Return to Darkness

by Michael Laimo

Picking up right where Deep in the Darkness left off, Dr. Michael Cayle returns from near death to rescue his wife and daughter, who have been taken captive by the Isolates, the aboriginal creatures living in the woods behind his home. Will he find them alive, or dead? Or…worse?


“Dead Souls is creepy, atmospheric, and explosive -- keep a light on and a gun loaded when you crack this baby. Another outstanding thriller from Michael Laimo." Douglas Preston, author of The Monster of Florence.


“Michael Laimo can stand proud next to Clive Barker and Stephen King” The Horror Review


“One of the best and most refreshing horror novels you’re likely to read…” Gary Braunbeck, on Deep in the Darkness

Genres: Horror

275 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

MY NEW NOVEL, THE EROTIC THRILLER MISSED CONNECTION, IS NOW AVAILABLE!

Michael Laimo's novels include the erotic thriller MISSED CONNECTION, as well as the horror novels DEEP IN THE DARKNESS, RETURN TO DARKNESS, THE DEMONOLOGIST, SLEEPWALKER, FIRES RISING, ATMOSPHERE, and DEAD SOULS.

ATMOSPHERE & DEEP IN THE DARKNESS were nominated for a Bram Stoker Award.

DEAD SOULS & DEEP IN THE DARKNESS have been made into feature-length films.

His short fiction has found its way into the pages of A WALK ON THE DARKSIDE, LOST ON THE DARKSIDE, HOT BLOOD XII: STRANGE BEDFELLOWS, SURREAL MAGAZINE, INHUMAN MAGAZINE, LI PULSE MAGAZINE, plus many more anthologies and magazines. He has four short story collections, including the acclaimed DARK RIDE, from Borderlands Press.

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Reviews

[Ashley Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you loved Deep in the Darkness, Return to Darkness is a must read. It picks up with Dr. Michael Cayle as he tries to rebuild his life, only to be dragged back into the horrors of Ashborough. The suspense ramps up, the mythology expands, and the descriptive writing is chilling. As always, I recommend picking up Michael’s books if you haven’t already- you are sleeping on an amazing author!

[Alan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had read the Deep in the Darkness way back when and really enjoyed it, so I always wanted to read the sequel. However, it's been aeons since I read the other book, so I scarcely remembered the details of it, though there are enough instances of the narrator commenting on what happened before to bring a good deal of it back. But this led to me being a bit too disconnected from the story, and the fact that this sequel felt like it was being drawn out longer than it warranted didn't help; I think there was enough material for a novella of half or less the length of this book, but Laimo padded it with repetition and unnecessarily long scenes to make it novel length - there's a part where the MC is trying to get a wounded deer out of the top floor of his house, while he too is wounded, and it just goes on and on and on, eventually turning into what felt like a bad Three Stooges bit. And as the story limped along with strange, uncomfortable elements and scenes, when it got to a disgusting sex scene I had enough and skipped to the final chapters just to see how it ended, and the ending wasn't good, and could have happened dozens of pages earlier. 1* for "did not like it" though "disappointed in it" might be a more apt description.

[Bionic Beanz · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are looking for a good book & sequel...look no further! I enjoyed Into the Darkness, and Return to the Darkness did not disappoint. Just like Laimo takes your mind on a journey to the forest where a similar stone hinge is arranged. In the last half of the book, I was sure I figured it out. Only to VERBALLY GASP when I got to the end. This book has also left an open ending to it...I so hope there will be a third one day :)

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic follow up book. I have finally (after reading 3 of his books) caught on to his writing style. No happy endings.

[Alicia Bentley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read, though not as gripping as the first one, "deep in the darkness". I read them back to back, it picked up right where the 1st one left off and was very good. Worth the read.