Darkness Falls: A Novel

by Keith R.A. DeCandido

A hundred and fifty years ago, in the sleepy fishing village of Darkness Falls, Matilda Dixon would give the local children cakes and treats and accept their baby teeth as "payment." After her husband Sonny was killed in a boating accident and a kitchen fire left her horribly scarred, Matilda became a recluse -- but she still collected baby teeth, now leaving coins behind instead of treats. When two children went missing on their way to visit "the tooth fairy," the townspeople lynched Matilda in retaliation -- just as the two children turned up alive and well. Today, Kyle Walsh lives his life in fear, and has ever since he left Darkness Falls as a boy. Kyle is the only one who knows the truth -- that the spirit of Matilda Dixon has returned to exact her revenge. Now Kyle must return home to confront his troubled past and save his childhood sweetheart Caitlin and her younger brother Michael from "the tooth fairy" -- before she kills again!

Genres: Fiction, Horror, Media Tie In

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Darkness Falls is a novelization of a film script which was written by John Fasano and James Vanderbilt based on a story by Joe Harris. I think it's one of DeCandido's more successful adaptations; it follows the plot points of the film pretty faithfully but adds a lot of background and set-up and explanations which would have made the film itself more coherent. Perhaps he was given an earlier version of the script with which to work. It's a very creepy story, centered on the tooth-fairy myth, which is about as creepy as you can get when you think about it. Plus, it's set in Maine, so, you know...

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I liked most about this novelization is that we get a different beginning than we do in the movie. Where the movie only narrates the background of our main antagonist, the novel actually tells the reader the setting, the time, and what really took place in the past, before bringing the story to the present.

The only downside was that the story itself as a whole lacked the action-packed storyline that was present in the movie, making it a tad slow. Otherwise, pretty enjoyable.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad for a movie novelization. I always liked this movie. It would be cool to see a sequel come out someday.

[Ashlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book as well as a quick read! I got this book years ago from a thrift store and never picked it up, I had always wanted to read it, but struggled to get through the first few chapters. I decided a couple months ago that I really wanted to try and read it again and push through those chapters to see if I would enjoy the rest and I ended up loving it! I found that I could not put it down and took it everywhere with me. I really like how unique and exciting the story is compared to other horror fiction books, it's easier to get swallowed into the story and turn page after page after page.

[Roswita · Rating 4 out of 5]

The is about the tooth fairy myth--or one version of it--and a horror. Mr. DeCandido has offered up an excellent novelization of the movie. Well written and well worth reading.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

MUCH better than the movie itself.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pretty true to the movie. Still a fun,spooky read.