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Orson Scott Card knows how to write a thriller. Just take a peek at his 1998 novel, Homebody. The book tells the story of Don Lark, a contractor with a past that haunts his every step. No matter how hard he tries, he can't forget his drug-addicted ex-wife who got herself and their daughter killed in a car wreck. He numbs himself with work, laboring tirelessly to fix up rundown houses, which he then sells for a tidy profit. When Don drives by the Bellamy mansion, a crumbling structure on a grimy street of Greensboro, North Carolina, he knows he has found his newest project. He buys the eyesore and immediately sets to work. He soon finds himself attracted to his spunky real estate agent, charmed by the trio of elderly women next door who seem to have an endless supply of food for him, and protecting Sylvie, the irritating homeless woman who insists on staying in the mansion which has been her home for years. As Don continues renovating the building, strange things begin to happen. The women next door beg him to destroy the house and the ancient evil that lurks within, his tools keep disappearing from their places, and Sylvie creeps him out with her sinister attachment to the old mansion. When Don finds an old slave tunnel beneath the Bellamy home, he knows this is where the answers lie. A horrifying discovery forces Don to acknowledge the mansion's wicked past. As the house threatens to swallow up all the good around it, Don must make a life-threatening decision between his new friends and the house of his dreams.
Card also knows how to create compelling characters that buzz with life, snaring the reader into caring how they fare. Don Lark immediately inspires sympathy because of his tragic past. However, he also gains the reader's respect as he emerges from the pages as a kind man, who protects his friends and anyone else who crawls under his wing. He is a strong, good man, definitely the hero of this chilling tale. The neighbor ladies are hilarious in their eccentricities, but they also hide sad pasts and crippling fears that make them as vulnerable as anyone else. Sylvie also shines as a strong character despite her own tragic background. Along with the good characters, the book is definitely peopled with enough scums and slime balls to keep it interesting. Then, of course, there is the house which displays a definite personality of its own. Go To Page: 1 2
The copyright of the article Card's Haunted House Story Thrills and Chills in Mormon (LDS) Literature is owned by . Permission to republish Card's Haunted House Story Thrills and Chills in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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