The Cypress House

By: Michael Koryta

Narrated by: Robert Petkoff

Length: 11 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's summary

A journey to Florida's coast becomes an inescapable nightmare in this supernatural thriller from international bestselling author Michael Koryta.

Arlen Wagner has seen it in men before: a trace of smoke in their eyes that promises imminent death. He is never wrong.

When Arlen awakens on a train one hot Florida night and sees death's telltale sign in the eyes of his fellow passengers, he tries to warn them. Only 19-year-old Paul Brickhill believes him, and the two abandon the train, hoping to escape certain death. They continue south, but soon are stranded at the Cypress House—an isolated Gulf Coast boarding house run by the beautiful Rebecca Cady—directly in the path of an approaching hurricane.

The storm isn't the only approaching danger, though. A much deadlier force controls the county and everyone living in it, and Arlen wants out—fast. But Paul refuses to abandon Rebecca to face the threats alone, even though Arlen's eerie gift warns that if they stay too long they may never leave. From its chilling beginning to terrifying end, The Cypress House is a story of relentless suspense from "one of the best of the best" (Michael Connelly).

©2011 Michael Koryta (P)2011 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Michael Koryta is one of our new dynamos in the world of books, and in The Cypress House he spreads his range, wedding suspense with the supernatural in the eeriness of 1930s Florida. He uses the psychology of place to penetrate the human heart and delivers his tale of hurricanes and love and hauntings with great narrative force. Koryta's becoming a wonder we'll appreciate for a long time."—Daniel Woodrell, author of Winter's Bone

"The Cypress House is a dazzling blend of suspense, the supernatural, and superb storytelling. What a gifted writer. Michael Koryta is the real deal."—Ron Rash, author of Serena

"Koryta's masterful follow-up to So Cold the River effectively combines supernatural terror with the suffocating fatalism of classic American noir....Koryta excels at describing both scenery and his characters' inner landscapes. It's hard to think of another book with equal appeal to Stephen King and Cornell Woolrich fans."—Publishers Weekly

Gripping Read, hard to put down

This is my second Koryta book, after a surprisingly wonderful time reading "So Cold the River" - this one is not as good, but still well worth the money and the time to listen. Koryta's at his best when he's not playing in Steven King's sandbox, and unfortunately, this book spends a little too much time there, drawing comparisons that are unfair, but there all the same.

The story's good, the historical context is interesting, and the reading is pretty good too, though the producer's heavy-handed use of a scary sound effect every time something scary happens is a bit silly - this doesn't detract too much from the experience but is kind of a facepalmer. It happens a lot at the beginning, which may turn you off, but then it calms down. I'd read another Koryta book, hands down, and finished this one in about a week, so minor gripes aside, it was one of the better ones I found on Audible this year.

A really good "read"!

I was at the edge of my seat at so many parts! Really great "read"!

Absolutely wonderful!

Michael Koryta at his best!
From the cast of characters to the intense storyline, Cypress House had my undivided attention. Supernatural genius!

Hmmm

I honestly don't know how I feel about this book... I am always intrigued by this genre. I enjoy supernatural/fantasy/suspense books. This is certainly that. I don't know if I would say it is dark...maybe heavy??? I don't know.... If you are looking for a quick, light read, this is not for you. However, although this isn't one I would read again, I am glad that I read it. It kept me interested.

Typical Michael Koryta - EXCELLENT

Michael Koryta is quickly becoming my favorite author. I haven't rated them all of the 5 stars but close. His writing is easy follow and his stories suck you in and hold on til the end. He has a great imagination and I find his story telling as good, if not better, than Stephen Kings. I highly recommend this book if you like fiction with a ghostly touch.

Didn't Sleep A Wink Last Night

Michael Koryta has just become my new favorite author. Not only was the story worthy of an all-night-long listen, but the subtle sound effects also created an almost pleasurable frisson of fright. Well done Mr. Koryta and kudos to the talented audiobook production staff.

wow

this was one of my favorite books o Michael Koryta's. I had read the book previously. After deciding to listen to the book I realized just how the story was and enjoyed it even more with the book on audio. Truly awesome.

impressive

I usually don't enjoy the sound of most male narrators and have passed on many a good book due to the way most male narrations grate on my ears.(To be fair, plenty of female narrators are just as irritating) This book, however, sucked me in from the very first word. This book is a symphony of indepth, rawly human, complex characters who are differentiated beautifully by Robert Petkoff. I thourougly, thuroughly enjoyed every word in this book. The "other-wordly" aspects of the story were earily believeable while the human condition was layed out for all to see and feel and experience right along with the characters. Thanks MIchael Koryta! This was my first Michael Koryta book but I k it

Written well and pretty entertaining

Arlen sees things.

He doesn’t want to.

But sees them anyway.

This time it just may save his life.

This was written well and pretty entertaining. Supernatural suspense/thrillers (if that’s even what this was) can be rough for me sometimes, but Koryta executes this one very well. Reminds me of a series I just watched on Netflix that I can’t remember the name of.

Overall, a very promising author and a decent and entertaining story. (Yes, I am aware that this dude has written a bunch of books, but this was my first of his.)

3.5 Stars

Noir Thriller with a Paranormal Twist

I first read a book by this author under a new pen name, Scott Carson's "The Chill." That book had me from the first chapter, glued to the page and listening to the audio book. It was superb and I can't wait for a sequel. I decided to find the author's other paranormal books and started on this one. The premise was interesting and I couldn't wait to dig in.

I didn't realize that this book was set in the past, I thought it was a contemporary setting. It started out ok, then got bogged down towards the middle. A good portion could've been cut. I even took a break from it to focus on some other books. I know several other readers mentioned the same thing. I decided to come back and I am glad I did. The storyline did finally pick up to a thrilling ending. The character development was good, but a bit slow. It did turn out to be an interesting book. The lead Arlen had trouble with his gift and legacy. Rebecca learned to face her fear and Paul had to learn to grow up. The villains were dispicable. Narration was fantastic on the audio version. I loved the paranormal element, but this was primarily a noir thriller.