Mr. X (Straub Novel)
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Mr. X (Straub Novel)
''Mr. X'' is a 1999 horror mystery novel by American writer Peter Straub. The book won the 1999 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel and was a 2001 August Derleth Award nominee. The novel is a tribute to H. P. Lovecraft. Synopsis The novel tells story about Ned Dunstan, a computer programmer with an odd past that he finds himself constantly questioning. Every year on his birthday, Ned is cursed with visions of horror committed by a savage figure he calls "Mr. X." Now, as his 35th birthday approaches, Ned has been drawn back to his home town of Edgerton, Illinois, by a premonition that his mother is dying. His mother reveals the identity of his mysterious father and warns him of grave danger. Ignoring the warnings, Ned explores his dark past and the astonishing legacy of his kin, driving the case to a sinister turn as it appears he may or may not have a devious doppelgänger responsible for gruesome murders. Soon, Ned is accused of crimes he couldn't possibly have committed, wh ...
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Peter Straub
Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) Culture * Peter (actor) (born 1952), stage name Shinnosuke Ikehata, Japanese dancer and actor * Peter (album), ''Peter'' (album), a 1993 EP by Canadian band Eric's Trip * Peter (1934 film), ''Peter'' (1934 film), a 1934 film directed by Henry Koster *Peter (2021 film), ''Peter'' (2021 film), Marathi language film * Peter (Fringe episode), "Peter" (''Fringe'' episode), an episode of the television series ''Fringe'' * Peter (novel), ''Peter'' (novel), a 1908 book by Francis Hopkinson Smith * Peter (short story), "Peter" (short story), an 1892 short story by Willa Cather Animals * Peter, the Lord's cat, cat at Lord's Cricket Ground in London * Peter (chief mouser), Chief Mouser between 1929 a ...
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Random House
Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. History Random House was founded in 1927 by Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer, two years after they acquired the Modern Library imprint from publisher Horace Liveright, which reprints classic works of literature. Cerf is quoted as saying, "We just said we were going to publish a few books on the side at random," which suggested the name Random House. In 1934 they published the first authorized edition of James Joyce's novel ''Ulysses'' in the Anglophone world. ''Ulysses'' transformed Random House into a formidable publisher over the next two decades. In 1936, it absorbed the firm of Smith and Haas—Robert Haas became the third partner until retiring and selling his share back to Cerf and Klopfer in 19 ...
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Bram Stoker Award
The Bram Stoker Award is a recognition presented annually by the Horror Writers Association (HWA) for "superior achievement" in dark fantasy and horror writing. History The Awards were established in 1987 and have been presented annually since 1988, and the winners are selected by ballot of the Active members of the HWA. They are named after Irish horror writer Bram Stoker, author of the novel ''Dracula'', among others. Several members of the HWA—including Dean Koontz—were reluctant to endorse such writing awards, fearing it would incite competitiveness rather than friendly admiration. The HWA therefore went to lengths to avoid mean-spirited competition, they agreed to specifically seek out new and neglected writers and works, and officially issue Awards not based on "best of the year" criteria, but "for superior achievement", which allows for ties. Nominated works come from two different processes. Works can be recommended by any member of the HWA and a separate l ...
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Horror Fiction
Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian J. A. Cuddon, in 1984, defined the horror story as "a piece of fiction in prose of variable length... which shocks, or even frightens the reader, or perhaps induces a feeling of repulsion or loathing". Horror intends to create an eerie and frightening atmosphere for the reader. Often the central menace of a work of horror fiction can be interpreted as a metaphor for larger fears of a society. Prevalent elements of the genre include ghosts, demons, vampires, werewolves, ghouls, the Devil, witches, monsters, extraterrestrials, dystopian and post-apocalyptic worlds, serial killers, cannibalism, cults, dark magic, satanism, the macabre, gore and torture. History Before 1000 The horror genre has ancient origins, with roots in folklore ...
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Mystery Fiction
Mystery is a genre fiction, fiction genre where the nature of an event, usually a murder or other crime, remains wiktionary:mysterious, mysterious until the end of the story. Often within a closed circle of suspects, each suspect is usually provided with a credible motive and a reasonable opportunity for committing the crime. The central character is often a detective (such as Sherlock Holmes), who eventually solves the mystery by logical deduction from facts presented to the reader. Some mystery books are non-fiction. Mystery fiction can be detective stories in which the emphasis is on the puzzle or suspense element and its logical solution such as a whodunit. Mystery fiction can be contrasted with hardboiled detective stories, which focus on action and gritty realism. Mystery fiction can involve a supernatural mystery in which the solution does not have to be logical and even in which there is no crime involved. This usage was common in the pulp magazines of the 1930s and 1940s ...
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August Derleth Award
The August Derleth Award is one of the British Fantasy Awards bestowed annually by the British Fantasy Society. The award is named after the American writer and editor August Derleth. It was inaugurated in 1972 for the best novel of the year, was not awarded in 2011, and was resumed in 2012 for the best horror novel of the year. Winners The August Derleth Award was conferred 45 times in 46 years to 2017, including 39 times to 2010 for the best novel of the year. Its multiple winners include Ramsey Campbell (6), Graham Joyce (5), Michael Moorcock and Stephen King (4). Source: August Derleth Award, Worlds Without End (worldswithoutend.com) Best novel of the year (1972–2010) * 1972 ''The Knight of the Swords'', Michael Moorcock * 1973 ''The King of the Swords'', Michael Moorcock * 1974 '' Hrolf Kraki's Saga'', Poul Anderson * 1975 ''The Sword and the Stallion'', Michael Moorcock * 1976 ''The Hollow Lands'', Michael Moorcock * 1977 '' The Dragon and the George'', Gordon R. Dickson ...
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Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria metropolitan area, Illinois, Peoria and Rockford metropolitan area, Illinois, Rockford, as well Springfield, Illinois, Springfield, its capital. Of the fifty U.S. states, Illinois has the List of U.S. states and territories by GDP, fifth-largest gross domestic product (GDP), the List of U.S. states and territories by population, sixth-largest population, and the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 25th-largest land area. Illinois has a highly diverse Economy of Illinois, economy, with the global city of Chicago in the northeast, major industrial and agricultural productivity, agricultural hubs in the north and center, and natural resources such as coal, timber, and petroleum in the south. Owing to its centr ...
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Doppelgänger
A doppelgänger (), a compound noun formed by combining the two nouns (double) and (walker or goer) (), doppelgaenger or doppelganger is a biologically unrelated look-alike, or a double, of a living person. In fiction and mythology, a doppelgänger is often portrayed as a ghostly or paranormal phenomenon and usually seen as a harbinger of bad luck. Other traditions and stories equate a doppelgänger with an evil twin. In modern times, the term twin stranger is occasionally used. Spelling The word ''doppelganger'' is a loanword from the German. The singular and plural forms are the same in German, but English writers usually prefer the plural "doppelgangers". The first known use, in the slightly different form ''Doppeltgänger'', occurs in the novel ''Siebenkäs'' (1796) by Jean Paul, in which he explains his newly coined word in a footnote; the word also appears in the novel, but with a different meaning. In German, the word is written (as is usual with German nouns) with ...
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1999 In Literature
This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1999. Events *May 1 – Andrew Motion is appointed Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom for ten years. *June 19 – Stephen King is hit by a van while taking a walk. He is hospitalized for three weeks and only resumes writing his next book, '' On Writing'', in July. *September 7 – Black Diamond, designed by Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects, is inaugurated as an extension to the Royal Danish Library in Copenhagen. *''unknown date'' – Persephone Books is founded in Bloomsbury, London, by Nicola Beauman, to reprint mid-20th century fiction and non-fiction, mainly by women. New books Fiction *Isabel Allende – ''Daughter of Fortune (Hija de la fortuna)'' *Aaron Allston **''Solo Command'' **''Starfighters of Adumar'' *Laurie Halse Anderson – '' Speak'' *Max Barry – ''Syrup'' *Greg Bear – ''Darwin's Radio'' * Raymond Benson **''High Time to Kill'' **''The World Is Not Enough'' *Maeve Binchy â ...
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1999 American Novels
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 Ä°zmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootings in the United States; the Year 2000 problem ("Y2K"), perceived as a major concern in the lead-up to the year 2000; the Millennium Dome opens in London; online music downloading platform Napster is launched, soon a source of online piracy; NASA loses both the Mars Climate Orbiter and the Mars Polar Lander; a destroyed T-55 tank near Prizren during the Kosovo War., 300x300px, thumb rect 0 0 200 200 Death and state funeral of King Hussein rect 200 0 400 200 1999 Ä°zmit earthquake rect 400 0 600 200 Columbine High School massacre rect 0 200 300 400 Kosovo War rect 300 200 600 400 Year 2000 problem rect 0 400 200 600 Mars Climate Orbiter rect 200 400 400 600 Napster rect 400 400 600 600 Millennium Dome 1999 was designated a ...
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Bram Stoker Award For Novel Winners
Bram may refer to: People * Bram (given name) * Bram (surname) * Bram (wrestler) (born 1986), ring name of professional wrestler Thomas Raymond Latimer * Bram Tchaikovsky (born 1950), stage name of British musician Peter Bramall * Bram Stoker Irish author of Dracula Other uses * Bram, Aude, a commune in France * Gare de Bram, Bram, Occitanie, France * Stade du Bram, a stadium in Louhans, France * Bram, nickname of the lead character in the 2012 Dutch Film '' Brammetje Baas'' See also * * Brahm (other) * Brams Brams is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Steven Brams (born 1940), American game theorist and political scientist * Ingeborg Brams (1921–1989), Danish film, radio, television, and theatre actress See also * Brahms (surnam ..., a surname * CBRAM, conductive-bridging RAM {{Disambiguation ...
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Novels By Peter Straub
A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself from the la, novella, a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ''novellus'', diminutive of ''novus'', meaning "new". Some novelists, including Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Ann Radcliffe, John Cowper Powys, preferred the term "romance" to describe their novels. According to Margaret Doody, the novel has "a continuous and comprehensive history of about two thousand years", with its origins in the Ancient Greek and Roman novel, in Chivalric romance, and in the tradition of the Italian renaissance novella.Margaret Anne Doody''The True Story of the Novel'' New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1996, rept. 1997, p. 1. Retrieved 25 April 2014. The ancient romance form was revived by Romanticism, especially the ...
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