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Nightmare
On a remote ranch deep in the Flint Hills at a clinic for women diagnosed with multiple personality disorder, patients are dying in extremely violent ways. The staff has invited Dr. Bryan Raleigh and his team, along with his journalist brother, David, to write about the clinic, and from the moment of their arrival they begin unwillingly to unravel secrets about the family who owns the ranch, including a strange blood ritual practiced by the hemophiliac son and even more bizarre rites performed by the grotesque, voyeuristic wife of the clinic's director. Soon David and the others begin to suspect the rude, imperious woman who never leaves the third floor may be somehow responsible for the deaths of traumatized patients dying one by one, and the closer they get to the truth, the bigger the threat becomes to their own safety.
249 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 29, 1992
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 4, 2020
(Full review 4/19/20)
Equal parts mystery-thriller and horror, Nightmare kept me engaged and intrigued throughout its entirety. In some ways it's a pretty standard novel of its type and from the era, but the many bizarre characters and fast pace bump it up a notch for me, especially when compared to the majority of Leisure novels from the early 90s*.
It's about a clinic for women with multiple personality disorder in Kansas. Well, I say clinic, but it's more like a giant mansion. Journalist David Raleigh has been invited to stay and write a book about the supposed great progress being done there by Dr. Guerin. David is joined on his visit by his Oprah-loving parrot, his asshole psychologist brother, and a couple of his brother's assistants, the shy Kate and the brazen Mel.
These guests soon start to realize something very odd is going on at this clinic, and has been for a while, it seems. For one, the patients have a nasty habit of killing themselves in pretty grotesque ways, and someone or something -- either inside their heads or outside -- appears to be telling them to do it. For another, the head doctor and his bedridden, voyeuristic wife, as well as the rest of the hospital staff all seem to be hiding something and exhibit behaviors almost as weird as the patients at times. But then why invite guests for a long stay, especially a journalist who's job, naturally, entails trying to get to the bottom of things? And David, along with possible love interest Kate, mean to do just that. Hopefully they make it out sans body bags.
This is a good read if you're looking for constant plot-progression, mysteries with revelations that lead to more mysteries, and just an overall fun, over-the-top read that's consistently suspenseful, and keeps you wondering what in the world is going on. Supernatural or no? I'm not telling. I will say it's not a deep thinker, but you probably already figured that out. By the way, I'd recommend reading the original early 90s printings of this, as I noticed while I was going back and forth between my Kindle version and '93 paperback that the E-book is one of those unfortunate, "updated" versions that includes more modern references -- sometimes. More modern tech -- sometimes. It's very inconsistent, and certain parts are edited out entirely. I had to start the entire book over and just stick with the Leisure paperback.
I'd say it was worth it. Just be prepared for some pure insanity. Character-wise and story-wise.
4.0 Stars.
*I feel the quality of Leisure titles greatly improved starting in the late 90s, after the horror genre went bust and they were pretty much the only bigger publisher releasing these types of books. But, well, you know, that's just like, uh, my opinion, man.
Equal parts mystery-thriller and horror, Nightmare kept me engaged and intrigued throughout its entirety. In some ways it's a pretty standard novel of its type and from the era, but the many bizarre characters and fast pace bump it up a notch for me, especially when compared to the majority of Leisure novels from the early 90s*.
It's about a clinic for women with multiple personality disorder in Kansas. Well, I say clinic, but it's more like a giant mansion. Journalist David Raleigh has been invited to stay and write a book about the supposed great progress being done there by Dr. Guerin. David is joined on his visit by his Oprah-loving parrot, his asshole psychologist brother, and a couple of his brother's assistants, the shy Kate and the brazen Mel.
These guests soon start to realize something very odd is going on at this clinic, and has been for a while, it seems. For one, the patients have a nasty habit of killing themselves in pretty grotesque ways, and someone or something -- either inside their heads or outside -- appears to be telling them to do it. For another, the head doctor and his bedridden, voyeuristic wife, as well as the rest of the hospital staff all seem to be hiding something and exhibit behaviors almost as weird as the patients at times. But then why invite guests for a long stay, especially a journalist who's job, naturally, entails trying to get to the bottom of things? And David, along with possible love interest Kate, mean to do just that. Hopefully they make it out sans body bags.
This is a good read if you're looking for constant plot-progression, mysteries with revelations that lead to more mysteries, and just an overall fun, over-the-top read that's consistently suspenseful, and keeps you wondering what in the world is going on. Supernatural or no? I'm not telling. I will say it's not a deep thinker, but you probably already figured that out. By the way, I'd recommend reading the original early 90s printings of this, as I noticed while I was going back and forth between my Kindle version and '93 paperback that the E-book is one of those unfortunate, "updated" versions that includes more modern references -- sometimes. More modern tech -- sometimes. It's very inconsistent, and certain parts are edited out entirely. I had to start the entire book over and just stick with the Leisure paperback.
I'd say it was worth it. Just be prepared for some pure insanity. Character-wise and story-wise.
4.0 Stars.
*I feel the quality of Leisure titles greatly improved starting in the late 90s, after the horror genre went bust and they were pretty much the only bigger publisher releasing these types of books. But, well, you know, that's just like, uh, my opinion, man.
December 7, 2023
Another fun, intriguing and spooky novel by Epperson, who seems to be one of the better kept secrets out there in the horror genre. Nightmare starts with our main protagonist, David, coming to visit his older brother Bryan, 'the golden boy', at the mental hospital he works at. To say the two brothers are estranged would be an understatement. While Bryan became a successful shrink, David travels the world as an investigative reporter among other things, like travelling with a band and writing up their story. In any case, Bryan just got an offer to help at a private mental clinic in Kansas (he specializes in 'multiples', e.g., people with multiple personalities) but oddly enough, the doctor who Bryan will be working with asked (or basically insisted) that David come along as well, to write up an biography or something on the doctor. David reluctantly agrees and soon they are off.
The private asylum is a huge old ranch, with about a dozen patients, but we know something is off right away-- the body they espied in the middle of a lake on the property when flying in is a dead giveaway. You would think this would be about, or feature, the mental patients, but they serve basically as a backdrop to the real story. What is the real story? No spoilers, so I will say no more, except that the owners of the property are a little strange. Besides the doctor who runs it, there is his wife, a massively obese woman, who states to one and all that she is being kept prisoner in her room, and their son, a creepy guy with a sexual fascination with guns.
As usual, Epperson builds a great cast of characters with her economical prose (no endless descriptions of eye color, etc.) and builds the tension nicely as the novel progresses. While billed as horror, perhaps thriller would be more apt, and Epperson certainly paces the novel like a thriller in any case. Lots of fun twists and turns and the denouement did not disappoint. 3.5 multiple stars, rounding up!
The private asylum is a huge old ranch, with about a dozen patients, but we know something is off right away-- the body they espied in the middle of a lake on the property when flying in is a dead giveaway. You would think this would be about, or feature, the mental patients, but they serve basically as a backdrop to the real story. What is the real story? No spoilers, so I will say no more, except that the owners of the property are a little strange. Besides the doctor who runs it, there is his wife, a massively obese woman, who states to one and all that she is being kept prisoner in her room, and their son, a creepy guy with a sexual fascination with guns.
As usual, Epperson builds a great cast of characters with her economical prose (no endless descriptions of eye color, etc.) and builds the tension nicely as the novel progresses. While billed as horror, perhaps thriller would be more apt, and Epperson certainly paces the novel like a thriller in any case. Lots of fun twists and turns and the denouement did not disappoint. 3.5 multiple stars, rounding up!
March 14, 2023
It's not a bad book. Had my attention throughout. I thought it was gonna be more about multiple personalities, but I certainly wasn't disappointed with the way it turned out.
July 11, 2010
One by one the patients of a clinic for women suffering multiple personality disorders are turning up hideously mutilated. As death follows death, the living become trapped in an ever-tightening web of dark desires and monstrous atrocities. (I really liked her books cuz they took place in the Flint Hills. I lived in the Flint Hills for 10 years and could actually picture the places she talked about in the books. Very cool!)
August 6, 2020
A story about a place for women with multiple personalities. Dr. Raleigh was invited to help but they also asked for his brother who was a writer, Why? David Raleigh decided it was good as any other place to write a story. He had become dry since his last book.
The book seemed slow at first, but turned interesting soon enough leaving me wanting to keep turning pages to find what and where they would bring me next.
SK Epperson has a way with words as well which keep me amused.
The book seemed slow at first, but turned interesting soon enough leaving me wanting to keep turning pages to find what and where they would bring me next.
SK Epperson has a way with words as well which keep me amused.
February 27, 2022
The only nightmare in this book was trying to finish it.
January 20, 2025
Painfully misogynistic trash.
November 13, 2015
This book was a little on the weird side. But I was anxious with every turn of the pages. I do wish the book got into more detail about their lives after the ranch. But overall it was a decent storyline, just really weird.
October 1, 2009
I had this book so long, the pages were turning yellow! It wasn't too bad. I am glad I finally read it!
October 4, 2014
Great beach read! very fast and totally kept my interest!!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews