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The Hour Before Dark
As children, they played the Dark Game.
When Nemo Raglan's father is murdered in one of the most vicious killings of recent years, Nemo must return to the New England island he thought he had escaped for good, Burnley Island...and the shadowy farmhouse called Hawthorn. But this murder was no crime of human ferocity. What butchered Nemo's father may in fact be something far more terrifying...Something Nemo and his younger brother, Bruno, and sister, Brooke, have known since childhood.
There are secrets buried on Burnley Island.
Within the rooms of Hawthorn, beautiful Brooke Raglan has begun to go mad. She sees faces at the windows and wanders the night, trying to find what she believes is a monster.
Bruno Raglan has wiped the memory of a terrible event from his mind. Now he compulsively picks apart Hawthorn and discovers that within its walls lies a forbidden secret.
As he unravels the mysteries of his past and a terrible night of his childhood, Nemo witnesses something unimaginable, and sees the true face of evil while Burnley Island comes to know the unspeakable horror that grows in the darkness.
"Here comes a candle to light you to bed,
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head."
When Nemo Raglan's father is murdered in one of the most vicious killings of recent years, Nemo must return to the New England island he thought he had escaped for good, Burnley Island...and the shadowy farmhouse called Hawthorn. But this murder was no crime of human ferocity. What butchered Nemo's father may in fact be something far more terrifying...Something Nemo and his younger brother, Bruno, and sister, Brooke, have known since childhood.
There are secrets buried on Burnley Island.
Within the rooms of Hawthorn, beautiful Brooke Raglan has begun to go mad. She sees faces at the windows and wanders the night, trying to find what she believes is a monster.
Bruno Raglan has wiped the memory of a terrible event from his mind. Now he compulsively picks apart Hawthorn and discovers that within its walls lies a forbidden secret.
As he unravels the mysteries of his past and a terrible night of his childhood, Nemo witnesses something unimaginable, and sees the true face of evil while Burnley Island comes to know the unspeakable horror that grows in the darkness.
"Here comes a candle to light you to bed,
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head."
384 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2002
203 people are currently reading
1336 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 118 reviews
September 12, 2017
Posted at Shelf Inflicted
Nemo Raglan returns to his family home on a remote Massachusetts island after learning that his father had been brutally murdered. His sister, Brooke, was the one who found him in the smokehouse. She spent hours with him, sitting in a pool of blood. His brother, Bruno, who still lives on the island, is worried about Brooke’s deteriorating mental state as a result of her father’s slaughter. The three siblings attempt to figure out who could have butchered their father while they reconnect, discover dark family secrets, and recall old and painful memories.
The remote island with its harsh weather and provincial neighbors seems so far from the mainland that it may as well be another country. The large family home is old and creepy, with its many doors, secret compartments, and mysterious happenings.
This was a wonderfully written story, with believable and well-drawn characters that are easy to relate to, and a creepy and unsettling atmosphere. The horror is more of a psychological nature and does not rely on excessive amounts of gore.
I’m looking forward to more of Doug Clegg’s work.
Nemo Raglan returns to his family home on a remote Massachusetts island after learning that his father had been brutally murdered. His sister, Brooke, was the one who found him in the smokehouse. She spent hours with him, sitting in a pool of blood. His brother, Bruno, who still lives on the island, is worried about Brooke’s deteriorating mental state as a result of her father’s slaughter. The three siblings attempt to figure out who could have butchered their father while they reconnect, discover dark family secrets, and recall old and painful memories.
The remote island with its harsh weather and provincial neighbors seems so far from the mainland that it may as well be another country. The large family home is old and creepy, with its many doors, secret compartments, and mysterious happenings.
This was a wonderfully written story, with believable and well-drawn characters that are easy to relate to, and a creepy and unsettling atmosphere. The horror is more of a psychological nature and does not rely on excessive amounts of gore.
I’m looking forward to more of Doug Clegg’s work.
June 19, 2018
THE HOUR BEFORE DARK, by Douglas Clegg, is one of those novels that grabs you by the throat right from the start, and doesn't let go until the end. Even when some aspects of the tale seem obvious, there were always several other pieces to the puzzle that didn't quite fit in place.
"Here comes a candle to light you to bed,
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head." (Nursery rhyme)
After finding their father viciously murdered, Brooke Raglan calls her brothers, Nemo and Bruno back to Burnley Island. In particular, she summons them back to Hawthorn Farm, the rambling, complicated structure that served as the Raglans' home for centuries.
". . . Sometimes it's like a prison. It's like a place with too many doors. And none of them lead outside . . . "
I really enjoyed the characters in this novel! Clegg brings them alive so well that you feel as if they've--somehow--always been a part of your life. Even when the brothers return to their family home, it's the kind of return that feels like they've only been gone hours instead of--in Nemo's case--years. Time seems to not only stand still for the three close siblings, but even regress back into the past.
At the heart of it all lies the mysterious "Dark Game" that they used to play together in the hour just before dark.
"I had grown to hate the Dark Game . . . The more you played it, the more power you felt."
The isolation that the Raglans self-imposed on themselves seems to be a smaller scale of the lifestyle on the entire island. With the exception of summer tourists, these people keep to themselves, viewing anyone not born into a family there, an outsider. The murder of the Raglan Patriarch is the biggest news a small town like that is likely to have. I felt that this added to the complexity of the case, as people in the community are not the type to share their thoughts with others.
". . . You can spend your whole life not telling the truth about who you are inside. Life is easier that way."
While the plot deviates from present to some scenes in the family's past, subtle discrepancies are able to be picked up. The pacing, though leisurely, felt exactly right to me in an emotionally and psychologically driven novel such as this.
Overall, a great horror novel that gives you plenty to think about, characters you don't want to leave, and a setting that couldn't possibly be more ideal to set the complete scene. I feel that Clegg is one of the great masters of this genre, and this novel certainly helps to justify that opinion.
". . . It's something that exists in it. We don't play it. It plays us."
Highly recommended!
"Here comes a candle to light you to bed,
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head." (Nursery rhyme)
After finding their father viciously murdered, Brooke Raglan calls her brothers, Nemo and Bruno back to Burnley Island. In particular, she summons them back to Hawthorn Farm, the rambling, complicated structure that served as the Raglans' home for centuries.
". . . Sometimes it's like a prison. It's like a place with too many doors. And none of them lead outside . . . "
I really enjoyed the characters in this novel! Clegg brings them alive so well that you feel as if they've--somehow--always been a part of your life. Even when the brothers return to their family home, it's the kind of return that feels like they've only been gone hours instead of--in Nemo's case--years. Time seems to not only stand still for the three close siblings, but even regress back into the past.
At the heart of it all lies the mysterious "Dark Game" that they used to play together in the hour just before dark.
"I had grown to hate the Dark Game . . . The more you played it, the more power you felt."
The isolation that the Raglans self-imposed on themselves seems to be a smaller scale of the lifestyle on the entire island. With the exception of summer tourists, these people keep to themselves, viewing anyone not born into a family there, an outsider. The murder of the Raglan Patriarch is the biggest news a small town like that is likely to have. I felt that this added to the complexity of the case, as people in the community are not the type to share their thoughts with others.
". . . You can spend your whole life not telling the truth about who you are inside. Life is easier that way."
While the plot deviates from present to some scenes in the family's past, subtle discrepancies are able to be picked up. The pacing, though leisurely, felt exactly right to me in an emotionally and psychologically driven novel such as this.
Overall, a great horror novel that gives you plenty to think about, characters you don't want to leave, and a setting that couldn't possibly be more ideal to set the complete scene. I feel that Clegg is one of the great masters of this genre, and this novel certainly helps to justify that opinion.
". . . It's something that exists in it. We don't play it. It plays us."
Highly recommended!
February 15, 2016
i think i expected a lot more from Clegg, but this was by no means a bad book. the subject and setting were suitably sinister and melancholy. the central character remained passive and vaguely annoying throughout the novel. but the themes of buried trauma unearthing itself and You Can't Go Home Again were really absorbing - watching them develop is the novel's greatest attribute. the elegant restraint that Clegg appears to be noted for was certainly present...perhaps to the novel's detriment, because i found it a challenge to return to this book on a regular basis. at times the mannered portentousness was seriously aggravating as well. but overall The Hour made me interested in what else Clegg has to offer.
June 11, 2018
When the Raglan kids were younger, they use to play the Dark Game. The Dark Game was taught to them by their father. He warned the kids, never play the game after the sun went down. The Dark Game, transfers you to the world of the unknown. Bruno and Nemo, are returning to Burnley Island, upon learning about the death of their father. There sister Brooke lived with their father. She was the one who found his butchered body in the smokehouse. She sat in his blood for hours and hours, before she notified the authorities. The three Raglan kids, remember the smokehouse for one thing. It was a place where they were taken to be punished. Their mother abandon the kids, when they were very young. She took off to Brazil with another man. After Brooke finds her father dead, she starts to wander through the house every night. Brooke believes that the killer could still be in the house. Brooke's mental state is very questionable. While playing the Dark Game, there was something terrifying, that was wipe from the minds of the Raglan children. Can they discover, the deep dark secret, that is haunting their sanity? Do you believe in ghosts? The writing and the development of the characters, was really good. The only complaint that I had was, there was to much repetition. In my opinion, the author could have cut the story by at least 25 pages.
August 26, 2010
Well, Bill says that this was way scary and nothing scares him (other than giant raptors)(hee hee), so we shall see.
Well, this book is not scary at all, so I was able to have a good laugh at my husband's expense. I think that Douglass Clegg is secretly an ambitious high school student; the writing is on par with something turned in for a freshman writing composition class. It's just . . . immature, I guess. That's the only word that readily comes to mind. The ending may well have been frightening but for the way the characters reference what happened in their collective pasts. The dad tied them up in the smokehouse & slaughtered their mother in front of them & then kept them locked inside for another week - and they call it the Brain Fart, which is the stupidest phrase ever. Every time someone cried out, while gripped with horror, "It's the Brain Fart!" I lost it. Oh yes, this happens more than once. And the Dark Game is brought up so many times before we figure out what it actually is, by the time it's explained I no longer cared. What a bummer.
Well, this book is not scary at all, so I was able to have a good laugh at my husband's expense. I think that Douglass Clegg is secretly an ambitious high school student; the writing is on par with something turned in for a freshman writing composition class. It's just . . . immature, I guess. That's the only word that readily comes to mind. The ending may well have been frightening but for the way the characters reference what happened in their collective pasts. The dad tied them up in the smokehouse & slaughtered their mother in front of them & then kept them locked inside for another week - and they call it the Brain Fart, which is the stupidest phrase ever. Every time someone cried out, while gripped with horror, "It's the Brain Fart!" I lost it. Oh yes, this happens more than once. And the Dark Game is brought up so many times before we figure out what it actually is, by the time it's explained I no longer cared. What a bummer.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 12, 2010
Another great read from Clegg. For a while there he was reliably amazing with every book.
April 19, 2015
3.5
This review refers to the audiobook version.
I really enjoyed this book, but had to rate it only 3.5 since at times the novel was plodding (are we really going to go into detail about installing locks and other home improvements?), repetitive (yes, yes, your Mom went to Brazil and that sucked a lot), or just plain annoying (I could have done without awkwardly written sex scenes). Yet, the story was fairly strong and rather creepy. While I didn't really find the "mystery" wholly solved, it did wrap-up, and in comparison with most horror novels, fairly successfully. Still after all the lead-up, the ending was rather wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am and I was left sort of wondering if I had missed a chapter or two of exposition.
As far as the audio portion was concerned, the narrator seemed well-suited to this tale and I liked his occasionally employed Northeast accent. Especially for the Brooke character. Nicely done.
This review refers to the audiobook version.
I really enjoyed this book, but had to rate it only 3.5 since at times the novel was plodding (are we really going to go into detail about installing locks and other home improvements?), repetitive (yes, yes, your Mom went to Brazil and that sucked a lot), or just plain annoying (I could have done without awkwardly written sex scenes). Yet, the story was fairly strong and rather creepy. While I didn't really find the "mystery" wholly solved, it did wrap-up, and in comparison with most horror novels, fairly successfully. Still after all the lead-up, the ending was rather wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am and I was left sort of wondering if I had missed a chapter or two of exposition.
As far as the audio portion was concerned, the narrator seemed well-suited to this tale and I liked his occasionally employed Northeast accent. Especially for the Brooke character. Nicely done.
July 5, 2020
The Hour Before Dark is the book by Douglas Clegg I've enjoyed the most. (And yes I've read several.) There is a lot of atmosphere and general creepiness here. If I baldly laid out the facts of this novel (as I was telling a dear friend) you would figure it out in five seconds. But Clegg lets the story grow organically and by the time you have your Aha! moment it is too late-you are sucked into some sort of death spiral watching the inevitable unfold while you are powerless to prevent it. Clegg wrote The Hour Before Dark as an ode to Stephen King, who apparently was very encouraging to the author early in his career. I am quite enamored of any author who doesn't forget who lifted them up or showed them a kindness when they were starting out.
April 15, 2015
Oh mah God!! What a book!
I am totally hooked on Douglas Clegg's story telling! I have been a Stephen King fan for ever, never finding another author who could hold a candle to him but I have been delighted to have discovered Mr. Clegg. This was a wonderfully written spooky tale, so good it seemed believable to me and my kinetic imagination..made the hairs
on the back of my neck stand up and take notice! I'm on my way to start the next of his books I can lay my hands on. Thank You Mr.Clegg for keeping this 76 year olds mind cranking
I am totally hooked on Douglas Clegg's story telling! I have been a Stephen King fan for ever, never finding another author who could hold a candle to him but I have been delighted to have discovered Mr. Clegg. This was a wonderfully written spooky tale, so good it seemed believable to me and my kinetic imagination..made the hairs
on the back of my neck stand up and take notice! I'm on my way to start the next of his books I can lay my hands on. Thank You Mr.Clegg for keeping this 76 year olds mind cranking
September 29, 2008
I really liked this book, my first Douglass Clegg read. Nemo, Brooke, and Bruno Raglan are reunited at their childhood home of Hawthorne on Burnely Island after their father was brutally murdered in the smokehouse where they played The Dark Game when they were children. As they try to solve the mystery of their father's murder they discovery many hidden secrets at Hawthorne and many suppressed memories are revealed. I highly recommend this book, a chilling, supernatural thriller.
November 14, 2017
Tiene todo para ser filmada y puesta en Telecinco un fin de semana en la siesta. Aunque es un libro bien escrito y desarrollado.
Un joven escritor vuelve a la isla donde vivió toda su infancia, para reencontrarse con sus dos hermanos y asistir al funeral de su padre, que fue brutalmente asesinado en el ahumadero de al lado. Asistiéremos en primera persona al reencuentro con su exnovia, familiares y amigos que se quedaron en la pequeña isla. Y a la vez iremos desgranando por quién fue asesinado, descubriremos secretos y un final que se puede calificar en los “no esperados”.
Fácil, rápido, simple y entretenido.
Un joven escritor vuelve a la isla donde vivió toda su infancia, para reencontrarse con sus dos hermanos y asistir al funeral de su padre, que fue brutalmente asesinado en el ahumadero de al lado. Asistiéremos en primera persona al reencuentro con su exnovia, familiares y amigos que se quedaron en la pequeña isla. Y a la vez iremos desgranando por quién fue asesinado, descubriremos secretos y un final que se puede calificar en los “no esperados”.
Fácil, rápido, simple y entretenido.
January 17, 2021
Mind-numbing fluff and filler...
I am speechless that anyone would rate this novel 5, 4 or even 3 stars. This book was so bad that I stopped reading it at 91% (just a few pages before the end). The first 50% was
nothing but fluff and filler. Most of it could have been told in just a few paragraphs! This author, in my opinion, hasn't written a good book since "Neverland".
There are similarities between this novel and "Neverland "; the shack and the smokehouse, the evil games played inside each structure at dusk by children, the ancestral home on an island, screwed up adults... but this version was mind numbingly dull.
Please read "Neverland". It is a superior novel with depth of characters...but come on don't tout this boring fluff & filler as horror.
Goes straight into my So So bin on my Kindle.
I am speechless that anyone would rate this novel 5, 4 or even 3 stars. This book was so bad that I stopped reading it at 91% (just a few pages before the end). The first 50% was
nothing but fluff and filler. Most of it could have been told in just a few paragraphs! This author, in my opinion, hasn't written a good book since "Neverland".
There are similarities between this novel and "Neverland "; the shack and the smokehouse, the evil games played inside each structure at dusk by children, the ancestral home on an island, screwed up adults... but this version was mind numbingly dull.
Please read "Neverland". It is a superior novel with depth of characters...but come on don't tout this boring fluff & filler as horror.
Goes straight into my So So bin on my Kindle.
May 19, 2009
A traditional setting for a horror story (windblown New England island, wintertime, qurky native background characters) gets upgraded with complex main characters. Three siblings come together when their father is murdered to lend support to each other and discover that there might not always be safety in numbers. One of the key mysteries in their younger days was a bit implausable, I thought, until it's revealed that it was a neccesary conceit for the bigger mystery. Once that was clear, I could suspend all disbelief and go along for what turned out to be a darn scary ride. My favorite element of the story was the house they lived in, however. I've been in houses like that, and they all seemed to be horror stories just waiting to be told.
February 12, 2007
I'd actually say this book is more of a 4.5 on the creepiness scale.
Nemo Raglan returns to his childhood home on a remote island off Massachusetts. His father has been found slaughtered in a smokehouse on the estate grounds. Weird things are definitely afoot. THe killer has left no trace and thus no clues; but then much about the estate and Nemo and his siblings is strange, particularly the game they played as children, a risky form of mind-projection taught them by their father, who used it as a POW; it allowed them to explore worlds known and unknown.
Nemo Raglan returns to his childhood home on a remote island off Massachusetts. His father has been found slaughtered in a smokehouse on the estate grounds. Weird things are definitely afoot. THe killer has left no trace and thus no clues; but then much about the estate and Nemo and his siblings is strange, particularly the game they played as children, a risky form of mind-projection taught them by their father, who used it as a POW; it allowed them to explore worlds known and unknown.
May 24, 2017
I give this 3.5 stars because though the plot had some definite high points, such as the concept of the Dark Game (kinda creepy) and the characters were well done, but also some low points. For me the low was that the story was a little slow & the horror element was not really all I thought it was going to be. I found it to be more of a murder mystery with a peppering of horror. Not really a bad book, but my first book from Clegg. Undecided if I want to read his other books, but I will try based on their reviews.
March 10, 2017
Compelling throughout. The only downside for me was that it often seemed reptitive; the main character said the same thing over and over throughout the story. Other than that, I thought it was a good story, pretty well developed characters. I knew 'who did it' fairly early on, but as another reviewer mentioned, I enjoyed the ride getting to that discovery. I would be interested in reading another of Clegg's books.
June 30, 2018
The hour before
Would have given this five stars because I enjoyed the premise and the characters. However, I felt the author over used text breaks and decorative ornaments denote them. About 80% of the time they were unnecessary.
I also found the writers choice to use the phrase "Brain Fart" repeated
to refer to the childhood trauma was a silly choice. It broke the suspense for me personally.
Would have given this five stars because I enjoyed the premise and the characters. However, I felt the author over used text breaks and decorative ornaments denote them. About 80% of the time they were unnecessary.
I also found the writers choice to use the phrase "Brain Fart" repeated
to refer to the childhood trauma was a silly choice. It broke the suspense for me personally.
October 9, 2018
A flawless complicated plot. Will keep you reading on until it's finished. Creepy
January 23, 2021
Más que la sinopsis, fue el título del libro lo que llamó mi atención. Preferí no leer las reseñas y deliberar por mi misma qué me ha parecido la historia, y he de decir que, por una vez, debí leer las valoraciones antes de meterme en faena porque me habría ahorrado un tiempo precioso.
Valoro mucho las descripciones del autor, pues me permitió imaginar los diferentes lugares donde se desarrolla la trama, al igual que el aspecto físico de los personajes importantes.
Lamentablemente, esto es lo único positivo que yo he podido sacar de esta historia.
-''Olor a hembra''
Cuando me topé con la forma en la que describe Nemo, personaje principal que nos cuenta la historia, el aroma que desprende la mujer que duerme en su cama, tuve que buscar en internet qué significaba la palabra almizcle. Entre este hallazgo y el ''olor a hembra'', no sabía si echarme a reír o poner cara de haber chupado un limón.
-Repetición de ''dijo''.
Quizás se deba a la traducción, lo desconozco. Pero se me hizo horriblemente pesado que en los diálogos siempre apareciera ''dijo''. Bruno dijo, yo dije, él dijo, dijo, etc.
-Diálogos fríos.
Sentí que eran pobres y vacíos. Tampoco esperaba una efusividad increíble por parte de los hermanos, pero sentí que eran muy fríos cuando hablaban los unos con los otros. No había emociones, solo texto. La única que si mostraba su tristeza y amargura en ciertos momentos era Brooke.
-Ritmo lento.
Confieso que llegué a un punto en el que no sabía si abandonar el libro u obligarme a seguir leyéndolo. Lo más importante de la historia, el misterio que gira entorno a la familia y los sucesos extraños, ocurren al final del libro. En las primeras hojas lo único que te motiva a seguir leyendo es el hecho de descubrir quién es el asesino (aunque se intuye quién es desde el primer momento en que se menciona a ese personaje). Pero llega un punto en el que te aburre.
Creo que esta historia no funciona como libro, pero sí daría muy buenos resultados como mini serie o película de televisión.
Aunque esta dramática historia familiar no haya sido de mi agrado, me gustaría leer otro libro de este autor. Eso sí, primero miraré en internet las reseñas para ver cuál me motiva más.
Valoro mucho las descripciones del autor, pues me permitió imaginar los diferentes lugares donde se desarrolla la trama, al igual que el aspecto físico de los personajes importantes.
Lamentablemente, esto es lo único positivo que yo he podido sacar de esta historia.
-''Olor a hembra''
Cuando me topé con la forma en la que describe Nemo, personaje principal que nos cuenta la historia, el aroma que desprende la mujer que duerme en su cama, tuve que buscar en internet qué significaba la palabra almizcle. Entre este hallazgo y el ''olor a hembra'', no sabía si echarme a reír o poner cara de haber chupado un limón.
-Repetición de ''dijo''.
Quizás se deba a la traducción, lo desconozco. Pero se me hizo horriblemente pesado que en los diálogos siempre apareciera ''dijo''. Bruno dijo, yo dije, él dijo, dijo, etc.
-Diálogos fríos.
Sentí que eran pobres y vacíos. Tampoco esperaba una efusividad increíble por parte de los hermanos, pero sentí que eran muy fríos cuando hablaban los unos con los otros. No había emociones, solo texto. La única que si mostraba su tristeza y amargura en ciertos momentos era Brooke.
-Ritmo lento.
Confieso que llegué a un punto en el que no sabía si abandonar el libro u obligarme a seguir leyéndolo. Lo más importante de la historia, el misterio que gira entorno a la familia y los sucesos extraños, ocurren al final del libro. En las primeras hojas lo único que te motiva a seguir leyendo es el hecho de descubrir quién es el asesino (aunque se intuye quién es desde el primer momento en que se menciona a ese personaje). Pero llega un punto en el que te aburre.
Creo que esta historia no funciona como libro, pero sí daría muy buenos resultados como mini serie o película de televisión.
Aunque esta dramática historia familiar no haya sido de mi agrado, me gustaría leer otro libro de este autor. Eso sí, primero miraré en internet las reseñas para ver cuál me motiva más.
June 25, 2018
Supernatural Mystery & Horror Lite
I was expecting horror and dread from this book, because many reviewers who awarded it 5 stars mentioned the horror component. This book had a slow pace and featured a predictable, supernatural mystery. The armchair detective in me wanted to expose and solve the mystery, which I did sooner than I expected.
The ominous setting on a winter-desolate island cloaked by fog is perfect for a supernatural mystery novel, as is the ominous old house that the characters live in.
I found it difficult to empathize with the characters, including the protagonist, who indulges in lengthy interior monologues, which became tiresome after a while.
The supernatural elements begin to pick up at about the 50% mark, which improves the story. The last 25% of the book is well-paced and more enjoyable. However, part #8 of the overly overextended epilogue was not only predictable, it was a cliche.
I was expecting horror and dread from this book, because many reviewers who awarded it 5 stars mentioned the horror component. This book had a slow pace and featured a predictable, supernatural mystery. The armchair detective in me wanted to expose and solve the mystery, which I did sooner than I expected.
The ominous setting on a winter-desolate island cloaked by fog is perfect for a supernatural mystery novel, as is the ominous old house that the characters live in.
I found it difficult to empathize with the characters, including the protagonist, who indulges in lengthy interior monologues, which became tiresome after a while.
The supernatural elements begin to pick up at about the 50% mark, which improves the story. The last 25% of the book is well-paced and more enjoyable. However, part #8 of the overly overextended epilogue was not only predictable, it was a cliche.
May 4, 2024
Writing is very atmospheric, but plot falls apart and becomes mind numbingly boring after the first 4 chapters, but I persevered, hoping something would actually happen in what is supposed to be an “unputdownable” thriller. It makes me mad when there’s all that hype on the book jacket blurbs and then the novel just completely falls flat. But I hung in there hoping the ending would reward my effort; sadly, and most definitely “NO.” No joy in Mudville for this reader. (Pout)
Dumb dumb dumb. Stephen King’s got nothing to worry about being unseated by this particular author. Did I say it was dumb? Dumb dumb……dumb.
Dumb dumb dumb. Stephen King’s got nothing to worry about being unseated by this particular author. Did I say it was dumb? Dumb dumb……dumb.
February 25, 2020
Beyond the Magic Hour—Terror!
After years of voluntary absence from his family, Nemo Raglan must return home. Burnley Island sits off of coastal Rhode Island, partly isolated, and home to vicious storms. The maze-like Raglan family home, Hawthorn, sits there, full of secrets.
During one such storm, Geordie Raglan, head of an ancient family, is brutally murdered in Hawthorn’s seldom used smoke house, where once meat was hung and cured. And where, a lifetime ago, Nemo, his brother Bruno, and mentally ill beautiful sister, Brooke, once played The Dark Game. At the worst of times, the three held hands and entered another, better world. But the twilight Game wasn’t meant to be played after dark.
Now, Nemo, reunited with his siblings, tries to unravel the secrets of his childhood, in the hope that he can catch his father’s murderer—a father whom he has only golden memories about, but that he never quite loved the way he should have.
The murderer seems a being whose stealth in dispatching Geordie Raglan borders on the supernatural. A strange woman appears about the house. And Nemo’s memories are finally opening up, revealing horrors he never believed in.
Clegg’s style and voice, though not as fully developed in this earlier novel as in his more recent works, moves the plot along with the sparest prose. There are very few spans that an impatient reader might find boring, and though there is the odd red herring, the gradual unraveling of dark secrets generally leads the reader to a satisfyingly sinister denouement. THE HOUR BEFORE DARK can be an unnerving read, so to use an oft-employed cliché, you might want to read with all the lights on.
NOTE:Clegg’s novella, “The Dark Game,” should be read AFTER The Hour Before Dark, not before.
After years of voluntary absence from his family, Nemo Raglan must return home. Burnley Island sits off of coastal Rhode Island, partly isolated, and home to vicious storms. The maze-like Raglan family home, Hawthorn, sits there, full of secrets.
During one such storm, Geordie Raglan, head of an ancient family, is brutally murdered in Hawthorn’s seldom used smoke house, where once meat was hung and cured. And where, a lifetime ago, Nemo, his brother Bruno, and mentally ill beautiful sister, Brooke, once played The Dark Game. At the worst of times, the three held hands and entered another, better world. But the twilight Game wasn’t meant to be played after dark.
Now, Nemo, reunited with his siblings, tries to unravel the secrets of his childhood, in the hope that he can catch his father’s murderer—a father whom he has only golden memories about, but that he never quite loved the way he should have.
The murderer seems a being whose stealth in dispatching Geordie Raglan borders on the supernatural. A strange woman appears about the house. And Nemo’s memories are finally opening up, revealing horrors he never believed in.
Clegg’s style and voice, though not as fully developed in this earlier novel as in his more recent works, moves the plot along with the sparest prose. There are very few spans that an impatient reader might find boring, and though there is the odd red herring, the gradual unraveling of dark secrets generally leads the reader to a satisfyingly sinister denouement. THE HOUR BEFORE DARK can be an unnerving read, so to use an oft-employed cliché, you might want to read with all the lights on.
NOTE:Clegg’s novella, “The Dark Game,” should be read AFTER The Hour Before Dark, not before.
June 3, 2018
This book had some twists and turns that I wasn't expecting and was pleasantly surprised by. I'm a big Douglas Clegg fan and have read several of his books; this one, so far, is my favorite. I really like the detail that Clegg puts into his novels, occasionally they can get a bit long-winded, but this one was a bit faster paced to me with no moments seeming to drag on a bit too long. I highly recommend it.
January 17, 2019
Easy read, but pretty bland
This is one of those books that keeps you reading even though nothing is really happening. Lots of talking about what happened in the past and reactions to a single event in the present, before things started kicking into gear about 75% into the book.
I also found the writing style a little juvenile for my taste, and I'm not into pretentious books at all, so that says something.
I did enjoy it, but was just a bit meh.
This is one of those books that keeps you reading even though nothing is really happening. Lots of talking about what happened in the past and reactions to a single event in the present, before things started kicking into gear about 75% into the book.
I also found the writing style a little juvenile for my taste, and I'm not into pretentious books at all, so that says something.
I did enjoy it, but was just a bit meh.
August 17, 2018
Nemo Raglan returns to the small New England island that he was raised on after the extremely brutal murder of his father. What starts out as a who dunnit turns into an extremely haunting story beyond your run of he mill murder mystery. I enjoy reading books by Douglas Clegg, and this was no exception. I don't want to include a synopsis of the plot, as I do not want to ruin it for anyone.
September 4, 2019
Scary from the first to the last.
Douglas Clegg knows his way around the genre and writes like a master. Part murder mystery and part horror, it explores uncomfortable real-life topics like dysfunctional families and small tourist town life along the way. This is going in my 'fave' folder.
Douglas Clegg knows his way around the genre and writes like a master. Part murder mystery and part horror, it explores uncomfortable real-life topics like dysfunctional families and small tourist town life along the way. This is going in my 'fave' folder.
March 20, 2021
Book 24/75: The Hour Before Dark by Douglas Clegg. It felt right to dive in a horror novel once again. It's like visiting an old friend, the genre that truly kickstarted my love of reading. This read quite easily enough, and I absolutely adored the dark and mysterious secrets that unveiled itself as the past was unraveling for our main character.
November 13, 2022
This was the second book I have read by him. Such a disappointment from the first. He talks about Stephen King in the forward basically dedicating it to him. This book is not horror or anything like King's books. Its boring until around page 275. At that point it got semi interesting but I had figured it out by that point.
September 19, 2024
I wasn’t particularly impressed. It was an ok book. The story was a bit predictable. I kind of knew where it was heading halfway through and I wasn’t surprised to see that though I may have had a few details incorrect I wasn’t far off. Not too shabby for a quick read, but certainly not going to break any top lists. A cozy mystery a best.
July 20, 2017
My review on The Hour Before Dark
I really enjoyed this book. It was scary and well told. I couldn't put it down. I like this author because I have read his books before and he has not disappointed me.
I really enjoyed this book. It was scary and well told. I couldn't put it down. I like this author because I have read his books before and he has not disappointed me.
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