The Elementals

By: Michael McDowell

Narrated by: R. C. Bray

Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

After a bizarre and disturbing incident at the funeral of matriarch Marian Savage, the McCray and Savage families look forward to a restful and relaxing summer at Beldame, on Alabama's Gulf Coast, where three Victorian houses loom over the shimmering beach. Two of the houses are habitable, while the third is slowly and mysteriously being buried beneath an enormous dune of blindingly white sand. But though long uninhabited, the third house is not empty. Inside, something deadly lies in wait. Something that has terrified Dauphin Savage and Luker McCray since they were boys, and which still haunts their nightmares. Something horrific that may be responsible for several terrible and unexplained deaths years earlier–and is now ready to kill again....

A haunted house story unlike any other, Michael McDowell's The Elementals (1981) was one of the finest novels to come out of the horror publishing explosion of the 1970s and '80s. Though best known for his screenplays for Tim Burton's Beetlejuice and The Nightmare Before Christmas, McDowell is now being rediscovered as one of the best modern horror writers and a master of Southern Gothic literature.

©1981, 2016 Estate of Michael McDowell (P)2016 Valancourt Books LLC

The absolute BEST!!!

This is one of the best books I’ve ever heard. I think I listened to the whole thing within two days i could not stop listening. This is definitely my favorite author.

Absolutely amazing

One of my favorite books. Characters are excellent and Bray absolutely slays the accents.

Wish it was longer. I love the idea of the summer homes. I could really imagine what it all looked like.

A great listen for Spooky Season

This novel is truly strange and frightening—it sticks in the mind and almost makes you see things out of the corner of your eye. I found listening at 90% speed perfect. Unfortunately this edition is missing the creepy prologue, although the events of the prologue are recounted in Chapter 1.

Great story

A fast paced and extremely well written story. Strong characters, and a great atmosphere was created. Definitely a solid 5/5, and the fact that RC Bray narrated was a cherry on top.

RC Bray is Amazing

There’s no other narrator on Audible who can provide the voice of a southern black woman, an angsty teenage girl from New York, a southern white woman socialite and politicians wife, etc.
RC does this all while making an average storyline way more interesting.

Creepiest story I've read

Wow! The Elementals packs a punch you won't see coming even if you're looking for it. What is creepy about the beach, sunshine and sand? Read on if you dare...

RC Bray

Love his way in which he reads. He always brings all he does to life!

The Elementals

Fan-freakin-tastic!

Just my kind of spooky.

Scary, funny, entertaining the whole way through.

Narration made the book EVEN better.

Wish it was longer, that’s how much I enjoyed it.

Perfect October listen.

I Wish It Were Longer

As someone who became a voracious horror reader in the 1980s, I can't believe that I've never read this novel until now--a big oversight on my part! I fell into the story easily, and the characters were immediately fascinating to me, likely a result of the incredible dialogue that steals the show from the very first pages. The beginning of the novel seemed to be setting up for a much more detailed narrative, though, and I finished the book feeling a bit cheated. I wanted to spend more time with the Savages and McCrays, but much of their story felt rushed, as if the details of their life at Beldame was insignificant. The horror of the final scenes would have been more intense if I was more invested in their lives, but, as it was, the terrifying moments just felt like snapshots rather than the result of a successful build-up. Still, I very much enjoy McDowell's writing style, and this one major complaint is really just a reflection of how much I was enjoying the novel overall. The narrator of the audiobook did such a terrific job with the character voices and accents, though his reading of the descriptive passages was a bit dull, as though he were trying to rush the story along as well.

Perfect Horror Story!!!

The story and performance were excellent! I was hooked immediately and couldn’t stop listening!
This was my first book by Michael McDowell and enjoyed it immensely! Have already bought 3 more titles by him.
I was sorry to read he passed on in 1999. What a tragic loss.