Dunston Falls

by Al Lamanda

Isolated during a severe winter storm in 1959, the small community of Dunston Falls in northern Maine is completely cut off from the rest of the state. When town residents begin to experience strange occurrences such as unexplained migraines and hallucinations, the stage is set for a brutal killer to begin his handiwork. When Sheriff David Peck investigates the murders of two women, he slowly unravels the secrets behind Dunston Falls. As Peck closes in on the truth that lies in the heart of the town, he finds himself thrown into a dangerous web of deception. In a dramatic twist of circumstance, Peck finds that he is now the hunted and must do whatever he can to stay alive and expose the shocking truth behind the small town.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Science Fiction, Thriller

219 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2008

About the author

Al Lamanda was born and raised in The Bronx, New York. He worked for many years as a private investigator and crime prevention specialist. He has authored five published novels, two feature films with another under option and more than a dozen books for Kindle.

Reviews

[Philip · Rating 2 out of 5]

(SPOILERS, SPOILERS!) But good spoilers, in that if you read this review you can be spared this extremely average rip-off of a book. (This was another book that came recommended somewhere -- Washington Post, or Entertainment Weekly, or something -- I really need to start keeping track of what points me to these losers so I can avoid that source in future...)

The story starts off fair enough, but the second murder (which occurs very early on) is obviously telegraphed in the most basic horror movie way -- "don't stay in the house alone, you idiot! That's what happened to the first victim!!" And from then on...nothing much happens. They drink coffee, they drink scotch, they smoke, they put scotch in their coffee, they go to the diner, folks have headaches and so they drink more coffee or just pour scotch in their empty coffee cups. It's all very repetitive, and even though this behavior ultimately becomes a bit of a plot point, you've got to wade through all the boring repetition to get there. Worse, in amongst all this repetition there is darned little murder investigation -- and (just bad writing here) surprisingly little thought given to the second murder victim, considering she and the lead character just started a passionate affair mere hours before her murder, (three times in one night, and the sheriff's first time in years!).

But then around 150 pages in, there is indeed a big surprise, which is...this book is actually Shutter Island! Seriously, this book is to Dennis Lehane's infinitely better story what the movie "Speed 2" is to "Speed" -- identical plot hook in a different setting. So while I was indeed surprised by where this story ultimately went, once I caught on it was totally been there, read/seen that.

So if you still have any interest in this book, I recommend you just read Shutter Island instead. And if you've already read that -- I'd still suggest you just read it again, since a second reading of S.I. is still better than a single reading of this.

[Sandi Barnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could have used a good proofreading/edit but, the story content still rates a five for me. A nice couple of twists and turns in the story with an unexpected (by me) reveal in the epilogue.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG! Started out as a usual crime novel set in an awful ice storm and then the twists started and just kept coming. Excellent plot that kept you guessing to the end. Fabulous characters.

[Ronald Howell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read!!!

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm surprised that more people havent read this book. This was a very cheap amazon book that I've had for awhile and finally got around to reading. The mystery and suspense is well paced and the story changes from the murder mystery that is expected into something that is altogether different. I was completely taken by surprise. The main character in the story, Dave the sheriff, starts suffering from sudden onset severe migraines. As the story continues it is revealed that other characters also suffer from these same migraines, this is not a good sign. Who knew that headaches could be so sinister. I also have suffered from severe headaches and migraines most of my life. Oh no, could someone out there be trying to mind control me? ohhhhhh nooooooo, ahhhhhh. YOU KNOW WHATS REALLY CREAPY? I LIVE RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET FROM A MILITARY BASE, OH MY GOSH.And, and, think about this, Olivia on the TV series Fringe and how this season she is suffering from migraines and it turns out that it is a result of her being drugged and having her memory ADJUSTED. She is also secretly being monitored and filmed by hidden cameras. And when she was a child she was taken to a military base in Jacksonville, and she was being experimented on along with other children.{ by the way, this is the same military base that I now live across from, and how weird is that?... {Enough about me, back to the story}. Even with the ending you cant completely figure out who the hidden villians really are and who all the victims are in this terrorising story. It reminds me in away of another story I read{I cant remember the name of it} where a woman wakes up in a hospital with amnesia and is told she was involved in an accident. But the story turned out that she was really a prisoner, also on a military base and the people around her were nothing more than actors. It had the same creepiness and hidden menace of that story. This ebook, Dunston Falls, was worth every penny and then some.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the beginning you find yourself in a small isolated Maine town in the year 1959 with a new Sherriff who has just been on the job for a short while. When he gets called to a gruesome murder things begin to happen. He starts having migraine style headaches and vivid dreams, the weather changes and the whole state is being hit with an ice storm that shuts down transportation and phone and power lines. Dunston Falls is virtually isolated and must pull together to get people into what shelter they can provide. Soon there is another murder and still no clues, the Sherriff’s headaches get worse and conditions get more desperate as supplies run low for the town. Another attempted murder is stopped by the unexpected arrival of a third person who then become the victim. Outside help in the form of a State Police crew arrive to help in the murder investigation, Good start to a straight forward suspense novel you think, but is it? I’ll leave it up to you to find out what the twist on this one is. It’s a decent read even with a few proofing problems, although the end is a bit abrupt.

[Join the Penguin Resistance! · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although the novel had an interesting premise, and turned out to have a kicker climax and post-climax, the lack of proofreading and editing made me think I was reading an unpolished first draft. The author had a great idea (the last section was really convoluted and unexpected, twisting and turning upon itself, and was quite well done), but it really needed to be better polished before being presented to the public. With a little work, this could move up to a four-star-I raced through about the last third, once it moved from just above ho-hum to actually fascinating.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

The year is 1959. Sheriff Peck has to get his shit together during the snowstorm of the century in the tiny town of Dunston Falls, Maine. His efforts at dealing with the emrgency are hampered by a serial killer and piercing headaches accompanied by disturbing visions. This book gets 2 stars for writing, which is very choppy and pedestrian and 4 stars for plot twists, which are quite twisty.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read Lamanda's "Sunset" recently and it was one of my favorite mysteries of the past six months. So when I saw this book at the library I grabbed it. First, this apparently was the author's first book, and while well written, it does show that it was a debut. Second, despite a serial killer and a town sheriff, this is not a mystery; more of a thriller/sci-fi.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It started off kind of Stephen King-y (in a good way), then progressed into something else. It wasn't what I expected, not sure what I think about it. I may have to reread it, it was very well written, very suspenseful.

[Paul Lindberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really fun little book. It took me about 3 days, and it was a page turner. Suspenseful with a surprise ending. Very easy read - not a lot of complex themes, just action. I got it for free on Amazon.com when I first got my Kindle Fire. Highly recommend it.

[Toni Perreira · Rating 5 out of 5]

This books reads well on its own but makes more sense if you have read Walking Homeless and Running Homeless. It's a mystery with a twist, as are many of Mr. Lamandas books and the tie in between the books is quite amazing.

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

I certainly got a surprise in this book.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An intriguing mystery set in Dunston Falls in northern Maine during a severe winter storm where the whole community is snowed in for several days. Many twists and turns. Interesting.

[Toesnorth's mom]

good to a point and then far out, lousing ending

[Chuck Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it!!