Discover the gothic horror phenomenon that is sweeping across Europe, with over 2 million copies sold'RIVETING, TERRIFYING...JUST ABSOLUTELY GREAT' STEPHEN KINGAs the dark and menacing waters of the local river submerge Perdido, a small town in the south of Alabama, the Caskeys - a family of rich landowners - must confront the tide of damage caused by the flood. Led by Mary-Love, the powerful matriarch, and by Oscar, her devoted son, the family must pick itself back up. But what they haven't anticipated is the sudden appearance of Elinor Dammert - a mysterious but seductive young woman with a troubling past. Her sole ambition appears to be to infiltrate the very heart of the Caskey clan... 'Beyond any trace of a doubt, one of the absolutely best writers of horror' Peter Straub'One of the genre's most underrated writers' Poppy Z. Brite

MICHAEL MCDOWELL was born in 1950 in Alabama. His notable books include the gothic novels Gilded Needles, The Elementals, Katie, and the gothic horror saga, Blackwater, which has become a phenomenal bestseller across Europe and elsewhere. He was also a successful screenwriter for film and TV, including his scripts for Tim Burton's Beetlejuice, Tales from the Crypt and The Nightmare Before Christmas. McDowell died in 1999. Tabitha King, wife of author Stephen King, completed his unfinished novel, Candles Burning.