Product Description

An incredible haunted house novel from William Peter Blatty, the legendary author of The Exorcist! Disturbing, unsettling, chilling, and laced with a nasty streak of dark humor, Elsewhere is a must-have for all fans of dark fiction! Sure to become a time-honored classic in the genre!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #201996 in Books
• Published on: 2009-05-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 220 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Horror old-timer Blatty (The Exorcist) takes a new route down an old road in this disorienting tale. Realtor Joan Freeboard, trying to dispel the title mansion's creepy reputation, arranges for a psychic, a parapsychologist and a noted author to move into Elsewhere with her and declare it ghost-free. Isolated by a storm from civilization, they become absorbed by the house and its growing sense of strangeness; exploring its secrets exposes their own. Ultimately, Elsewhere forces them to accept the individual realities that they have created for themselves. Blatty neatly entwines the twin branches of psychological and supernatural horror, and save for a late scene of violence, the work is more life-affirming than shocking. Includes otherworldly b&w illus by Alex McVey. (Mar.)
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Review
"...a witty ghost story of Jamesian complexity." -- The Boston Herald

"...an eerie new novel by William Peter Blatty." -- Library Journal

"...may be the first truly original haunted house story in decades." -- Denver Rocky Mountain News

"Innovatively constructed and skillfully written, the short novel is witty, scary, touching and thought-provoking." -- Chicago Tribune

"William Peter Blatty's excellent haunted house/ghost story, Elsewhere, certainly brings into question Stephen King's recent assertion... that the traditional ghost story is dead. It's Topper-like ending even injects an appropriate dash of humour." -- Michael Revel Reviews

About the Author
William Peter Blatty is the author of The Exorcist, The Ninth Configuration, Legion, and many other books and numerous screenplays.

Customer Reviews

An atmospheric read.
Elsewhere is the first William Peter Blatty novel that I've read since the Exorcist, which I read after seeing the movie. Though not a long book at just over 200 pages, Elsewhere's story will make you feel it's much longer.....but in a good way.

Okay, there are a few clichés used in delivering up the story, but don't let that keep you from enjoying the story. I mean, if you've read enough of these stories, every device an author uses can seem like a cliché.

Elsewhere is a house and it has a problem. On the real estate market for an extended period the house is hard to move because it has a reputation of being haunted. Enter Joan Freeboard, a realtor who decides to prove the house is free of spirits. She recruits a psychic, a parapsychologist, and an author to spend some time in the house and deliver the verdict that all is okay with the manor. And all does go well, for a time.

I believe that Elsewhere is more a psychological thriller than a mere ghost story, but it does pretty well on the latter. Elsewhere is well written but I had a hard time really getting to know the characters. There are a number of twists in the story, not so many as to make the story seem phony or contrived, but enough to make the read rewarding and interesting.

William Peter Blatty certainly isn't a stranger to well written stories. "Exorcist" on anyone's resume speaks loud and clear. Is Elsewhere that good? Read it and see for yourself.

Peace always.

excellent haunted house tale
The old mansion Elsewhere in Craven's Cove up the Hudson from NYC has a haunting reputation that makes it difficult to sell. Thus thirtyish Manhattan realtor Joan Freeboard hits on a unique idea to try to find a buyer for what has become a mausoleum. She persuades British psychic Anna Trawley, NYU parapsychologist Dr. Gabriel Case and renowned but currently wordless author Terrence Dare to accompany her inside of Elsewhere to prove there are no ghosts.

As the quartet settle inside of Elsewhere, a nasty storm strands them there. Meanwhile, each member of the team feels isolated from the others yet shares in common a growing sense of belonging to the mansion. As they learn the secret of the house, their personal secrets are exposed; each visitor has protected their egos with customized realisms.

In many ways this excellent haunted house tale is a psychological suspense thriller as much of the story line (except for the climax) follows the quartet as the house coaxes them to reveal their secrets. Illustrations by Alex McVey add depth to the atmosphere of pending doom. Fans of Peter Blatty will welcome his fresh approach of psychological paranormal paradigm twist to the haunted house horror sub-genre.

Harriet Klausner