The Wide Game (2003)
Michael West

On the advice of his wife, Paul Rice is making plans to attend his 10th year high school renunion.  Returning to his boyhood home of Harmony, Indiana, he finds that he is still haunted by membories of that time - memories of Deidra, his first love, and memories of the Wide Game.  It was ten years ago that Paul and his friends watched their day of fun become a race for their lives, a fight for their very souls.  Now, as he meets the survivors of that day once more, Paul makes a chilling discovery:  the incomprehensible forces that toyed with them have yet to finish playing their own game.

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“Just when you think it will be predictable, BAM, it’s not. Lots of twists and turns made this story stick and kept me turning the pages. If you like Koontz, then you will like this story too.”

~Skullring.org

“4.5 out of 5…This is simply a well-written tale of terror that could easily be transformed onto the big screen. Don’t open the cover unless you want to be sucked into a tornado of horror. Once you start in on this novel you won’t be able to pull away…A believable, dark, nasty, piece. I give it my wicked stamp of approval…Just remember the name Michael West because he has a future in the horror genre.”

~Brian Yount, Wicked Karnival Magazine

“Michael West proves himself to be a masterful storyteller, flawless in building momentum, and his skills in characterization match or even often surpass some of the most successful writers in the business. This is a first-rate novel, well edited and no holds barred. My jaw dropped, quite literally, at more than a handful of turning points in the story that I just didn’t see coming, and I oftentimes couldn’t put the book down. I know that’s a pretty cliché phrase, but coming from me……well, that sort of intense preoccupation just doesn’t occur too often.

“This is a work of first-rate terror and suspense, and for the seasoned reader sports a refreshingly original story methodology as a means to scare the wits out of you. This is his first novel, and I’ll be watching the career of Michael West with sincere interest in his works to come.

“And I’ll never look at corn fields the same way again.”

~Nicholas Grabowsky, author of Halloween 4: the Return of Michael Myers, and The Everborn

“3.5 stars…A very easy read with an interesting mythos…You could feel the fear of the unknown everyone was experiencing…To anyone that enjoys supernatural horror…when you’re shopping for books next time, remember it!”

~Horror Web