Drowned Sorrow [Paperback]

Vanessa Morgan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 2, 2008

Praise for Drowned Sorrow: "Vanessa Morgan has the gift of pacing and spookiness." - Scott Nicholson, author of They Hunger and The Farm "A racy thriller in the vein of Dean Koontz and John Saul..." - Dirk Vandereyken, author of Fates Worse Than Death and Hunter Megan Blackwood has just lost her only son in a terrible accident. Now she has come to Moonlight Creek with her teenage daughter Jenna, hoping a change of scenery might help to put her life and that of her daughter back together. But something odd is going on in Moonlight Creek. When rain falls over the village, its inhabitants commit grisly murders, leaving the place deserted with the first rays of sunshine. Beneath the lake's surface, an eerie presence watches ... and waits .... Waits to reveal a tragic past drowned in mystery and fear. One that doesn't bode well for visitors. By the time Megan realizes that her life, as well as that of her daughter, is in danger, it may be too late to escape. About the Author: Vanessa Morgan is a screenwriter and novelist. She lives in Brussels, Belgium.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Vanessa Morgan has the gift of pacing and spookiness. --Scott Nicholson, author of They Hunger and The Farm

Review

The female version of Stephen King.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 188 pages
• Publisher: Llumina Press (December 2, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 160594162X
• ISBN-13: 978-1605941622
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,564,930 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 4 Stars for Drowned Sorrow, November 14, 2010

By 

Laura J. Kentowski - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Drowned Sorrow (Kindle Edition)

It's been a long time since I've read a good horror story. There are only a few authors I trust that can truly give me the creeps. A horror story must have creep factor. The kind that makes you lock your doors at night, but wondering if locks will be enough to keep you safe. In a good horror book you have to make the reader believe that something truly horrible can, in fact, happen otherwise you lose the effect.

Vanessa Morgan's Drowned Sorrow definitely had creep factor. The villagers of Moonlight Creek sent chills down my spine as I pictured them grouping together, slowly following the main characters with their blank stares. The unique use of water as the object of fear in this book has renewed my trepidation of ever going into an ocean, lake, or river again. Jaws is no longer alone. It may take years again to get me back in.

There are a few things that bothered me about Drowned Sorrow to keep it from being a 5 star book, in my opinion. There were many times that the main character, Megan, had a chilling experience at Moonlight Creek that would have sent any normal person packing. She described being horrified, but the next minute she was reading a book on the shoreline. There were also descriptions of fear that were repeated exactly the same way throughout the book, such as, "the hair on the back of her neck rose." While I felt that Vanessa's decription of emotions in Drowned Sorrow was excellent, this was one downfall that had me irritated.

The ending left me somewhat aggravated also. I felt that the actions of the main character throughout the book did not match her final resolution. It left me feeling disconnected.

Overall I thought Drowned Sorrow was a great, creepy read. Vanessa Morgan provides excellent description to chill the bones of the reader. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone wanting a good scare.

Lou of Reader Recommended
[...]

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creepy and suspensful, November 7, 2010

By 

TicToc - See all my reviews

This review is from: Drowned Sorrow (Paperback)

A home and family are tragically destroyed by the unintentional suicide of a son. In a cry for help and an attempt to get attention, he slits his wrists, believing he would be found and rescued. His mother, Megan, feels her shame to the bone; her work had always come first. With the death of her son, her marriage also crumbles. Everything is disintegrating around her. Leaving her work to spend some quality time with her daughter and to pick up the pieces, she makes a decision to get away, and a friend recommends the small town of Moonlight Creek, a beautiful lakeside town as a place to go for healing and to strengthen their relationship.

In Drowned Sorrow, Vanessa Morgan has crafted an extremely creepy story. The town of Moonlight Springs, while a beautiful and restful place on the surface, has dark and dangerous currents known only to the inhabitants. It is a kind of a cult, but not like anything you have ever imagined. This is the kind of story you often find in a Koontz or King novel. I began reading it and was alternately annoyed at how Megan was portrayed and really not liking her persona. I could feel that the story would be one that would not be comfortable to read. I put it off for a bit, and then one night took the plunge. What I would have to really reiterate to you is, do not read this book at night. I was appalled at the extreme horror of the story and while there was a bit of, that is just weird; it still was able to pull me in with the intricate and well thought out creepiness. The ending was so uncomfortable I could not sleep for the rest of the night.

If you love a horror novel this would be one for you. I am not really a horror fan, and it is a book like this that reminds me of why that is. Vanessa Morgan may have found her genre, and how someone could have this kind of nightmare roiling around in their imagination just never ceases to amaze me. And while I am not a horror fan, I do know when a book is gripping, and this is that at its absolute. Reading the nightmare as it unfolded, and even understanding that I would not like the outcome, I could not put it down. Once I was in, I was hooked.

I would recommend this book for those that love the horror genre. I do not think it would be a book for teens, so even if your teen loves horror, you may want to read it for yourself first. I will be passing this book on to my sister who really loves this kind of thing, and she will be the one to read it over and over. This will make her library of macabre books. So if you have the fortitude for horror, here it the book that will bring it home, my recommendation though, lock the doors, have some friends over, just for company, but do not read this after dark.

4.0 out of 5 stars when water kills, July 15, 2011

By 

aobibliophile™ - See all my reviews

This review is from: Drowned Sorrow (Kindle Edition)

If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water. - Loran Eisely, The Immense Journey, 1957


Megan Blackwood is a successful investigative reporter for national television. her teenage son's suicide irrevocably alters her world. she divorces her husband Michael and quits her job to be with her daughter Jenna. 7 months after her son's death, they head off to Moonlight Creek for the summer. the small village seems like a great spot to get away from it all. there is something, however, about the lake, the water and the inhabitants that does not add up. their perfect vacation becomes the perfect setting for a horrifying tableaux that neither of them wanted to be a part of.
this is my second Vanessa Morgan read and she always gets into me. i mentioned in my review of The Strangers Outside how that short story creeped me out. this time, i had a strange dream the very night i was done reading Drowned Sorrow. i was in a room with some members of my family and water was rushing inside. somehow i found myself on top of a bookshelf and was screaming at everyone to avoid the water at all cost! i woke up relieved to find out that i was in bed - warm, safe and very dry.
Drowned Sorrow is more than just a scary, fast-paced ride into the unknown. it is also a story of a mother's struggle to cope with the loss of a loved one. i read somewhere that one of the most painful human experiences is for a mother to lose her child and vice-versa. i have gone through that when i lost my Mom and believe me, it is anything but painful.
water sustains life and without it every living thing would perish. that is a given. Vanessa Morgan takes this reality further and fancifully twists it into something so original and frightening that dying of thirst might prove to be a better option.
read this book to find out why and the next time you drink water or go for a swim, think again. don't say that i didn't warn you.


Disclosure of Material Connection: i received a pdf copy of Drowned Sorrow from the author herself. i did not receive any payment in exchange for this review nor was I obligated to write a positive one. all opinions expressed here are entirely my own and may not necessarily agree with those of the author, the book's publisher and publicist or the readers of this review. this disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.