Christopher Golden has consistently proven that he is an author to be reckoned with, having had a great deal of success in different genres. However, I enjoy Golden best when he is churning out a good old-fashioned horror story. If you feel the same way, then THE HOUSE OF LAST RESORT is the book for you.

"Christopher Golden milks every ounce of terror out of THE HOUSE OF LAST RESORT. The result is a horror novel that is not easy to forget and should be the cause of nightmares for countless readers."

The premise is one that should have your typical horror fan screaming at the young couple at the heart of this novel to turn back as all the warning signs are present for a really bad situation being laid in their laps. Obviously, we would not have a solid horror tale if they listened, so Tommy and Kate Puglisi are moving to Italy for a deal they cannot pass up.

The mayor of Becchina makes a desperate attempt to save his beautiful, crumbling hilltop town. Not caring where their residents come from, he decides to sell all available homes in Becchina for the super-low price of one Euro. The only caveat is that the new homeowners must sign an agreement that they will stay there for at least five years and spend 50,000 Euros on refurbishing their newly acquired property.

Since Tommy’s family comes from Becchina, taking advantage of this offer is a no-brainer. However, the couple should have noticed that something may have been amiss when the property they purchase, a hilltop house on a dead-end street, is one that Tommy’s grandparents will not visit. They learn through local gossip that their place at 17 Via Dionisio (I immediately picked up on the Dionysus reference) is nicknamed “The House of Last Resort.” To provide more definition about this odd title, it refers to the previous owners and what used to go on there.

It turns out that their new home was once owned and run by the Vatican and was created for the sole purpose of housing those who failed exorcism and were deemed incurable. These allegedly demonically possessed individuals filled their domicile, and there are still remnants left behind that shows the spot where an odd sort of altar once stood.

Tommy and Kate are not superstitious and see this as a potential windfall. Combined with the eerie catacombs that exist below the streets of Becchina, having a place that once housed supposed demons could mean big money for them. So they join up with other residents who are trying to turn Becchina around as they see a golden opportunity for increased tourism. At its center would be tours of both the catacombs and The House of Last Resort. Ah, the best laid plans…

The renovation that begins on their property eventually unearths some truly creepy stuff under the surface. To make matters worse, Tommy and Kate are having trouble getting used to the earthquakes that seem to be more and more frequent. When Tommy finds himself trapped in the catacombs beneath his home after a particularly violent quake, the situation becomes quite claustrophobic and nerve-wracking.

Christopher Golden milks every ounce of terror out of THE HOUSE OF LAST RESORT. The result is a horror novel that is not easy to forget and should be the cause of nightmares for countless readers.