The Resort

This book proves that this Bram Stoker Award winning author is one of the best writers in the horror fiction genre. The book is filled with slow mounting tension, vivid imagery, and relentless scenes of horror. As with most of this author's works, there is a sexual element running throughout the book. There is also plenty of violence of a nature that may shock the reader. So, it is definitely not for the faint of heart nor for those with delicate sensibilities. It is simply a relentless roller-coaster ride into true horror. When Lowell Thurman, his wife, and three children decide to go on vacation, they select the Reata, a luxury resort spa located in the remote Arizona desert. By going off-season, the Thurmans are getting what they believe will be a dream vacation at a bargain basement price. What they will get, however, will be a vacation conceived in the bowels of hell. You see, the Reata isn't at all what it purports to be. When the Thurmans arrive, they are initially impressed with the luxurious resort, but their enthusiasm is quickly curbed by a series of encroaching events that are jarring. They have a number of bizarre encounters with employees and other guests that seem to escalate in terms of unpleasantness. The facilities are also suspect, as they appear to have a strange effect on those using them. Despite the unusual events transpiring around them, the Thurmans find themselves lulled into a false sense of complacency. When they finally wake up and smell the coffee, it is too late, as it is clear that they are not free to leave the Reata. Once again, the author takes the mundane and slowly builds a gripping tale of horror. The tension is skillfully maintained throughout the book, and fans of the horror genre will be riveted to the graphic and shocking scenes of horror painted by the author. Bacchanalian revels, sexual depravity, and to-the-death gladiator style sports are some of the activities awaiting the Thurmans at the Reata. The only question is whether they will be able to unlock the mystery of the Reata and survive their vacation. Fans of the author and aficionados of the horror genre will really enjoy this book.

Lowell Thurman and his family check into the exclusive Reata, an isolated resort in the Arizona desert, where things get very weird very quickly, yet the place has the power to convince everyone that everything is normal. Once they start to put together what's going on, the question is how much will it cost them to escape. How many more people will die? It's a great book, fast paced, and my favorite from Little yet!

For those who are looking for literature: you should probably look elsewhere. If you are looking for a solid popular horror novel: this should definately be on your "to read" list. I've read several of his books now and I realize that I never really read them for the ending; most of his endings seem like a way for him to bring his long strings of situations and tensions to a close. The fun of Bentley Little lies in his ability to deconstruct Americanisms that we take for granted and skew them into horror. At the same time he scares you Bentley's situations always have a tinge of satire that makes his novels interesting, fun, and though-provoking. The Resort is no exception, where he plays with situations and enviornments everyone who has ever stayed at a decent hotel has probably experienced. While the ending will let down some, it does tie in much more naturally then some of his other books (The Walking anyone?). Fans of Bentley Little should definately read this book. For those of you who've never read one, this is definately a good place to start.

The Reata, the resort you are so sure you can't afford, but during the summer it happens to be cheaper in the desert. Lowell and his wife and three children venture to the Reata in search of a little free time. Lowell's main reason to get away from his hometown because his high school reunion is taking place and he doesn't want to be there when it happens. Once they get to their destination, strange things occur. There is something lirking under the waterslide in the pool, the gardner does a crazy dance for Rachel everytime she sees him, the boys stumble upon a strange abandon building, and crazy games take place during their stay. All in all, this book is like riding a roller coaster, except it doesn't come down, not even at the end! Few people realize, when picking up any books by Mr. Little, what they are in store for. Most of the time, you won't get what you want at the ending of one of his stories, but by the time the ending actually closes, you really truly don't care. You have been entertained long enough, you went through exactly what every character went through, it was as though you were there too. However, if you are looking for an explanation to the events that happened in this book, you won't find any, it's very vague. It's left to your imagination, which I find intriguing and heck, it's leaves you to ponder what happened. I think that is a great way to close a book. The Resort is an excellent book. If you are a Bentley Little fan, buy it, you will enjoy it. If you aren't, this should be one of the first of many Little books that you buy. He is an excellent, supreb, genuine, intriguing, captivating writer, and heck, he was friends with the creator of Spongebob!

Located in the heart of the Arizona desert, The Reata Hotel offers cheap rates to its customers in the summertime when it can't attract any rich vacationers. Lowell Thurman, who wants to avoid his school reunion, agrees to let his wife Rachel and their three sons (Owen, Curtis and their youngest Ryan) stay at the resort for five days of luxurious pampering. When they first glimpse the resort it looks like a rich man's paradise with luxeries very few could afford. At the end of their first day at the hotel complex, all the Thurmans share the feeling that something evil permeates the place. The Thurman teens see a dead body at the bottom of the pool that turns into a dark spot once they leave the area. Rachel sees a face of evil in the sky; while Lowell swimming alone in pool feels hands clutching his body. There is a deserted ruin of another resort at the end ofa trail and as the Reata starts to deteriorate, the ruins turn into a new version of The Resort. Guests are now trapped there, helpless to fight the evil that is the Reata hotel. There are very few horror writers who can write as consistently well as Bentley Little. His writing is on a par with the greats such as Stephen King, Clive Barker and Peter Straub but he has a unique voice and a way of turning ordinary circumstances into a person's worst nightmare. THE RESORT is his best work to date as fans will think twice in a Jaws-like manner of where they vacation Harriet Klausner