Medusa's Web

From the award-winning author of Hide Me Among the Graves, Last Call, Declare, and Three Days to Never, a phantasmagoric, thrilling, mind-bending tale of speculative fiction in which one man must uncover occult secrets of 1920s Hollywood to save his family.

In the wake of their Aunt Amity&;s suicide, Scott and Madeline Madden are summoned to Caveat, the eerie, decaying mansion in the Hollywood hills in which they were raised. But their decadent and reclusive cousins, the malicious wheelchair-bound Claimayne and his sister, Ariel, do not welcome Scott and Madeline&;s return to the childhood home they once shared. While Scott desperately wants to go back to their shabby South-of-Sunset lives, he cannot pry his sister away from this haunted &;House of Usher in the Hollywood Hills&; that is a conduit for the supernatural.

Decorated by bits salvaged from old hotels and movie sets, Caveat hides a dark family secret that stretches back to the golden days of Rudolph Valentino and the silent film stars. A collection of hypnotic eight-limbed abstract images inked on paper allows the Maddens to briefly fragment and flatten time&;to transport themselves into the past and future in visions that are both puzzling and terrifying. Though their cousins know little about these ancient &;spiders&; which provoke unpredictable temporal dislocations, Ariel and Claimayne have been using for years&;an addiction that has brought Claimayne to the brink of selfish destruction.

As Madeline falls more completely under Caveat&;s spell, Scott discovers that to protect her, he must use the perilous spiders himself. But will he unravel the mystery of the Madden family&;s past and finally free them. . . or be pulled deeper into their deadly web?

A phantasmagoric, thrilling,  mind-bending tale of speculative fiction in which one man must uncover occult secrets of 1920s Hollywood to save his family

In the wake of their Aunt Amity&;s suicide, Scott and Madeline Madden are summoned to Caveat, the eerie, decaying mansion in the Hollywood hills in which they were raised. But their decadent and reclusive cousins, the malicious wheelchair-bound Claimayne and beautiful, bitter Ariel, do not welcome Scott and Madeline&;s return to the childhood home they all once shared. While Scott desperately wants to go back to their south-of-Sunset lives, he cannot pry his sister away from this haunted &;House of Usher in the Hollywood Hills&; that is a conduit for the supernatural.

Decorated by bits salvaged from old hotels and movie sets, Caveat hides a dark family secret that stretches back to the golden days of Rudolph Valentino and the silent film era. A collection of hypnotic eight-limbed abstract images inked on paper allows the Maddens to briefly fragment and flatten time&;to transport themselves into the past and future in visions that are puzzling, terrifying, and mesmerizing. Though their cousins know little about these ancient &;spiders&; that provoke unpredictable temporal dislocations, Ariel and Claimayne have been using them for years&;an addiction that has brought Claimayne to the brink of solipsistic destruction.

As Madeline falls more completely under Caveat&;s spell, Scott discovers that to protect her, he must use the dangerous spiders himself. But will he unravel the mystery of the Madden family&;s history and finally free them from the past . . . or be pulled deeper, perhaps permanently, into the deadly web?

Blending real-life historical and fictional characters with the otherworldly, Medusa&;s Web is a vivid, chilling, fast-paced read that once again demonstrates multiple-award-winning novelist Tim Powers&;s imaginative brilliance.

Critics Hail Tim Powers

&;A writer of extraordinary imaginative powers.&;&;Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

&;[A] fine example of the work of a much-beloved author,  and a spooky ride through Victorian London to boot. . . . Powers&;s work  engages with something prerational that is buried deep, deep in our brains,  and that won&;t be bullied into submission by mere reason.&;&;boingboing.com on Hide Me Among the Graves

&;A fascinating exploration of the fine line between inspiration and insanity,  this horror/historical fiction/adrenaline blend will make  your flesh creep and your heart pound.&;&;Library Journal on Hide Me Among the Graves

&;A genre-bending thriller . . . endlessly inventive . . .  [with] imaginative leaps and relentless pacing.&;&;New York Times Book Review on Three Days to Never

&;Brio, bravado and a salutary measure of lunacy. . . .  A postmodern work par excellence.&;&;Washington Post Book World on Three Days to Never

&;Dazzling . . . a  tour de force, a brilliant blend  of John le Carré spy fiction with the otherworldly.&;&;Dean Koontz on Declare

&;Powers orchestrates reality and fantasy so artfully  that the reader is not allowed a moment&;s doubt throughout this tall tale.&;&;The New Yorker on Declare