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Product Description
Dave Zeltserman’s last novel was named by NPR as one of the top five crime and mystery novels of 2008 and one of The Washington Post’s best books of the year.
Publishers Weekly, in a starred review, said his “breakthrough third crime novel deserves comparison with the best of James Ellroy.” And Crimetime calls him a name to watch.” Now, Zeltserman has written the book his fans have been waiting for—a classic unlike anything you’ve ever read.
Jack Durkin is the ninth generation of Durkins who have weeded Lorne Field for nearly 300 years. Though he and his wife Lydia are miserable and would like nothing more than to leave, Jack must wait until his son has come of age to tend the field on his own. It’s an important job, though no one else seems to realize it. For, if the field is left untended, a horrific monster called an Aukowie will grow—a monster capable of taking over the entirety of America in just two weeks. Or so it is said. . .
Dave Zeltserman was born in Boston and educated at the University of Colorado. A former software engineer, he is a die-hard Patriots and Red Sox fan, and when he’s not writing fiction, he spends his time working on his black belt in Kung Fu. He and his wife live in the Boston area.
Publishers Weekly, in a starred review, said his “breakthrough third crime novel deserves comparison with the best of James Ellroy.” And Crimetime calls him a name to watch.” Now, Zeltserman has written the book his fans have been waiting for—a classic unlike anything you’ve ever read.
Jack Durkin is the ninth generation of Durkins who have weeded Lorne Field for nearly 300 years. Though he and his wife Lydia are miserable and would like nothing more than to leave, Jack must wait until his son has come of age to tend the field on his own. It’s an important job, though no one else seems to realize it. For, if the field is left untended, a horrific monster called an Aukowie will grow—a monster capable of taking over the entirety of America in just two weeks. Or so it is said. . .
Dave Zeltserman was born in Boston and educated at the University of Colorado. A former software engineer, he is a die-hard Patriots and Red Sox fan, and when he’s not writing fiction, he spends his time working on his black belt in Kung Fu. He and his wife live in the Boston area.
Praise for THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD
“If Stephen King had a true Noir calling and Peter Straub added contemporary horror… and Dean Koontz threw in his fine depiction of ordinary life on the edge of the unknown… then bring the specter of James M. Cain to write the narrative, you’d come close to describing the whole effect of this stunning slice for the zeitgeist wondrous novel and the writing is… pure dark bliss.”—Ken Bruen, author of London Boulevard
“The Caretaker of Lorne Field is a magnificent novel, with truly believable characters and suspense that keeps building to an explosive climax. There it is, plain and simple.” —Seymour Shubin, Edgar Award finalist, author of Anyone's My Name
This superbly crafted horror story explores the dichotomy between belief and rationality. Why has a small town maintained a contract since the eighteenth century with a member of the community and his heirs to pull weeds in Lorne Field? Jack Durkin, the current and ninth generation of Lorne Field caretakers, says the things he pulls from the ground aren’t weeds; they are something called Aukowies, and if they’re not pulled up by the roots and burned every day, the world will end. Under pressure from his wife to get a real job; from the town fathers (looking to save a few bucks and end the contract); and from his sons, who don’t see themselves as career weed-pullers, Durkin is finally out of a job. No more weed pulling. So is he just a nut case, or does the novel segue into another Little Shop of Horrors? Sorry, we don’t do spoilers. Horror fans will have to read this first-class cautionary tale themselves. — Elliott Swanson, Booklist
“Superb mix of humor and horror…Zeltserman orchestrates events perfectly…Readers will keep turning pages to see how the ambiguous plot resolves.” -- Publishers Weekly
"Harrowing. Zeltserman colors it black with the best of them.” -- Kirkus Reviews
"The black comedy of errors that ensues invites comparison to storiesby Kafka, David Prill, James Hynes, William Browning Spencer, and other authors who have mused on the dark side of daily breadwinning… Though Zeltserman’s approach is clearly tongue-in-cheek, he deftly balances the competing interests of the characters to keep the truth of the narrative events ambiguous. A few deaths at conveniently inopportune moments and several coincidental fades to black only add to the dramatic tension of the narrative. Stories of this kind are hard to pull off and often collapse under the weight of their outrageous premises long before they end. It’s to Zeltserman’s credit that his novel holds together up to and through the final paragraph, and that it compels the reader to stay with it for that long." –LOCUS Magazine
"Crime writer Zeltserman has produced a nail-biter...The narrative is straightforward and gritty, reminiscent of works of Dashiell Hammett...gripping and actually ‘horrifying,’ this title is recommended for horror fans and readers who may relish unpleasant surprises." -- Library Journal
“The Caretaker of Lorne Field is a fabulous amusing tale that grips the reader with a need to know whether the monster is real, a centuries old con, or generational lunacy” -- Midwest Book Review
“If Stephen King had a true Noir calling and Peter Straub added contemporary horror… and Dean Koontz threw in his fine depiction of ordinary life on the edge of the unknown… then bring the specter of James M. Cain to write the narrative, you’d come close to describing the whole effect of this stunning slice for the zeitgeist wondrous novel and the writing is… pure dark bliss.”—Ken Bruen, author of London Boulevard
“The Caretaker of Lorne Field is a magnificent novel, with truly believable characters and suspense that keeps building to an explosive climax. There it is, plain and simple.” —Seymour Shubin, Edgar Award finalist, author of Anyone's My Name
This superbly crafted horror story explores the dichotomy between belief and rationality. Why has a small town maintained a contract since the eighteenth century with a member of the community and his heirs to pull weeds in Lorne Field? Jack Durkin, the current and ninth generation of Lorne Field caretakers, says the things he pulls from the ground aren’t weeds; they are something called Aukowies, and if they’re not pulled up by the roots and burned every day, the world will end. Under pressure from his wife to get a real job; from the town fathers (looking to save a few bucks and end the contract); and from his sons, who don’t see themselves as career weed-pullers, Durkin is finally out of a job. No more weed pulling. So is he just a nut case, or does the novel segue into another Little Shop of Horrors? Sorry, we don’t do spoilers. Horror fans will have to read this first-class cautionary tale themselves. — Elliott Swanson, Booklist
“Superb mix of humor and horror…Zeltserman orchestrates events perfectly…Readers will keep turning pages to see how the ambiguous plot resolves.” -- Publishers Weekly
"Harrowing. Zeltserman colors it black with the best of them.” -- Kirkus Reviews
"The black comedy of errors that ensues invites comparison to storiesby Kafka, David Prill, James Hynes, William Browning Spencer, and other authors who have mused on the dark side of daily breadwinning… Though Zeltserman’s approach is clearly tongue-in-cheek, he deftly balances the competing interests of the characters to keep the truth of the narrative events ambiguous. A few deaths at conveniently inopportune moments and several coincidental fades to black only add to the dramatic tension of the narrative. Stories of this kind are hard to pull off and often collapse under the weight of their outrageous premises long before they end. It’s to Zeltserman’s credit that his novel holds together up to and through the final paragraph, and that it compels the reader to stay with it for that long." –LOCUS Magazine
"Crime writer Zeltserman has produced a nail-biter...The narrative is straightforward and gritty, reminiscent of works of Dashiell Hammett...gripping and actually ‘horrifying,’ this title is recommended for horror fans and readers who may relish unpleasant surprises." -- Library Journal
“The Caretaker of Lorne Field is a fabulous amusing tale that grips the reader with a need to know whether the monster is real, a centuries old con, or generational lunacy” -- Midwest Book Review
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