Customer Reviews

The Pink Room

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I generally don't read horror, but I work with this author and really wanted to see if his book was as good as his newspaper columns. So I lit every light in the room (on a sunny day) and dove in. I was expecting something unusual from a guy who has his desk decorated for Halloween 365 days a year, and I got it. Wonderfully written and way too real for this scaredy cat. Eeek!

When I received this book, I immediately sat down to begin reading it. Part of the rush was that my daughter was waiting with bated breath to read it as well, the second part of the rush was that I had heard so much about the book that all else had to be put on hold until I finished The Pink Room.

The Pink Room lived up to all the hype that I had heard from various people about how good it was, what a page turner it was, etc. I live in an older house and as I sat down to read The Pink Room, the house decided to settle in ways that it had never done before-or since. I kept looking over my shoulder as I turned each page and even my pets (1 dog, 3 cats) were eerily quiet that day-maybe they were afraid that they would be included in Mark's next book.

I highly recommend this book to anyone that is interested in the horror genre. The ending was a surprise, but fit in well with the story. For anyone that is interested, Mark has a new e-book out, Red Sox 2086. It's available for download from Mark's website, www.marklaflamme.com and worth the cost of the download.

I'm anxiously awaiting Mark's next book. I know that it will be just as good, if not better, than The Pink Room was.

Do you enjoy a good scary story that weaves elements of science and horror yet stays traditional without too much techno slang? If yes, then this is the book for you. In The Pink Room, talented author Mark LaFlamme takes cosmology, quantum mechanics, and the string theory and mixes them with the supernatural to create a compelling scenario that will both pull at your heart strings and chill your blood.

The story begins as the protagonist, well-known horror author Jonathan Cain, moves for the summer to a mysterious Second-Empire-styled house bordered by woods in the small town of Mulberry, Maine. Though most believe that the author is there to write, Cain has his own hidden agenda.

For a short time, the house used to be the home of the world's top physicist Theodore Currie, who had built it himself following some very detailed and strange specifications, complete with the turret tower--or the `pink room'--which happens to be an exact replica of his little daughter's room before she died. Currie also had a hidden agenda--he believed he could bring back his beloved little girl. That is, until his dead body was found filled with bites in the woods nearby the house...

Now, Cain is sure he can succeed at what Currie failed, and that is to bring his beloved Kimberly back from the dead and make her stay....

The Pink Room is one of those books you won't like to read alone at night. It will make you look over your shoulder and go jumpy. The little town, the dense woods, and especially the house all add to create an excellent atmosphere of darkness and threat. The novel touches the reader intellectually and emotionally, making it all the more terrifying. Though LaFlamme uses the science to add depth, he doesn't let it get in the way of the story with too much heavy vocabulary. The pace is fast, the characters' motivations real, and the suspense doesn't let down. LaFlamme has a real talent for knowing what resides in the mind of the horror author. This novel will be thoroughly enjoyed by fans of the genre, as well as by horror authors themselves. Highly recommended.

A double dose of horror that will chill you to the bone! Gripping story! Extremely talented author!

Author Mark LaFlamme's debut novel is fantastic. You won't be able to put it down, and I guarantee you'll keep turning pages long after the "witching" hour. What a masterful horror writer!!

The strange house in this story is conceived from the mind of a character mourning the loss of his young daughter, and the ghosts that inhabit it are more spooky than any that have rampaged through your worst nightmares. The pink room at the top of the turret holds its own secrets that will make you gasp with fright. Where is the man? What does a doll-house have to do with the house? And a musical snow dome? And why does our main character inhabit it after the man's death? Who is the mysterious owner of the house? Just what is going on there?

But I don't want to give any of the plot of this shocker away, so I'll leave those questions for you to RFY (read for yourself), and simply state my opinion about why I think this author has such a bright future in the literary field:

Mark LaFlamme has an excellent command of the English language and his similes are every writer's dream; perfect ... as is everything else about this book! The twists and turns in this story are so well-paced they punch you in the gut at just the right place; the dialogue is realistic; and the plot is unique ... a real grabber! The main protagonist is very likable and so fleshed-out that I felt like I knew him. Even though his obsession was maddening at times, it was very believable. I worried about him throughout the book, and really cared what happened to him.

LaFlamme paints a vivid picture of rural Maine and its people. His characters are original, with each minor character having unique characteristics, perfectly suited to the mood and setting of this fine piece of literature. If this book ever becomes a movie--and it should--the little girl will steal the show. Her frightening part will horrify you.

The ending of this book is a stroke of genius. The very last line is a shocker in itself; it will halt your mind for a split second as the significance seeps in. First I gasped ... then I said: AH-HA!!! What an ending!!

In my opinion, FaFlamme and horror stories go together like ... Well, like Dean Koontz, John Saul, and Stephen King combined. Yes, LaFlamme is THAT good and deserves to be right up there with those terrific horror writers.

As an aside, the book cover is a sinister work of art; it lured me as surely as a creative movie poster lures me into the movie theater. The small book-cover icon on this Amazon page (top, left) does not do the cover justice, so a clearer version is directly beneath that one. To view the cover so that you can see the little girl lurking in the background and clearer details of the "mystery" house, simply run your cursor over the middle photo and it will pop up in the main slot. You'll be glad you did. What a remarkable, descriptive cover.

I highly recommend this book, and can't wait for the next one. Hurry up, Mark!

I am not too much of a fan of horror, more info sci-fi. But I really liked this book. I found this book while reading the author's Amazon review on string theory. The string theory angle is very well done.

The very descriptive language used by the author really pulls the reader deep into the story. Its very scary, and a very unexpected(to me anyway) plot. The witching hour was great.

Its also interesting, and a little scary, that much of the book is based in a real scientific theory.

I can't believe this is this author's first book! I found it almost flawless. He's great at plot, description, dialogue, pacing ... all the writing skills that make for a smooth, exciting, fast-paced story.

Mark LaFlamme certainly knows how to bring out the deeper emotions in his readers. He's really good! He made me cry, he made me angry, he made me laugh ... but most important in a horror story, he made me WAIT. And then he zapped me with the horrors that made me fear for his characters. His style transported me into his story with such subtle writing that I even feared for my own life.

I couldn't put this book down, and when I did, needless to say, I couldn't sleep upstairs. I had to sleep on the first floor of my house. (Read for yourself to find out why.)

Wow!

"The Pink Room is a place where lost loves come home. And you can't send them back."

The Pink Room presents a strange mix of suspense, horror, and science both real and fictional. The story is a bit slow, but builds to multiple climaxes through out the storyline, filling the reader in a little more as the overall plot progresses. Some of the minor storylines may seem insignificant at first, but LaFamme does a great job of bringing all of the little pieces together by the end of the book, drawing a scarily complete picture of what could happen when science and religion collide.

The world's top physicist dies after conducting strange experiments at an isolated country house. A lonely writer, morning his wife and looking for a story, gets permission to stay in the house and try to learn its secrets. At the same time, the U.S. government has agents in the area, watching the writer, and with an unknown agenda.

Quantum physics forms the base of the story. But don't worry, what little science is discussed is easily absorbed by a layman. The book starts off with an event almost a century in the past, and instantly catches the attention of the reader with the strange tale. This historical reference lends credence to other events through out the book and will definitely stand out in the mind of the reader.

Mark LaFamme has done an excellent job of taking cutting edge science and molding it into a believable as well as enjoyable tale. With a well crafted plot and characters that will remind the reader of people they know, memories of "The Pink Room" will linger with the reader long after the last page is finish. I highly recommend this book for anyone that enjoys a bit of science mixed with their suspense or for someone looking for a title a bit off the beaten path.

If you like a good scare, you'll love this book. With a creepy Maine setting (which has certainly worked for Stephen King)and a very readable style this story will make you think twice about opening closet doors or visiting the basement. It's full of shivers down your spine but the best one comes on the last page. Definitely worth reading.

I just finished reading the Pink Room. I COULD NOT put it down. What an excellent book! This author is better than Stephen King! He gets to the story quickly and keeps your attention throughout the whole story. I will recommend this book to everyone I know. Nice job, Mr. LaFlamme. When can we look forward to your next book?

A book so enveloping, it makes you forget about the world around you! Excellent writing. You'll only put it down to eat and sleep.