Stephen M. Irwin

After the death of his wife, Nicholas Close becomes haunted, literally, by ghosts. Torn by guilt and fearing for his sanity, he returns home to Tallong, Australia, and becomes entangled in a disturbing series of disappearances and murders--both as a suspect and as the next victim of the malignant evil lurking in the heart of the woods.

A Novel

The Dead Path

It s the near future and the world has descended into chaos. On the surface, everything looks the same yet the unthinkable has happened...the dead have risen. Everyone is haunted by a dead relative, friend, spouse, or stranger, and these spirits are unshakable, silent and watching. No one is safe. Governments the world over fail to deal with the epidemic, they begin to lose control of their economies and their resources. Their people. Crime is rife, and murders commonplace. But who is responsible: the ghosts or the people? Finding out is where Detective Oscar Mariani comes in, although it s nearly impossible to run a department when you can t even see half the suspects. His strike rate is embarrassingly low. Then he stumbles into a case that cuts through his apathy and depression, a case that suggests a ritualistic, brutal serial killer attracted to innocent young women at work and one that, unfortunately for Mariani and his less jaded partner, implicates those in high places. However, if he can solve it, and keep alive himself, he may be able to exorcise his own ghostly shadow, a dead young man who might just have something to say. Mixing police procedural, suspense and horror, Stephen M Irwin's new book is a compelling, knuckle-whitening ride.

The Broken Ones

Do you remember the last time a book gave you the chills? The Dead Path is the ghost story we’ve been waiting for. A haunting vision in the woods sets off a series of tragic events, leaving Nicholas Close lost amid visions of ghosts trapped in their harrowing, final moments. These uniquely ter­rifying apparitions lead him on a thrilling and suspenseful ride to confront a wicked soul, and will leave an indelible mark on lovers of high-quality suspense and horror alike. Nicholas Close has always had an uncanny intuition, but after the death of his wife he becomes haunted, literally, by ghosts doomed to repeat their final violent moments in a chilling and endless loop. Torn by guilt and fearing for his sanity, Nicholas returns to his childhood home and is soon entangled in a dis­turbing series of disappearances and murders—both as a sus­pect and as the next victim of the malignant evil lurking in the heart of the woods. Stephen M. Irwin is the kind of debut author that readers love to discover—and rave about to all their friends. His electric use of language, stunning imagery, and suspenseful pacing are all on full display here. The Dead Path is a tour de force of wild imagination, taut suspense, and the creepiest, scariest setting since the sewers in Stephen King’s It.

Do you remember the last time a book gave you the chills? The Dead Path is the ghost story we’ve been waiting for. A haunting vision in the woods sets off a series of tragic events, leaving Nicholas Close lost amid visions of ghosts trapped in their harrowing, final moments. These uniquely ter­rifying apparitions lead him on a thrilling and suspenseful ride to confront a wicked soul, and will leave an indelible mark on lovers of high-quality suspense and horror alike. Nicholas Close has always had an uncanny intuition, but after the death of his wife he becomes haunted, literally, by ghosts doomed to repeat their final violent moments in a chilling and endless loop. Torn by guilt and fearing for his sanity, Nicholas returns to his childhood home and is soon entangled in a dis­turbing series of disappearances and murders—both as a sus­pect and as the next victim of the malignant evil lurking in the heart of the woods. Stephen M. Irwin is the kind of debut author that readers love to discover—and rave about to all their friends. His electric use of language, stunning imagery, and suspenseful pacing are all on full display here. The Dead Path is a tour de force of wild imagination, taut suspense, and the creepiest, scariest setting since the sewers in Stephen King’s It. From the Hardcover edition.

The author of The Dead Path imagines a world where everyone in the world finds themselves suddenly accompanied by a personal ghost that only the haunted can see, a situation that throws the world into chaos and complicates the career of homicide detective Mariani. 20,000 first printing.

By the creator and writer of the hit TV show SECRETS & LIES, the chilling story of Oscar Mariani, a detective who must face his own ghosts if he is to stop a brutal killer creating more... 'Gothic, gripping and genuinely scary...one to read late into the night.' Who Weekly No one is safe. The world has descended into chaos. On the surface, everything looks the same - yet the unthinkable has happened. The dead have risen... Everyone is haunted by a relative, friend, spouse or stranger and these spirits are unshakeable, silent and watching. Governments the world over fail to deal with the epidemic. Crime is rife and murders commonplace. But who is responsible: the ghosts or the people? Finding out is where Detective Oscar Mariani comes in, although it's nearly impossible to run a department when you can't even see half the suspects. His strike rate is embarrassingly low. Then he stumbles onto a case that cuts through his apathy. A ritualistic, brutal serial killer is at work murdering young women, and the evidence implicates those in high places. If Mariani can solve the case, and keep himself alive, he may be able to exorcise his own ghostly shadow, a dead young man who just might have a message Mariani needs to hear. A gripping mix of police procedural and supernational thriller, The Broken Ones is a knuckle-whitening ride. 'The writing is at once witty, gritty and grim. The horrors are genuinely horrible and the imagined scenario is satisfyingly rich and suggestive.' Pick of the Week, Sydney Morning Herald

Irwin

After his wife's sudden death, Nick Close has decided to leave London and return to Australia, hoping that distance will bring oblivion. But Tallong, his run-down childhood home, doesn't hold much comfort either: Thirty years ago, he and his best friend Tristram were lured into the woods at the edge of town. Tristram was murdered while Nick escaped. As Nick drives the back road home from the airport, he is disturbed to find the woods still looming darkly in the distance. A strange sense of menace and foreboding overshadows his homecoming and Nick's uneasiness grows when another child is found murdered a few days later, his death almost identical to Tristram's. Probing quietly and carefully into the shadows of the small community, Nick uncovers a long string of unexplained disappearances and brutal deaths, some over 100 years old - and every killing seems to lead back into the twisted maze of the woods. But there is one other connection. Drawn into the woods once again, Nick suddenly realises that it wasn't Tristram who was meant to die thirty years ago...

Stephen M. Irwin

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