Synopses & Reviews
Mark Novak's greatest mystery may be his own...
Rise the dark. These were the last words written in Lauren Novak's notebook before she was murdered in a strange Florida village. They've never meant anything to the police or to her husband, investigator Markus Novak. Now the man he believes killed her is out of prison, and draws Markus to the place he's avoided for so long: the lonely road where his wife was shot to death beneath the cypress trees and Spanish moss in a town called Cassadaga.
In Red Lodge, Montana, a senseless act of vandalism shuts the lights off in the town where Sabrina Baldwin is still trying to adjust to a new home and mourning the loss of her brother, who was a high voltage linesman just like her husband, Jay. As the spring's final snowstorm calls Jay deeper into the mountains, chasing the destruction on the electrical grid, Sabrina is abducted by Garland Webb, the man Markus Novak believes killed his wife. Drawing them all together is a messianic villain who understands that you can never outpace your past. You can only rise against the future.
Review
"A compelling narrative, relatable characters, and action scenes that play out like a blockbuster film, Koryta has written his best book to date. Highly recommended for fans of the author and readers of Dan Brown and Dennis Lehane." Library Journal (Starred Review)
Review
"Among his many gifts, Michael Koryta is a virtuoso in his use of outdoor settings...his thrillers present the great outdoors in their most frightening aspects. The book's atmospheric power and strong cast of supporting characters make Rise the Dark compelling from the get go." The Chicago Tribune
Review
"This book arrived with high praise from several stars of the genre — "A master," says Stephen King; "Outstanding," adds Lee Child — and they’re right. Rise the Dark is both first-rate entertainment and an unusually interesting thriller in terms of its characters, its plot and the ideas it explores, which include the electrical grid, Tesla’s history, spiritualism and the nation’s possible vulnerability to a right-wing takeover." The Washington Post
Review
"As with his spellbinding 2014 effort, Those Who Wish Me Dead, Koryta employs the desolate Montana setting with such mastery and deep sense of mystery that it's a compelling character itself. And with an intriguing coda that reverberates with themes of family, myth, and psychic possibility, this new novel leaves us keenly anticipating the next installment of the Novak saga. Again proving himself one of today's top thriller writers, Koryta creates edgy suspense not with trickery but with characters who test the limits of their courage." Kirkus Reviews (Starred Review)
Review
"Pulse-pounding…the dramatic conclusion does justice to the suspenseful setup." Publishers Weekly
Review
"Rise the Dark is—excuse the pun—electrifying. Koryta delivers nonstop action in an all-too-plausible scenario, with that hint of the uncanny that's become his trademark. The ending will have readers pounding his door for more." Joseph Finder, New York Times bestselling author of Guilty Minds and Suspicion
Review
"A superb thriller literally humming and buzzing with power and tension, given depth and resonance by Koryta's fascination with pitting lone human emotion against a vast and forbidding landscape." Lee Child
About the Author
Michael Koryta (pronounced ko-ree-ta) is the New York Times bestselling author of nine novels, most recently The Prophet. His last three novels, The Ridge, The Cypress House, and So Cold the River were all New York Times notable books and nominated for several national and international awards. In addition to winning the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, his novel Envy the Night was selected as a Reader's Digest condensed book. Koryta's work has been translated into more than twenty languages. A former private investigator and newspaper reporter, Koryta graduated from Indiana University with a degree in criminal justice. He currently lives in St. Petersburg, Florida, and Bloomington, Indiana.