in Reading A Fright (NAPSA)—Some believe Bedford, Maine, is cursed. Its bloody past, endless rain, and the decay of its downtown portend a hopeless future. With the death of its paper es mill, Bedford’s unemployed residents soon find themselves with far too much time to dwell on thoughts of Susan Marley. Beautiful and aloof, Susan fled her home at SARAH LANGAN age 17. When she went mute soon after, the town watched the fallen beauty with morbid fascination. Soon she is beginning to populate their dreams—and turn them into nightmares. This is the tale of “The Keeper” (HarperTorch, $6.99) by Sarah Langan, a beautifully written debut novel that skillfully mixes suspense and the paranormal and cuts it with an edge of horror. “The Keeper” heralds a brilliant new voice in commercialfiction. Langan studied with Michael Cunningham, Nicholas Christopher, Helen Schulman, Richard Russo and Maureen Howard, among oth- ers, all of whom have been instrumental in her work. Look for “The Keeper” at bookstores.
