The Unloved

I found this book to be meh. It had some good parts, but it veered into old tropes, with an ending that was predictable. The big question I have here is why the housekeeper didn't do more to help Marguerite, knowing what happened to her and what Helena did to her. This complicity was what bothered me, if Ruby had acted differently (and more sensibly) then this story would have taken a different, and better turn. There are some questions left unanswered as well.

When Kevin Devereaux finds out his elderly mother (Helena) is dying he decides to go back home to Sea Oaks (a mansion which is on a secluded island off the South Carolina coast) for a brief stay with his wife Anne, his daughter Julie, and his son Jeff. He hasn’t been back there for twenty years. (He left Sea Oaks because he has never liked his mean, malevolent mother and wanted to get away from her dominating presence.) When they arrive they meet Kevin’s sister, Marguerite, and Kevin’s cruel mother. Not long after they are there, old Helena dies.

Now that Helena is dead Kevin’s wife (Anne) can’t wait to leave Sea Oaks (which is very old, run down, shabby, and dilapidated) and go back home. But unfortunately, when Helena’s show more will is read, Kevin is forced to stay and live at Sea Oaks or else his sister Marguerite will lose her home (she lives at Sea Oaks). The kids like the place, Anne hates it. Anne thinks Kevin is crazy when he starts talking about turning the decrepit mansion into a hotel. Not long afterward people start dying and go missing. And why is Marguerite acting so weird?

This was another enjoyable read by John Saul. It had sort of a sinister, disturbing feel. I liked the setting at the old mansion and the atmosphere of the place. There was an interesting cast of characters. Some I liked, (Anne, Julie, Jeff...) some I hated (especially Kevin's mother Helena, what a horrible old hag she was!). One character was really totally insane. This book kept me turning the pages and I was curious to see what was going to happen next. I was sad to see some characters die. I wasn't totally happy with the epilogue but I guess the author was implying insanity must run in the family?

An entertaining, strange, and creepy read. show less

Saul is a much more sinister version of Koontz. Both writers have a formula that works for them. Both can be predictable but effective. Saul gets under my skin and genuinely creeps me out. Revenge and childhood. Never read a bad book from him.

This book was on the edge of me not being able to read it. I couldn't listen to it at night. I could listen to it in daytime, with Corwin, at the dog park. And not "all day", but only a few hours per day.

He's not as good/disturbing as King, but the subject material was upsetting to me. In King's hands, I couldn't have read it. In many places I thought "this could be a lot more terrifying" at this point if he went more into describing , or if he didn't skip over this portion of time....

I have always enjoed John Saul books. This book did not dissapoint me. It flowed rather quickly up until the end. The plot is a familiar one, predictable, but I still enjoyed it.

This is an amazing book - I could not put it down! The characters are miserable, the setting original, and the plot chilling.

I read this years ago, and don't remember a whole lot about it, except that it's set in South Carolina, and was one of the most unsatisfying horror books I ever read. I remember there being not much of a plot, and pretty much all the characters were dead at the end. Boring and lame, really.