, the way it steadily builds; just when you think things can't get any worse, they do. And again, and again. This is yet another terrifying horror novel by the master of the macabre.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bentley is "the best"!, August 13, 2006

By 

P. Legerski (Corona, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Burning (Paperback)

Stephen King crowned him thus in an ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY column a few months back.

Been a follower of Little's since day 1 and am glad to see him deliver such a timely on-topic novel of horror after his fantastic DISPATCH.

This novel is grand in scope...with characters from at least 3 previous books making appearances..one who is from THE SUMMONING gets a pretty big role and we will probably see him soon in another Little offerning.

Terrifying at times, well written and believable characters.

This is why "BENTLEY LITTLE IS THE BEST HORROR NOVELIST" running right now.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good but not his best, September 10, 2006

By 

B. Marburger "HorrorLuvr" (Goodyear, AZ United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Burning (Paperback)

I love Bentley Little's books and his way of turning rather innocuous things into sinister devices of evil. Great examples are a store, a homeowners association, an insurance policy, a town... this book however seemed to lose some of that idea. While I liked it, I felt that it had a bit of a preachy quality to it. Normally I'm unable to put his books down, and this one took me a few sittings to read. I recommend "The Store" if you haven't yet read a Little book. That is, by far, my favorite of his novels.