The Red Church by Scott Nicholson

About the Book: For 13-year-old Ronnie Day, life is full of problems: Mom and Dad have separated, his brother Tim is a constant pest, Melanie Ward either loves him or hates him, and Jesus Christ won't stay in his heart. Plus he has to walk past the red church every day, where the Bell Monster hides with its wings and claws and livers for eyes. But the biggest problem is that Archer McFall is the new preacher at the church, and Mom wants Ronnie to attend midnight services with her.

Sheriff Frank Littlefield hates the red church for a different reason. His little brother died in a freak accident at the church twenty years ago, and now Frank is starting to see his brother's ghost. And the ghost keeps demanding, "Free me." People are dying in Whispering Pines, and the murders coincide with McFall's return.

The Days, the Littlefields, and the McFalls are descendants of the original families that settled the rural Appalachian community. Those old families share a secret of betrayal and guilt, and McFall wants his congregation to prove its faith. Because he believes he is the Second Son of God, and that the cleansing of sin must be done in blood.

"Sacrifice is the currency of God," McFall preaches, and unless Frank and Ronnie stop him, everybody pays.

About the Author: Scott Nicholson is author of 12 novels, including Speed Dating with the Dead, The Skull Ring, and Drummer Boy. He's also written six story collections, six screenplays, and four comics series. He lives in the Southern Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina, where he works as a journalist and freelance editor. He is an organic gardener and guitar player when not writing. Visit www.hauntedcomputer.com for free fiction excerpts, audio files, art, and writing advice.

My thoughts: I can’t remember the last time I read a book that creeped me out and made me want to stop reading but wanted to continue reading at the same time. This is what Scott Nicholson’s ‘The Red Church’ did for me. From the beginning of the story I was pulled in and engaged. There was no one person in the story that was more important than the next and each played a part in how the story played out. The author brought together the past and the present very well. One of the things I liked the best about The Red Church was that it was not predictable at all. I would have never imagined the story would have ended the way it did.

Scott Nicholson is going to be added to my list of favorite authors and possibly my favorite from the horror genre.

I GIVE THIS BOOK

DISCLAIMER: I was in no way compensated to review this book. These are my opinions of a book in which I purchased on my own.