A Noise Downstairs

By: Linwood Barclay

Narrated by: George Newbern

Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

The internationally best-selling author of No Time for Goodbye returns with a haunting psychological thriller that blends the twists and chills of Stephen King and Edgar Allan Poe with the driving suspense of Dennis Lehane and Harlan Coben, in which a man hears sounds that quite possibly emanate from the dead.

Paul Davis is hearing some very strange noises in the night. He hears the clickety-click of a manual typewriter - as if someone is vigorously tapping the keys. The eerie sounds began soon after his wife, Charlotte, bought him a classic antique Underwood. But only Paul can hear the noise coming from downstairs; Charlotte doesn't hear anything unusual.

Is Paul losing his mind? Maybe. Or is something really there? Eight months ago, he stumbled upon Connecticut's infamous "Apology Killer" - a psychopath who forced his victims to typewrite personal apologies to him before he cut their throats - disposing of two mutilated bodies on Milford's Post Road. Most shocking of all, the killer was his colleague, someone he thought he knew. Paul's been seeing a therapist for months to recover from the nearly fatal encounter, but his nerves and short-term memory have suffered since the traumatic event.

There's only one way to learn if the noises are real or a figment of his hyper-imagination. One night, Paul rolls a sheet of paper into the machine. The next morning, when he checks the page, there is a chilling message:

"We typed our apologies like he asked but he killed us anyway."

As he desperately searches to find a rational explanation for the note and the noises, Paul slowly begins to consider the unthinkable: The message is authentic, and the women butchered by his colleague are reaching out to him from beyond the grave.

©2018 Linwood Barclay (P)2018 Doubleday Canada

Critic reviews

"[Barclay] does a masterful job of layering on the mysteries until we're almost frantically turning the pages, impatient to find out what the hell is going on. A beautifully executed thriller." (Booklist, starred review)

"[A]rtfully crafted.... Don't turn your back on any of these guys." (The New York Times Book Review)

"[A] fast-paced psychological thriller... Harlan Coben fans will find much to like." (Publishers Weekly)

"[A Noise Downstairs] echoes a classic movie from the 1960s.... Proving that Linwood Barclay is a master of manipulation, he pulls a genuinely un­expected twist that throws everything out the window. This thriller then kicks into high gear as it becomes a race for answers and justice.... Predictable becomes unpredictable in this compelling book that echoes the best of Harlan Coben." (The Associated Press)