Midnight Tour (The Beast House Chronicles) [Paperback]

Richard Laymon (Author)

Book Description

Series: The Beast House Chronicles | Publication Date: March 27, 1999

A thriller tellling the story of The Beast House, the legendary site of ghastly murders. The midnight tour is the one beginning on the stroke of midnight, Saturday nights only. On this particular Saturday night the tourists are to be joined by an unexpected visitor and they will be lucky to get out alive.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

One of the authors most affected by the domestic turndown in the horror market in the 1990s is Laymon, who published many novels, mostly mass market, here in the '80s. He remains popular in the U.K. and Australia, with new books appearing there regularly, but his fiction has for the most part gone out of print in the U.S. So kudos to Cemetery Dance for bringing his new novel, a sequel to The Cellar and The Beast House, to American readers. It's classic Laymon, which means that it's full of titillating sex and violence aimed at the teenager in us all, but also that it's constructed in stripped-down prose that spits across the page and is rife with strong characters traced in deft strokes. Laymon expertly seeds the backstory?of the notorious house in a small California town, site of numerous savagings by an unknown species of sexually ravenous, humanoid "beasts"?throughout the narrative, which follows the liaisons and perils of a woman raped decades ago by a beast, and of several guides and tourists around the house, now a tourist attraction. A copulating couple is buried alive; Peeping Toms spy on three bathing beauties; a woman is raped, then handcuffed in a cellar tunnel?and so on in Laymon's lurid tale, which speeds steadily toward a bloody climax, the eponymous tour of the Beast House, and a merciless conclusion. It's a nightmare ride but plenty of fun for those who like their horror no-frills and nasty.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Beast House has a notorious history. Starting in 1903, this quaint Victorian in Malcasa, CA, has been the scene of repeated gruesome rapes and murders by "beasts"?a sort of mutated missing link, hairless like humans but powerful like apes with rending claws and fangs among their unique features. But the beasts are all dead now, or are they? Take "the midnight tour" of the house and find out. Laymon's characters are well drawn, and the first three-fourths of the novel effectively builds up suspense to the electrifying conclusion. Laymon writes humor well and uses it to relieve the tension. Reminiscent of Stephen King's "monster" stories, this novel does not rely upon horror cliches. It is not a story for young people, though, as there is a great deal of sex and gory violence. Still, horror fans will find some genuine surprises at the end. Recommended for all adult horror collections.?Alicia Graybill, Lincoln City Libs., NE
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 544 pages
• Publisher: Feature (March 27, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0747258279
• ISBN-13: 978-0747258278
• Product Dimensions: 4.4 x 1.3 x 7.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #898,588 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Laymon's infamous Beast House series comes to an end, January 28, 2006

By 

Matthew King (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Midnight Tour (The Beast House Chronicles) (Paperback)

Richard Laymon is easily one of the most prolific authors in horror fiction with over 50 titles published under his name. It's a bit surprising then that he has only written one series, the 3-volume Beast House chronicles, and given how good these beast house books are I certainly wish he had written other series. But hey, at least we have Beast House. This is the series that kicked off with 1980's cult classic "The Cellar", which also happens to be Richard's first-ever novel. He followed up that classic with 1985's "The Beast House" an atmospheric but ultimately rather disappointing sequel. The third novel, "The Midnight Tour" undoes the wrongs of the second novel to give us a vastly superior sequel. It's also the biggest beast house book, clocking in at over 530 pages in length which is roughly the size of the two previous installments combined. Despite the length, I can guarantee you that the pages will fly by to no end should you give this one a try.

"The Midnight Tour" takes place in 1997, roughly twenty years after the events in "The Cellar". By now, the beast house is a national attraction, drawing in tourists from all over the united states. Novels have been written about beast house, a string of cheesy horror films have been made based loosely on Beast House. And the Beast House has changed a lot from its humble beginnings as a tacky tourist trap. It's still tacky of course but now on a much bigger scale. You can visit the Beast House museum, buy Beast House t-shirts or savour some Bacon Beastburgers or Red-Hot Beastie Weenies at the Beast House snack stand. The day tours have also become more sophisticated, as you can now get an audio guided tour on earphones. But there is one Beast House tour to end all Beast House tours: The Midnight Tour. Once a week on Saturdays. Totally uncensored, no-holds-barred, no stops pulled meant for only the most hardcore of Beast House fans. You'll be lucky to get out alive...

Similar to novel #2 "The Beast House", The Midnight Tour is a little bit tame in the horror department. A great deal of time is spent developing characters and speculating about horrific happenings but not a lot of shocking things happen, unlike in Laymon's sickening debut "The Cellar". But that doesn't mean this entry isn't good, in fact it's outstanding and rights the wrongs of the second book if you ask me. Whereas the second book spent an inordinate amount of time focusing on the love lives of four tourists, this third book places the spotlight squarely back on the beast house instead. We get a full host of new characters, and interesting ones at that. I particularly liked Owen, the super Beast House fan, on a trip to Malcasa Point with his wench of a girlfriend Monica. Anyone who has ever spent anytime traveling with a nagging, domineering girlfriend will probably feel very sympathetic to his cause.

Also of particular interest are flashback chapters that recount the last 17 years of Sandy's life. Her life story peppered with incest, rape and bestiality is very shocking to read especially when told through the lens of Laymon, a master at describing perversity. It's a brilliant touch to have Sandy turn out to be the true star of the series, something unexpected when only having read The Cellar, where Sandy is but a hapless and victimized toddler. In Sandy Hayes, Laymon has created one of his most memorable characters ever. Although "The Cellar" is the only entry that on a stand-alone basis can be considered a top-ten Laymon classic, the other two entries complement the original admirably to form a truly memorable series. If you're a Laymon fan you MUST read the Beast House chronicles.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Laymon at his best., September 5, 2007

By 

Dennis Duncan (Greenfield, Tennessee United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Midnight Tour (Beast House Series) (Mass Market Paperback)

In the small California town of Malcasa Point lies an old Victorian style house that is known as The Beast House and It has a dark and murderous history. For over ninety years people who have dared enter inside its walls at night have usually been found horribly mutilated the next day. The locals say that they met their gruesome end at the hands of the Beast and on certain nights they say your can hear its evil laugh coming from the house.

Tourists have flocked to Beast House for years. They take an audio tour of the house going from room to room looking at grotesque wax figures of the victims the Beast claimed. There is also another tour that happens every Saturday night. It is called the Midnight Tour, and those who take it gets the no hold barred information about the Beast. They get to go to the parts of the house were the most gruesome events took place. Some say that the Beast still roams the house at night, and for one unlucky Midnight Tour group they will find out first hand that the Beast is more than just a legend.

The Midnight Tour is the final installment of the Beast House Chronicles and after reading it I can say that is my favorite. I loved the first two books but this is by far the best of the bunch. It drew me in on the first page and kept me hooked the whole ride. Richard Laymon has become one of my favorite Horror writers because of books like Midnight Tour. I devoured this book within three nights consumed in the dark and twisted world Mr. Laymon created. Midnight Tour is loaded with sex, gore, and nonstop action. I especially enjoyed the characters in Midnight Tour. Mr. Laymon introduces you to a bunch of new characters, but he also brings back a few from the previous installments. Midnight Tours takes place many years after Beast House but you will find out what the old characters did with their life in the years leading up to Midnight Tour. I especially enjoyed following Sandy through the years. She as been one my favorite characters throughout the Beast House Chronicles and you will find out how she spent her life from story to story.

Midnight Tour is Laymons masterpiece in my opinion. I have read most of his work but Midnight Tour is a cut above his other work. Mr. Laymon is a master of the Horror genre and I highly recommend Midnight Tour to all Horror fiction lovers. It is guaranteed to satisfy even the most jaded of fans.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Take the tour into the darkness, October 19, 2003

By 

"midgeybear" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Midnight Tour (Hardcover)

Continuing the Beast House series started by the Cellar, continuing with The Beast House and ending up here Laymon continues to write with the eloquence and sheer shock that we have come to expect.

This novel lets us greet old friends, Sandy Hayes and Janice Crogan - albeit retrospectively as Janice is vacationing with her new husband - and introduces us to a whole host of new and intriguing characters. But the big question is does the beast still exist in Malcasa Point? Is Agnes Kutch harbouring beasts in the strange house across the street even now?

The Midnight Tour is just that, an unexpurgated tour of the Beast House for 13 adults at midnight every Saturday. Such a wonderfully simplistic idea but one which you just wish you could go on. Laymon makes not only his characters come alive in this book but also the town of Malcasa Point.

You care about Eve, Tuck, Warren, Dana and Owen............heck even Dark and Vein have their good points. But when he writes nasty characters he does so with abandon and Clyde and Monica illustrate this admirably being thoroughly nasty pieces of work and you can't help but smile as they "get theirs".

Be prepared for a couple of sleepless nights as you find yourself unable to put this book down.