Bag of Bones was written by Stephen King in 1998.
Plot
The narrator, Mike Noonan, suffers from writers block after his pregnant wife, Jo, suddenly dies. He mourns her death for years, and suffers from nightmares about their summer house in Maine. He decides to go to the summer home where he has not been in years, just to reassure himself that there is no reason to be afraid.
After going to Maine, he meets a little girl and her mother, Kyra and widow Mattie Devore. Mattie's father in law, Max Devore, wants custody of Kyra. He hired a lawyer to try and gain custody.
Shortly after reaching his home, there is ghost activity in his house. He also sees Jo's ghost, who is helping him solve the mystery of Sara Tidwell, the ghost who haunts him.
Mike also realizes he shares a physic connection with Kyra.
Mike helps Mattie keep custody of Kyra, and while they are celebrating, Mattie's trailer is targeted and subject to a drive by shooting. Mattie is shot in the head and killed. Mike grabs Kyra and takes her to his summer home on the lake. He is, however, overcome by Sara's ghost, and urged to drown Kyra and kill himself. But with the help of Jo, he get's Kyra to his home safely.
Jo has also left him a surprise in one of his novels. documents confirming that he is a blood relative to some of the town's families.
Max's personal assistant kidnaps Kyra, but with the help of Mattie's ghost, they knock Max's assistant into the lake. This is also where Mattie says one last goodbye to Mike and Kyra.
In the epilogue, it is reveled to us that Mike is attempting to adopt Kyra, but never specifies if he is successful or not.
Suggesting This Book To...
I'm suggesting this book to anyone who loves suspense, horror, and unsolved conflicts. This book is very fast paced and exciting. I really enjoyed it for the fact that the ending was never reveled. It gives the reader room to think outside the book, and decide for themselves what ending would suit the story. There was a lot going on. Once I picked it up, I didn't want to put it down.
Rating
I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars. It was fast paced, unpredictable, and suspenseful. When I thought the story was going one way, it went in a completely different direction. The ending also really made me think. This was one of the best books I've ever read.
