Can you feel your heart beating too fast? Do you feel trapped? Standing in a pool of water, in the basement of End House, wearing your party clothes, you are faced with descending cages and circular saws. The door locks behind you.
What should you do?
Run! The Dead Game has begun.
Book 1 in Series
Linda Bennett moves from New York to Florida to live a quieter life. Life is peaceful until the dead body washes up onshore. Linda learns that dead bodies and disappearing tourists are typical for the coastal town.
Linda and her friends receive an invitation to a party at End House, a deserted house overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The group arrives, but no one is there to greet them. The house has a sinister life of its own where horror follows their every step. Traps, illusions, and revolving rooms add to their growing fear. A bloody skeleton sleeps in an upstairs' bedroom, and body parts fall from the chimney into the living room's fireplace. Wild animals escape their cages in the basement. The young residents flee for their lives.
They embark on a difficult journey, not knowing whom to trust, to uncover the one controlling the evil game.
Who are The Dead?
Are they humans or vampires?
Will Linda lose her heart to Todd, who knows more than he admits?
Will her best friend, Shana, fall in love with Sheriff Sam?
The Dead Game has begun.
Excerpt
Main Street stood dark and deserted before her, except for the flickering lights glowing in the park. As the gusting wind flung leaves and branches at her face and around her feet, she was propelled forward through the winding walkway. Tranquil during the day, the gazebo appeared menacing in the candlelight. The candles in the gazebo lured her body against her will. Louise entered the lit circle, understanding she’d just signed her death sentence. She was a puppet on a string, controlled by an evil puppet master.
A noose wound around her neck, and Louise hung at the center of the gazebo, shadowy forms surrounding her. As they circled the building, a strong current of air raised her beneath the pointed roof. The shadows moved faster, and the rope tugged tighter until she could no longer breathe or even care to struggle any longer. Without air left in her lungs, and the world spinning around her, Louise watched the forms slow and take on distinct human figures. Clothed in black robes, men and women glared at her, chanting in an unfamiliar language. Their black hoods cast their faces in shadow. Long metal chains hung from their necks, with gold medallions depicting snarling wolves' heads.
One member of the group, who stood taller and more massive than the rest, lifted his arms to the sky. In response, the winds became more violent and moaned in unison with the unknown leader's voice.
Louise recognized one face right before she lost consciousness, but she knew it was too late.
Professional Reviews
Humans, hybrids & priests, oh my!
Awesome characters! I’ve enjoyed getting to know Linda, Todd and their band of misfit humans and hybrids. I can’t wait to read book two to find out what kind of trouble they get into next.
Fangs out, hands down, awesome
The Dead Game is unique, intriguing, and keeps you guessing. Vampires, murder, mayhem and a serious amount of twists and turns, heck even a touch of romance glistened through the pages. I’m a horror fanatic and found myself wrapped up within each page, lapping it up like a thirsty dog. I loved every bit of it. The author does a great job of vividly describing scenes that pull you in and you are enveloped within the story.
There is a lot of characters throughout the story, but with two main characters being the front center, Todd and Linda. Susanne Leist has done an amazing job fleshing out her characters, describing all the scenes and putting you, the reader, right smack in the front line. With a murderously excellent vampire story that is filled with several twists, you’ll be glad you picked this book up.
Scary!
I'm a big fan of Supernatural (the TV show), so it probably is no surprise how much I enjoyed reading this book. In fact, I think someone should make a move or TV series out of this. The book has everything you might want to see in a horror story (vampires, dead bodies, dreadful creatures, the whole nine yards) and it is full of twists and turns to boot. The characters are well-developed, the story starts out with a bang, and the plot is fast-moving. Moreover, I love twist endings, which in this case means I am off to read the sequel. Highly recommended.
Book three in series. Excitement and tension begin on the first day of filming a Restoration drama on location at the historic Jacobean mansion, Ham House in Surrey.
