Blackwater, Part VI: Rain

And so, after two years, I have finally managed to reach the final book in the Blackwater series.  With this sixth book, the story of the Caskey family comes to its conclusion.  What began in book one, set in 1919, reaches its climax in book six, set some fifty years later, and the horrors that came to Perdido, Alabama on that Easter Sunday are finally laid bare.  Author Michael McDowell, in these six books, has created a world that, on its surface, appears to be a typical wealthy, Southern family story - but beneath that surface is something dark and sinister.  Elinor's appearance in Perdido back in 1919 started a chain reaction and introduced the Caskey family to unspeakable terrors that they have had to face for five decades - and now, with this sixth book, we are suddenly faced with the realization - was the Blackwater series really a story about the Caskey family - or has it truly just been Elinor's story all along?

Simply titled Rain, the sixth and final book, picks up a bit after the "death" of Frances Caskey.  Of course, readers know that Frances did not die; rather, she embraced her supernatural side and went with her daughter to live beneath the murky waters of the Perdido River.  But, as they have done for more than forty years, the Caskey family simply moves on, never questioning the strange events that have overtaken their lives since Elinor first came on the scene and insinuated herself into their lives.  The family members have aged, and the years pass quickly in this final chapter.  This book starts off in 1958, as Sister Haskew remains bedridden, her health (both mentally and physically) deteriorating more and more every day.  Miriam has become more and more like her grandmother, now determined to take Elinor's surviving granddaughter away from her, as payback for Elinor giving away Miriam when she was a baby.  The beginning of the end starts with the wedding of Miriam to Malcolm Strickland - while the Caskeys and half of Perdido celebrate this unusual pairing, Sister passes away upstairs in her room, the first of many deaths to come.

Queenie Strickland is the next in line, as she finds herself haunted by the ghost of her dead husband, Carl.  She is terrorized by the dead man, and it is only when her grandson, Tommy Lee Burgess, comes to live with her that the attacks seem to subside.  When Tommy Lee goes away to college, Queenie finds herself once again alone in that big house, and it is one of Ivey Sapp's relatives who finds Queenie's lifeless body on the floor of her home, two quarters (each bearing the date 1929) pressed over her eyes and the key to her house stuck in her mouth.

Oscar Caskey, now old and nearly blind, finally succumbs to the terror that is his wife's legacy, as he must face the consequences of his wife's actions.  Haunted by the ghosts of both Mary-Love and John Robert, both of whom died at the hands of Elinor's true self, Oscar is brutally murdered in his own home, found the next morning by his wife.

With the original Caskey family members now gone, that leaves only one final death, which has the most impact on not only the Caskeys, but on the entire town of Perdido.  It is the final chapters of this book that the readers is faced with realization that this series may have featured the members of the Caskey clan as they aged, married, had children, and died, it was never truly about them.  This was really the story of Elinor.  That young woman who was sitting on the bed in the hotel in Perdido as the flood waters rose.  That young woman who just happened to be seen by Oscar and rescued from her supposed fate.  That young woman who managed to not only marry Oscar Caskey, but eventually become the head of the Caskey family in pretty much every way.  Sure, Miriam took over the lumber mill, and Grace established a life in the panhandle of Florida, where her property eventually was revealed to be rich in oil.  Sure, Lilah took off for New York and created a life for herself.  But when it all boiled down to it, everything the Caskeys did, every plot they hatched, every scheme they put into motion - it all somehow involved Elinor.  And none of them - save Billy and Zaddie, who weren't truly Caskeys at all - ever knew the frightening truth of just who, or what, Elinor truly was and how her entrance into that family put into motion all of the horrifying events that resulted in so many deaths and so much destruction.

The series started with a flood that nearly destroyed Perdido and it ends with a flood that accomplishes what the first flood couldn't do.  It starts with the "birth" of Elinor, and it ends with the death of Elinor.  Blackwater is a six-book series that shows readers that the supernatural horrors of monsters and creatures from the deep are not necessarily the darkest monsters of them all.  Sometimes, it is the everyday machinations and actions of normal people that show who the true monsters in the world really are.

This has been a dark, yet enjoyable series to read, and I think I'm glad I read this as an adult - if I had read this as a 14-year old when the series was first published, I don't think I could have truly appreciated the nuances and underlying meanings of the story that I do as an adult.  Definitely a series worth reading for anyone who is a fan of horror and supernatural.

RATING:  10 exploding flame-shaped chandelier bulbs out of 10 for bringing the story full circle and providing a very satisfying conclusion to a story about the darker side of humanity.

Blackwater, Part V: The Fortune

The Caskey family saga is nearing its conclusion, as we take a look at the fifth book in this horror tale set in the backwater town of Perdido, Alabama...

The Fortune picks up right where the previous story ended.  James Caskey is dead, and while he was never a strong man, never one to really take the reigns of the family after the death of Mary-Love, he was most certainly loved by all of the Caskeys - and so his passing is a major loss for the family.  Author Michael McDowell continues to build on the undercurrent of terror that has been the backdrop of this series since the first book, when Oscar first discovered Elinor during the flood.  In the beginning, the terrors lurking beneath the surface were only hinted at, as readers knew there was something different about Elinor and that the Perdido River hid something very sinister that made the parents keep their kids away from the rushing waters.  With each passing book in this series, the horrors have become more defined and more real, and the revelations regarding just who, or rather what, Elinor is has become plain.  And the fact that Elinor has passed on those terrifying genes to her younger child, Frances, was revealed in the previous book, The War.  And now, with the Great War coming to a close, the Caskey family is about to find their lives are changed yet again - but whether it's for the better or for worse remains to be seen.

McDowell has created such a diverse cast of characters for this series, and in this book, they each have a chance to truly shine with those differences.  Queenie, who has lived most of her life poor, finds herself welcomed into the family and is allowed to remain in James' home, where she had been staying as his companion.  Grace and Lucille has established a comfortable life for themselves across the border in the Florida panhandle, raising young Tommy Lee together.  Miriam has firmly established herself as the head of the Caskey lumber company, having taken complete charge, while her father, Oscar, does less and less to the point where he finally retires from the family business.  Sister is still insistent that she does not want to ever see Early Haskew again, and after a fall down the stairs, decides to make herself a bed-ridden invalid that can never return to married life again.  Danjo has moved off to Germany, where he lives with his wife, Fredericka.  And Malcolm - well, Queenie has resolved herself to the fact that he son was likely killed in the war, since she hasn't heard from him in years.  And then there's Frances.  Despite her fear over what happens whenever she goes in the water, she has found happiness in her marriage to Billy Bronze - but that happiness quickly turns to fear when she finds out that she is pregnant!  Will her child turn out to possess the same ability to change form that she inherited from her own mother, Elinor?  Well, it turns out she is actually pregnant with twins, and when her mother helps her actually look insider herself to communicate with her soon-to-be-born babies, she finds out the awful truth!

The title of the book refers to more than just the Caskews' current financial status.  They have always had money, and they have always found the means of making more money.  But Miriam realizes with the war ending, they will need to go back to producing for more than just the military.  With the help of her brother-in-law, Billy, she soon finds herself investing in another venture - oil!  Yes, you read that right.  It seems that the swamp land that surrounds Grace and Lucille's farm in Florida hides an enormous amount of the black gold - a face that Elinor conveniently reveals after she buys up all of that land and places it in equal shares among the family members.  No one ever really asks how Elinor is so sure there is oil there, but if there's one thing Miriam has learned over the years: she may never really have her mother's love, but she will always have her mother's truth - and if her mother says there is oil there, then she can be sure there is oil there.  And there is!  More oil than just one well could possible handle.  The Caskews suddenly find themselves overflowing with more money than they could ever possibly spend, including Queenie, who is unable to even fathom the amount of wealth that she now possesses.  With Billy expertly handling the family finances, and Miriam handling the business end of things, it seems life is perfect for the Caskews.  But with fortune, there is always a price to pay...

Frances finally gives birth - but knowing what she knows about the babies inside her, she sends everyone away except her mother and Zaddie, who has learned to keep silent regarding the things she sees and hears.  And this time she sees something beyond belief - for after giving birth to a beautiful, healthy baby girl (Lilah), Frances then births a creature that is indescribable!  Of course, Elinor quickly hides that child, and she and Frances take it (her) down to the Perdido, where they set her free to live and grow in the muddy waters of the rushing river.  Frances thinks she is glad to give rid of the monstrosity, but soon finds herself longing to hold that daughter in her arms - and before long, Lilah is forgotten, and Frances must be with her child of the water, Nerita.  And when the unthinkable happens - another young child disappears under the waters of the Perdido, Frances comes to an unsettling truth about herself and her new daughter - and she makes a decision that will forever change the Caskew family.

Looking back at these first five books, I have to wonder why McDowell seems to utilize children as the feeding ground for his water creatures.  The mentally challenged youngster from the first book, whose death was so utterly tragic.  And now this innocent young child who should not have been swimming in the river in the first place with his friends.  And the graphic nature of these deaths (not graphic in the description, but in the actual death itself - I mean, in this book, Frances admits that her daughter took the boy and at part of him, but saved part of him for Frances - and she liked it!) makes it all the more difficult to read.  Perhaps that is the purpose - because the death of a rapist does not instill the same amount of fear as the death of an innocent child who cannot defend himself.  A rapist is seen as getting what he deserves.  But an innocent?  Particularly, a child?  That kind of death is horrific, and the fact that Elinor and Frances and, now, Nerita can literally murder a child without any guilt, without any mercy - well, that's the worst kind of horror there is.

The Caskew family has undergone so many changes throughout these first five books, and it was all setting the stage for the next, and final, chapter of the Blackwater series.  I can hardly wait to see what McDowell has in store for the big finale!

RATING:  9 barbecue-stained aprons out of 10 for proving once again the true horror does not have to be in-your-face or filled with insane amounts of blood-and-gore - rather, it can be the subtle build-up of tension and suspense, leaving you on the edge of your seat wondering what exactly is this all leading up to?

Blackwater, Part IV: The War

And the drama that is the Craskey family in Perdido, Alabama continues...

 

Book IV in the Blackwater series is simply entitled The War - and, if you've been following the lives and times of the Caskey family and the citizens of the small town of Perdido, you'd know that this refers to the Second World War, in which the United States made its entrance in December 1941.  This means that the years are passing for the Caskey family; the children are growing up, the adults are getting older, and things are changing for everyone.  And author Michael McDowell continues to integrate just enough supernatural and horror into the story to remind the reader that this is not just a simply story of the lives and times of a prospering family in the South.

The War picks up two years after the death of Mary-Love Caskey, who had been the matriarch and head of the Caskey family.  Life is moving on, as it usually does after someone passes, and Elinor slowly begins to assert herself as the new head of the family.  James is retired from the mill, and Oscar has taken over completely.  Sister Haskew has not returned to her husband, but instead has stayed on with Miriam in Mary-Love's house under the pretense that Miriam needs someone to care for her and the house.  Miriam, on the other hand, heads out each and every day to go to the beach.  In an unexpected turn of events, she up and invites her sister, Frances, to go with her one day.  And that's when everything begins to change...

Frances, who was previously ill and bed-ridden, finds that she not only loves the beach, but she actually comes alive when she goes into the water.  Without realizing it, she finds that she can spend hours and hours in the water, swimming literal miles out from shore, and she never gets tired or hungry!  Miriam barely takes notice, and at first, Frances does not realize how unusual this is.  She doesn't suspect that there is anything abnormal about her love of the water and her ability to swim beneath the surface for hours and hours.

Meanwhile, things are beginning to change for the rest of the family.  Queenie's son is arrested with a friend of his for armed robbery of a small store outside of Perdido.  Grace returns home from teaching and decides to live with her father, James.  Queenie and James strike up a rather intimate friendship, spending more and more time together.  Once the war start, business picks up at the mill, and Oscar finds that the only customer he needs is the military.  Danjo decides to join the military, much to James' sorrow.  Frances meets a nice military man with whom she develops a relationship that leads to marriage.   And poor Lucille - she faces the worst of them all when she is raped by her own brother's friend, who breaks out of jail and comes back to Perdido to seek revenge on Malcolm's family for helping to put him away - only, his revenge is short-lived, for he (as well as everyone else) is completely unaware that young Frances, who discovers Lucille after the rape, is much, MUCH more than what she appears to be!

McDowell once again keeps the horror subdued and understated, but that only serves to make it that much more terrifying.  Travis Gann's death at the hands of Frances (or, rather, at the being that is sometimes Frances) is not overly graphic, but it is definitely grotesque - even if he does deserve that and so much worse for what he did to poor Lucille.  It's a grim reminder that just below the surface (of the water and of the story itself) lurks something dark and deadly, something that could easily change the course of every life in the story.  

One thing that did bother me about this part of the series, though, is the author's apparent attitude towards his gay characters.  So, it turns out Grace is a very masculine lesbian, which is blatantly admitted when she returns home after having broken up with her latest girlfriend.  The family seems to accept her homosexuality with no real issues, despite the time period in which the story is set.  At the same time, The War reveals more about James' "feminine" side, and while Queenie and the others gloss over it, James is presented as having unnaturally strong feelings towards Danjo (his adopted son), and even goes so far as to wanting to find another baby boy to take his place.  While it's unclear whether his intentions are simply that he's a man who wants a son or a gay man who has feelings for a younger man (who happens to be his adopted son), what IS clear is that the author represents Grace as a strong person accepted in the community, while James is a weak man who is to be pitied for not being "normal."  This stark contrast between the two leaves one to wonder about the author's own beliefs (the stereotypical straight male's fantasy of two women being accepted and even sought after, while two men is abhorrent and totally unnatural).

Nevertheless, despite this questionable representation, the story seems to be building speed, as Frances now knows who an what she is, and the family continues to grow, both in prosperity and in numbers.  World War II is over, and at the end of The War, one of the Caskeys passes on (but his spirit, perhaps, lingers on...)

RATING:  9 ladybird lullabies out of 10 for building the tensions of a family struggle, while keeping supernatural undertones right at the edge of the story so the reader never forgets that horror is just around the corner...

Blackwater, Part III: The House

No matter how horrifying the events unfolding in Perdido, Alabama are, one can't help but get drawn back into the web of lies and bitter betrayals that permeate the Caskey family in the Blackwater series. Elinor Dammert made her appearance after the flood - she married Oscar Caskey and insinuated herself into the family over the wishes of Oscar's mother, Mary-Love. She bored him two children - Miriam was given to Mary-Love in exchange for ownership of the house that she gave them for their marriage, and young Frances was kept by Oscar and Elinor. James mourned the death of his wife, Genevieve, who died in that tragic car accident (or was it?) and cherished his young daughter Grace all the more.  Young John Robert DeBordenave went missing, even though Elinor knew what really happened to him just before the cornerstone was laid for the new levee. Sister married Early Haskew and moved off to Chattanooga.  Queenie saw the return of her ex-con husband, who raped her and left her with child. Despite Mary-Love's best efforts to keep utter control of her family, ever since the arrival of Elinor, the Caskey family and anyone within their reach seemed to be coming apart at the seams...

And now we come to third installment in the Blackwater series - The House.

Author Michael McDowell delves deeper into the familial relations of the Caskeys as the grow older and tensions are pulled tighter. McDowell also raises the ante on the underlying horror that is Elinor Caskey, as her true nature becomes more and more apparent.  While the main story comes across as a family drama from the Depression Era, there is a continuation of the undercurrent of dark horror connected with the Perdido River and how it is used by Elinor to perpetrate unspeakable horrors on those who dare to get in her way.  McDowell opens this book with a look at the youngest of the Caskeys - Miriam and Frances Caskey.  They may be sisters, and they may be close in age, but they could not be any more different.  Raised by the matriarch, Mary-Love, Miriam has become a mirror image of her grandmother and has adapted to her grandmother's hatred of Elinor and resentment towards Frances.  Frances, on the other hand, remains frail and meek - a young girl who only seeks the lover of her sister and grandmother, which, sadly, she will never have.  Of course, Frances has one thing going for her that Miriam and Mary-Love do not - a mother who has a supernatural connection to the mighty river that flows behind their homes.

There is a lot that takes place in the 121-pages of story this book offers up. Sister returns home for a visit, and we learn more things about her relationship with Early Haskew (which, as those who read The Levee know, was not exactly founded on the most loving of relations). Carl returns to Perdido, having been released from prison, and settles in with his wife, Queenie and their three children - which, of course, causes a lot of stress for Queenie, who ultimately turns her youngest son, Danjo, over to James to raise (since his daughter, Grace, has gone off to college) to protect him from Carl.  The Depression hits America, and it eventually makes its way to Perdido, where its affects are felt when the bank calls in the loan given to Oscar to buy all that land in the previous book - and Oscar proves he has more smarts than he is given credit for when he turns to his mother for help in paying off the loan so he can keep the property, but she turns him down out of her hatred for Elinor (something Oscar anticipated, because he already planned to get the money from James, who co-signed the loan and who was just as responsible for the debt - but his test proved to Oscar once and for all that his mother would turn her back on him just to spite his wife).  And when Queenie is nearly killed by Carl, she moves in with Elinor and Oscar to recuperate - which begins the spiral path that leads the Caskey to a major loss that will forever change the dynamic of the family...

Now, where is the horror, you may ask? Well, for starters, there is that strange closet in the front room of the second story of Oscar and Elinor's house. When Frances is made to stay in that room while Queenie recovers, Frances sees the ghost of John Robert DeBordenave, who appears alongside a strange white light that illuminates the entire room.  And when Carl takes action to try and retrieve his wife or see her die for leaving him, Elinor steps in and sees that Carl never harms anyone ever again (and in a very gruesome manner!).  Finally, when Frances becomes ill following the Carl incident, it is up to her mother to nurse her back to health using water from the Perdido River that flows just behind their house.  The same water that Elinor later uses to show Mary-Love once and for all who has the true power in the Caskey family.

The Flood may have been the introduction, and The Levee was the first act, The House definitely hits what can be described as the crescendo of this tale.  What started out as a bit slow-moving has definitely increased in intensity, as the characters evolve and continue building towards the ultimate climax of what is to come.  By this point, it's pretty clear that Elinor has a goal in mind - what's not so clear is whether she is the villain or the Caskeys are the villains.  As in real life, humanity can often be the real monster.  Carl definitely showed that, first by raping his own wife in the last book, and then by his hateful, murderous actions in this book. That is why, when he meets his fate, the reader doesn't have one ounce of sympathy for the man - quite frankly, he gets what he deserves.  But what is going to happen to the innocents of this series?  Django?  Frances? Oscar? James? Sister? Queenie?  Grace?  With three books left in the series, I am definitely getting more and more interested in where this story will ultimately take these characters.

McDowell is a mastermind with the subtle horror and suspense, and I'm honestly glad I waited until I was older to read this series, as I may not have enjoyed it as much as a teenager (when this originally came out).  

RATING:  9 glasses of cold nectar out of 10 for developing the characters in this story in such a way that the reader can't help but get drawn into their drama, both human and otherwise!

Blackwater, Part II: The Levee

Time to delve back into the world of Perdido, Alabama and the Caskey family with the second book in the Blackwater series. Author Michael McDowell continues the drama (and slow torture) of the Caskey family as the small town decides to move forward with the building of the levee, to help prevent there from being another flood like the one that devastated the town in the first book (and from which the first book garnered its name). Now, in The Levee, the town sees the construction of the one thing they think will protect them from another flood, totally unaware that within the Caskey family, there are much greater dangers that are building to a boiling point...

The Levee sees the war between Mary-Love Caskey and her daugher-in-law, Elinor, reach new levels, as each seeks greater control over their loved ones. This second part of the saga spans a number of years, and it certainly reveals more into the character of each of the Caskeys and their supporting cast.  Like the first book, it definitely reads like a Southern soap opera, with Mary-Love desperately trying to keep control over her family, working doubly hard to punish Elinor for intruding into her family and seemingly taking her perceived power away; Sister deciding that she does not want to be left behind, always under the thumb of her mother; Oscar trying to make sense of everything and keep the peace, all the while unaware that even he is being manipulated by his wife into asserting himself and taking some of that power away from his mother and uncle; and good, old Elinor, who sits calmly on the porch of her house (still technically owned by her mother-in-law), pulling the strings of everyone around her without them even realizing it...

It's nice to see Sister finally stand up for herself, and when she decides that she wants to get married and out from under her mother, she chooses the easiest option available - Early Haskew, the engineer that Mary-Love brings to town and insists live with her and her daughter while he is designing and overseeing the building of the new levee that will protect the town of Perdido from future floods (a levee that Mary-Love knows Elinor does not want, and a man that Mary-Love knows Elinor despises).  But, instead of just using her womanly wiles, Sister's actions to get her husband remind readers that this is not just a soap opera - it is a supernatural tale of horror. Sister has the family's cook engage in a rather odd, almost voodoo-like ceremony to ensure that Early will fall in love with her and ask her to marry him (which he eventually does, and, in true soap fashion, they wait until the family Christmas dinner to spring the surprise announcement on everyone!).

Oh, and speaking of family, James Caskey's past comes back to haunt the family in the form of his rather rotund and anything-but-upper-class sister-in-law shows up with her two rowdy children in tow and connives her way into having James support her and her children.  Mary-Love is appalled and blames James from bringing them into their lives by marrying Genevieve (who readers may recall died rather nastily in the last book...).  Queenie (the sister-in-law - gotta love these character names) quickly makes friends with Elinor, sensing the tension between Mary-Love and the other woman.

And, of course, one cannot forget Elinor.  The family may not know it, but readers are fully aware that this woman is not at all what she appears to be.  And this second book definitely proves that with the birth of Elinor's second child.  Poor Zadie (the young black girl who helps maintain Elinor's house) is witness to a horrific baptizing of the child in the Perdido River, and later, one of the characters in the book is sacrificed in the most horrific way in order for Elinor to preserve her control over everything that happens with the rivers and the levee.  In fact, Elinor's true nature can be summed up with the statement she makes at the end of the second chapter in this book:

"But Zadie, when I am dead--whether there's a levee here or not--this town and everybody in it will be washed off the face of the earth..."

McDowell increases the tension in this book, almost to a point where the reader can actually feel it as he or she reads the words on the page.  While there is the subtle terror that permeates the tale as a whole, the scenes of graphic horror in this book are a clear reminder of just what type of story this is, and likely acts as a precursor to the more horrifying days ahead for the Caskeys and the people of Perdido...

RATING:  9 small closets of fear out of 10 for building the terror, upping the tension, and weaving the nasty little web that will lead to the ultimate climax of this six-book story!

Blackwater, Part I: The Flood

Back in the '80s, I remember this series of horror books that were published - Blackwater was the name, and the covers to the books were all black, with a different image on each cover that somehow tied into the title of that particular book. But what stood out the most for me was the fact that each cover had this ominous eye - just one eye, right smack in the middle of whatever image happened to grace that particular cover.  Now, this was well before Stephen King or V.C. Andrews or any of these other authors published a series of novellas that told one full story - no, author Michael McDowell did this way before any of these other authors thought of it.  He was the forerunner of the serialized horror tale, so to speak.  But, as fate would have it, I never picked them up as they came out, and they did not stay on the shelves long.  As the introduction to this collection I recently purchased so aptly puts it - these were published at a time when horror books had their own section of the bookstore, with numerous books appearing on the shelves and just as quickly leaving the shelves, never to be seen again.  But, for some reason, Blackwater always stuck with me, and since then, I've always kept an eye out for them in used book stores, but never came across them.

Until I stumbled across this full collected edition on Amazon....

The Flood, which is the first book in the series, introduces readers to the Caskey family, who reside in the small southern town of Perdido, which borders the Perdido River. . The Caskey family history is steeped deep in the annals of Perdido, and they hold a place of power within the town.  Everyone there knows the Caskeys. Mary-Love Caskey is the matriarch of the family - strong and controlling.  James Caskey is her brother, described as effeminate and weak, never quite able to control his drunken wife. Oscar Caskey is her son, who has always done everything his mother wanted. Until the day he and Bray (the family's servant) go paddling through town after the flood and discovery a lone survivor - a young woman trapped on an upper floor of a hotel. The only problem is, after they rescue her, Bray goes back for her belongings and notices something - the water stains on the walls of that hotel room are far above where the woman was capable of standing, even on top of the bed.

So, who exactly is Elinor Dammert?  That is the central question on everyone's mind in The Flood...

This first book in the series is not what you might think of as straight-forward horror. There is one rather bloody scene that I won't spoil for you (as it has a direct impact on the main characters), but otherwise, the horror in The Flood is more of a psychological nature, slowly building as the story unfolds. There is an intense power struggle that is evident between Mary-Love and Elinor, and it's pretty clear from the get-go that Elinor is going to gain the upper hand.  She takes on the job of a teacher when the current teacher leaves town suddenly.  She becomes a mother figure to James' daughter, Grace.  She proves more than strong enough to face-off against James' wife, Genevieve when she returns to Perdido.  She enthralls Oscar to the point where he asks her to marry him, despite his own mother's objections.  Bray seems to be the only one who truly sees through Elinor's façade, knowing that she is hiding something that could ultimately destroy them all.  And while Elinor has the uncanny ability to charm an entire community, her complete lack of fear of the Perdido River and the legends surrounding the monstrosity that lives beneath the whirlpool at the junction leaves one to wonder - does she know the legend is just that, a legend, and there is nothing there; or is it something far more sinister?

By the end of The Flood, the reader is familiar enough with all of the main cast (and even many of the supporting cast) to be thoroughly involved in their lives and with a burning desire to know what comes next. This is not a Friday the 13th or Annabelle or Frankenstein, or any other "typical" tale of horror and scares - at least, not yet.  I am definitely hooked, and I am curious to see where McDowell will take us on this journey with the Caskey family and the enigmatic Elinor Dammert...

RATING:  9 family jewels raining down from the ceiling out of 10 for proving that psychological terror can be much more frightening than the bloody-slasher kind any day of the week!