Prophecy - Peter James

So how do you like your horror? Do you like it British and set in familiar locations? Do you want to think that ancient evil lurks under the City of London?

Francesca Monsanto's life seems to be a set of coincidences. She meets a man and a child on King's Cross station and feels an instant pull of attraction. When she picks up a magazine that she would not normally read in the dentist and sees an advert from the man on the station looking for her it seems like fate. But is it a kind fate and a happy destiny?

As Francesca and Oliver Halkin kindle their relationship, things seem to spin out of control in other areas of Frannie's life. Things start to happen to her friend's from College - horrible things; and at times Oliver's child Edward seems to be very strange. Is it just the death of his mother that is causing him to behave strangely at times, or is there something more sinister afoot?

As Frannie learns that Oliver is actually Lord Sherfield, and that there is a very black sheep in his family's ancestry, does she pull back from the relationship or forge on? And when she puts the pieces together and realises that the bad things are happening to the group of her friends who had met for a session with a Ouija board in the cellars of her parent's cafe in the City, how does she stop what is happening?

The links to the Halkins and the Ouija session keep piling up, as do the bodies. How can Frannie and Oliver extricate themselves and keep Edward safe? And why didn't at least one of them run for them there hills!

Perhaps not for those with weak stomachs as the book contains some pretty inventive ways to die, and especially to be avoided by those who don't like lifts!

One to read under the covers with a torch on Halloween with a big mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows floating on top to keep you warm

'Salem's Lot - Stephen King

I am one of those people who, if they could, would keep every single book that they had ever read. Unfortunately that is not possible, and you would not believe how many bin liners of books I have taken to charity shops!

Some books are just evergreen to me and I can read them again and again. One such book is Stephen King's vampire classic 'Salem's Lot'. This poignant story of how novelist Ben Mears returns to his home town to reclaim his past and face up to some of the disturbing events of his childhood only to find that he has walked into a living nightmare is one of King's best novels.

Ben Mears returns to Jerusalem's Lot after a personal tragedy to confront his fears about the Marsten House by possibly leasing the property and writing a book. The Marsten House was the scene of some grisly murders and had been talked about and feared ever since. Ben once entered the house for a dare, and saw and experienced things that left him terrified. He finds that the house has been recently occupied after standing empty for many years by a couple of very strange strangers and scary, nasty things have started to happen in this very ordinary, sleepy US town.

It takes Ben some time and a lot of soul searching to realise that there are vampires terrorising the Lot, and he can only persuade a few of the residents to believe him and try to destroy the infestation, which is led by a very old evil.

The scariest thing about the book is how this small town dies gradually, with very few people acknowledging that there is even a problem. Residents fade away and disappear without comment, people tremble with fear behind their curtains but do not voice those fears until one day nothing is open, the schools have no pupils and the town has died. No news of this penetrates the outside world, and only Ben and the boy are left to confront the vampires and strike at the heart of the evil.

The characters as always in a Stephen King novel, make this book and involve you from the very first paragraphs.

If you are among the few who haven't read it yet, you are in for a treat and for those you want to read it again, choose a dark, foggy night around Halloween when the shadows are long and the nights are chill. Have copious amounts of hot chocolate and marshmallows, and be very careful of who you invite into the house!

Choosing Books for The Lunch Time Book Review

You might be asking how I choose books for 'The Lunch Time Book Review'? Well I don't choose books for 'The Lunchtime Book Review' specifically, I review the books I am reading anyway.

I have been a voracious reader since I was a small child, and still usually pile through several novels a week. I am the type of reader who will have several books on the go at once, and they will be dotted all around the house. My tastes run to thrillers, anything with a supernatural theme, the odd romance or two and anything else that catches my eye really.

I am incapable of walking into a book shop and only buying one book, that's why I love 3 for 2 offers, and I am one of Amazon's favourite customers!