A terrible secret is trying to surface in Pam's nightmares.Pam was eight years old when her mother left her without a note or a goodbye, leaving her alone to live with her domineering father, a world-famous psychiatrist.Now, twenty-four years later, Pam's father is dying. She gets a strange phone call from him - he swears her mother has finally come back home. Pam knows her father is delusional from his illness, and she knows that she needs to see him before he passes away . . . there's something important she needs to ask him, something she's seen in her dreams.After Pam and Sarah, her eight-year-old daughter, travel to her father's estate, strange things happen Pam spots a man in the woods watching them, her father's nurse swears there's a ghost in the house, and Pam is still having nightmares . . . and they're getting worse. There's a gold key in her dream, a key that will unlock the answers . . . if she can find it in time.
Superb! Once again, I would have given this a 4.5, but we know how that goes here on Goodreads. Mark Lukens just has this fantastic knack at storytelling. His writing is so clear and is so easy to follow, even with tons of plot twists and a robust set of circumstances, as seen in What Lies Below. Ghost stories and hauntings are not my favorite type of books, but this was so much more than that. As I read further into the story, I couldn’t piece together how it would all wrap up. And things just got continually more intense and mysterious. But, again, Lukens could take it to that level, and he masterfully guides his reader along, keeping them knowing just enough. And then the ending was just like wow. Everything came to a head and linked up, and I felt my jaw drop. I liked all of the characters, whether they were questionable, forthright, or something inbetween. All I can say here is poor Pam, lol. This woman had been through a lifetime of traumas in a short time, and just couldn’t catch a break at any point here. But she was a great lead character. I would have liked a tiny bit more on Carl, whether he was playing opossum at times or not, his relationship with Dr Stanton, and a little more background on his marriage. It was all covered well, but just felt like these tidbits needed a smidge more to come full circle. Beyond that, this was a wonderful read!
A short book at 153 pages, What Lies Below explores repressed memories when Pam, who is under therapeutic care and plagued by nightmares, has to revisit her dying father and try to slay her demons before they consume her.
The writing style is well-done as Lukens paints a convincing picture of a young, single mother who tries to make sense of it all her minds trying to show her. Her daughter is fortunately likable (not all kids in fiction are!) and plays a big part of the ending surprise of the book which brought it up another star level.
Halfway through the story I started to wonder if something downright paranormal was at play, but the author keeps it fresh with surprises and red herrings in the form of the maid, the housekeeper, the mystery of the mother’s history, and new discoveries in the house. Similar to Rosemary’s Baby in which you’re not sure if the narrator is reliable or if she’s just unstable and unbalanced, there’s a few mysteries in this intriguing novella.
Overall it’s a good story but once everything in revealed, it’s not as surprising as I figured it would be. The lead-up is interesting though, but it’s not a book that kept my focus full-time.
WHAT LIES BELOW is the third book I've read by author Mark Lukens. This one--while not supernatural in nature--certainly retained a thick atmosphere of horror and dread all throughout.
We begin with Pam and her daughter, Sarah. Pam's husband, Doug, had run off and left them recently. Recurring nightmares reminding Pam of how her own mother left she and her father when she was younger, has her seeking the advice of a psychiatrist. Reminded that her father lay dying of cancer and dementia, she finally resolves to visit him and seek closure to some lingering questions in her past.
". . . there are no blanket treatments for psychiatry like there are in other medicines . . . "
The large mansion that Pam's father lives in--cared for now only by one full time nurse, and his loyal housekeeper--is a big contributing factor to the gothic-style atmosphere that Lukens is creating. I could easily let my own imagination go wild here and envision what sort of "lonely" childhood Pam would have had, without her mother's presence. As the story continued, the tension mounted appreciatively. In each of the stories I've read by this author, I would say that the setting of an appropriate atmosphere is one of his greatest strengths.
When the reader "meets" Pam's dying father, Carl, we are faced with both visual and emotional conflicts. While he looks frail and senile one moment, the next we feel we are looking into the eyes of a man who is in control of his every movement and thought. This juxtaposition is a great source of that deepening unease that continues to spread.
The fact that he was once a famous--and very influential--psychiatrist, makes this much easier to believe.
". . . people dealt with traumas in different ways . . . "
As for the characterization, in general, I felt that Lukens did an okay job with most of the main characters. The only one I was honestly confused by was Pam, herself. One moment she seemed determined and strong, and in the next scenes she'd be doing something so obviously foolish and out-of-character.
". . . frustrated, like she had come up to a wall of mist in her mind that she couldn't see through . . . "
There were even parts in the novel where it felt like her young daughter, Sarah, was the parent, and Pam just automatically let her go on without doing or saying what she had been instructed to do.
". . . People were just built differently . . . "
Other than this particular issue, and some repetitious words/phrases (especially in the beginning), I found the story to have a nice, gothic tone, and that it moved along at a steady pace.
Overall, a worthwhile read with my only issues being the inconsistency of the one character, and repetition at times. However, the ending managed to do something few novels ever do for me. It completely blindsided me and had me literally, jaw-dropping in shock. Simply brilliant.
**** 4 There Are No Such Things As Nightmares Stars ****
Pam is a recently single mother of a daughter. Her husband just up and left one day. Moved on with his new fling leaving Pam and her 8 year old daughter on their own. Her mind is already fragile with strange dreams and always feeling alone and not wanted.
As a little girl, her mother up and left her and her father when she was 8 years old. How does a mother leave her child. She needed her mother so much. The day her mother left, her psychiatrist father told her things were ok and she didn't need her mother. He was there and he would take care of her.
Now present day, after being left by her husband, she is beginning to have nightmares of things she thinks may have happened but she doesn't know how they could have happened. These nightmares are vivid but she is still skeptical.
Seeing her own psychiatrist, he tells her it is time to go visit her dying father. He may have the answers to some of her lingering issues of abandonment.
"Just let the memories come, and then the answers will follow."
Her visit with her father, does not go according to plan. Very strange things start happening. Pam is afraid she is not comprehending what is real and what is all in her mind. Did things really happen when there is no explanation for them.
Needing to speak with her doctor, she runs into a friend of her mother's. This friend doesn't think her mother left her. He has a feeling she never left the house the night she thought she remembered her mother leaving.
This news leads Pam on a tailspin of what is real and what is a dream. When she finally receives the answers to the devastation she felt so many years ago, Pam is left confronted with a monster she loved as a father and the despicable monster he created.
Again, this ending..... NEVER SAW IT COMING
The twists of this book will shock and awe you! Daddy/Grandpa YOU are a very bad man!!
Nicely done Mark Lukens! This book started off a little slow, but that slow build created real goodness!! Pretty sure I will never allow anyone to hypnotize me in this lifetime!
Talk about a twisted, scary, frightening story. This is it. I was confident from the beginning that I knew where this was going and I was like this is way too easy to figure out but then Mark, the master manipulator, totally took this story and knocked it out of the ball park. I was stunned, I was disgusted but omg I loved it. Talk about Father knows best! This was very macabre and hypnotic. I can't believe how good this was. Very original. I really do love this guys writing. He always reels me in. Childhood memories are sometimes best forgotten. I did love his reference about Roderick in the romance novel she was reading. It was Julie Garwood hero. Maybe a coincidence but....
I liked this book, it's the second one I've read by this author. The first one was Followed. Neither were supernatural, but still horror which I like. It had suspense as well as the creep factor. It was a bit far fetched at the end, but still good. If he has any more books that aren't super natural I'll read those too.
In ‘What Lies Below’, Pam is troubled by her recurring nightmares and unanswered questions about her mother. Therefore, when her psychiatrist Dr. Stanton urges her to visit her dying father, she acquiesces and brings her daughter Sarah along. Plagued by nightmares and strange sightings, she has to get to the bottom of the truth before it’s too late..
‘Good ideas but poorly written and executed’ sums up this book for me. That’s why it kept missing the mark despite having the makings of a creepy story - Pam’s father, Carl’s surety that his wife was back, Pam seeing dolls and a mysterious gold key in her dreams, the unsettling presence of Maria and the possibility of a haunting.
Trudging through the repetitive content, alongside the lack of subtlety and suspense was certainly not enjoyable. Numerous pages were wasted on reiterating the following - Pam trying to recall her repressed memory, Pam wondering if she had or hadn’t done something, Pam second-guessing herself, something strange about Maria, etc.
The unimpactful twists and revelations didn’t help either:
The ending was the only saving grace. The moment Pam .
Overall, ‘What Lies Below’ was a fast, flat and forgettable read due to the prosaic writing and paper-thin characters.
You won't be able to put it down. I thought I had this book figured out and was a bit disappointed. Where was the mystery? The Plot twists? The wondering? I got the gist of a few things fight but was so UNBELIEVABLY wrong on many others. And the twist? Well, it's right at the end, where it's supposed to be.
I just discovered this Writer and am about to start a 3rd book he has written. I like the way he writes. He doesn't rely on blood and gore, or sex to sell his stories. His books will ramp your anxiety up right from the beginning and keep it there. Just when you think you've reached the climax, he turns the screw another notch. Spooky stories. Stories I don't forget the minute I'm done with them. They'll keep you thinking.
My first book was Ancient Evil. I highly recommend it and am about to start Book 2 in the Series. Read this Author. You won't be disappointed.
This book breaks some of the cardinal rules of storytelling. It started with a dream, and I definitely felt cheated. It's needlessly repetitive -- said dream is summarized by the protagonist immediately after we read it. Not to mention most sentence's start with the same word and turn into run-ons. (an entire page in which every sentence uses the word 'book') The writer tells and doesn't show and has no sense of what constitutes a chapter. There are random little snippets of time covered in a page or three. The first eight chapters could have been one.
Pam and her daughter Sarah go to visit Pam's father who has dementia and is dying of cancer. Pam's father claims he keeps seeing Pam's mother who he said left when she was eight years old.
Rita is the housekeeper who has been there for twenty two years. She watched Pam frow up right before her eyes.
Maria is the nurse for Pam's father. She tends to him all night long, while Rita looks after him during the day. There used to be other nurses, but they all left frightened saying the place was haunted.
You really need to read this book! Just when you think you've figured out what's going on the author Mark Lukens throws a curve that you never saw coming!
If you enjoy a fast paced story, with a twisted plot and an ending that keeps you guessing, this is a book for you. I did not want to put this book down. It's really that good. Just when you think you have it figured out, know who the bad person is... something happens to change your mind. It's a heart thumper towards the end. I literally said, "Wow, didn't see that coming!" Definitely recommend to anyone that enjoys psycho-thrillers.
This book has a pretty good story. I did not like the main character, she seemed too wimpy and she cried everytime she found out things about her past. I didn't like that we didn't find out what was the thing Pam kept seeing in the water. But the book is a good read.
Another super book by Mark Lumens. I didn't figure it out until I read it...there are two endings to this story. Both are jaw,dropping. Thank you Mr. Lumens for giving me books to look forward to reading. Trust me, if you're looking for something good to read, choose a book by Mark Lukens. Happy Reading!
I enjoyed the storyline of this book, but the main characters were a little bit flat. I almost quit reading because the main character was simp!e, but I hung in there and was rewarded with a good mystery
Certain parts of the plot seemed super obvious from the beginning but overall the twist at the end was quite amusing. The book certainly could've been made longer with more explanation on certain things.
This is the second book I’ve read of Mark Lukens. I read both in one sitting. The first was titled, “Sightings.” I was pulled in from page one and unable to put this down. I’m so glad I found this new author!
Again I found all my favorite things that scare me. And all of them in an easily read form. I love a book that turns into a movie in my head. Good job master mark!
None of the characters are particularly likable, and only Pam has any real depth. Part of that is due to the fact that this is more of a novella-length piece than a novel. Most of it is due to the fact that any time the author delves into the internal thoughts of his characters, they come out stilted and awkward. His skills in basic narrative are better, so he’d be better off showing. not telling. Also, there are some stupid and/or unexplained actions that I never understood. (Why on earth would Pam not keep the safe key she found rather than re-hiding it where it had always been?)
Pam’s father was a well-known psychiatric researcher, and he seems to have specialized in hypnosis. While that does seem like an easy answer to everything, there are a couple of other incidents that were never explained. (How exactly did those muddy Barbie dolls get in her bed, anyway, and how did the dolls (but not the mud) disappear after that?)
On the one hand, I don’t want to talk about much of what happens in this book, because at its length it’s hard to avoid spoilers. On the other hand, much of the plot is very predictable once the main cards are on the table. It’s an interesting story, but not particularly attention-grabbing. While the ending does help to make up for some of the rest of the book, it, too, asks more questions than it answers.
First time reading this author and I am pleasantly surprised. kept me engaged from the first page to the last. The main character was a bit annoying at times but the further you get in the story, you begin to understand why she is such a basket case. Oh boy double surprise ending. Would have given it five stars but honestly the last few chapters appears rushed. Still recommend it as a quick read and honestly a really good story
I've come to think of this author as someone who I can come to reliably for entertaining thrillers. This book is the next in that streak of successes revolving around a family and some skeletons in their closets. It seems to leave open the possibility of a sequel and personally I'll jump on that. Definitely recommended.