“3.5 stars out of 4. Damned scary…As well-written as it is chill-inducing…The more terrifying and unnerving aspects of the novel – and there are many – are just as important as the human element.” – Brian Truitt, USA Today
“Smart, inventive….this is what demons—living or otherwise, human or not—do best: they mesmerize, they seduce, they stop us in our tracks.” — Terrence Rafferty, New York Times Book Review
“Pyper is a master architect of dread…Compulsive and nerve-jangling, The Damned is a story about personal hells and the relationships that haunt us.”
—Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls and Broken Monsters
“The Damned will keep sleep firmly at bay.” — Financial Times (UK)
“Prepare yourself for a sleepless night or two once you’ve settled in with this smart, suspenseful and absolutely terrifying book that takes the bad seed concept to a whole new level. Pyper has the unique ability to take us to the darkest places and convince us that the things we find there are not only entirely possible and real, but that we might just take some piece of them back with us once we close the cover and turn out the lights.” – Jennifer McMahon, New York Times bestselling author of The Winter People
“An intense and satisfying supernatural story…The novel underlines Pyper’s growing reputation as one of the most talented successors to the inimitable Stephen King.” – Daily Mail (UK)
“Pyper has more than mastered the art of the profluent plot and The Damned guarantees many sleepless nights…will get your heart racing without insulting your intelligence.” – The Globe and Mail
“Memorable…nightmare-inducing…Pyper’s pacing is perfect. A treat for fans of intelligent treatments of the supernatural and rock-solid writing.” – Kirkus Reviews
“* * * *. Super-scary…horrifyingly vivid…Pyper makes his ghost so real you feel like she’s talking to you.” – NOW Magazine
“In this literate supernatural thriller…as in the best horror, Pyper’s keen eye for the quotidian makes the fantastic feel plausible.” – Publishers Weekly
“Frightening, and with a lot of surprises…I would put this author right up there with Stephen King.” – The Oklahoman
“It’s an uncommon novel that moves a reader, and a rare one that frightens them, but only the most extraordinary accomplish both at the same time. Enter The Damned, a tour de force that sinks sticky claws into the soft dark places in your psyche—and refuses to let go, no matter how you squirm.”
— Marcus Sakey, author of The Blade Itself and the Brilliance Saga
* Film Rights Sold to Legendary Pictures
* Amazon 10 Best Books of the Month Pick
From the #1 internationally bestselling author of The Demonologist, called “smart, thrilling, utterly unnerving” by Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn, comes a spine-tingling supernatural thriller about a survivor of a near-death experience haunted by his beautiful, vindictive twin sister.
Danny Orchard wrote a bestselling memoir about his near-death experience in a fire that claimed the life of his twin sister, Ashleigh, but despite the resulting fame and fortune he’s never been able to enjoy his second chance at life. Ash won’t let him.
In life, Danny’s charming and magnetic twin had been a budding psychopath who privately terrorized her family—and death hasn’t changed her wicked ways. Ash has haunted Danny for twenty years and now, just when he’s met the love of his life and has a chance at real happiness, she wants more than ever to punish him for being alive—so she sets her sights on Danny’s new wife and stepson.
Danny knows what Ash really wants is him, and he’s prepared to sacrifice himself in order to save the ones he loves. The question is: will he make it back this time?
“A master of psychological suspense.” – Lisa Gardner
“Outstanding in every way.” – Dennis Lehane
“Pyper is the rare writer who has it all: he’s a poet, a magician, and a seer into the frail human heart.” – Lisa Unger
“An enormously gifted writer at the top of his game.” – Michael Koryta