Good afternoon, House of Madness artists:
If you found out you could alter reality with the stroke of a brush, what would you do? Would you paint yourself as a millionaire and proceed to drive down the coast in your new Bentley, or would you perhaps use your powers to help others, and try to make a difference in the world? Would you cave in to your dark motives, and use your newfound powers for evil? Maybe that boss that fired you for taking too many smoke breaks, or the person that dumped you when you thought things were going so well need a little revenge via paint and canvas? Regardless of what you might do, you have to admit it's a pretty powerful talent to have; almost a superpower if you took things to the umpteenth degree. For Edgar Freemantle, just how far he's willing to go could change his, and other people's lives forever.
Edgar Freemantle has it all - a great contracting business that he's built from the ground up and has made money a thing never to have to worry about again, a beautiful, loving wife, and two daughters he adores (maybe one a little more than the other, but that's his little secret). Yes, things are going absolutely swimmingly for Edgar, well, until the accident that is. One day at the job site Edgar is driving through in his pickup, when the excavator close by doesn't see him, and the warning mechanism is non-functional; the perfect storm of horror touches down. Edgar is crushed inside his vehicle, and although it's a miracle he survives, there is plenty of irreversible damage done to Edgar both physically and mentally - most notably the loss of his right arm. Edgar also struggles with his memory, but where he really struggles is with his demeanor and temper; it isn't long before his wife Pam has had enough, and Edgar finds himself on the outside of his perfect little world trying to peer back in.
Edgar knows for Pam to reach her breaking point their marriage must be a lost cause, so he decides to pack up from Minnesota and move out to Florida to start fresh, and give Pam some distance and freedom even though he still loves her dearly. His agent stumbles across a gorgeous house in Duma Key which will forever be known as 'Big Pink' to Edgar because of it's welcoming hue of its painted exterior, but the memories won't all be positive - far from it actually. As Edgar settles in, he realizes he has quite the penchant for painting all of the sudden, and he finds himself getting lost in his new hobby, sometimes losing track of time for hours, and when he comes to, he is ravaged by hunger as if he hasn't eaten in days or even longer. As this is happening, all over the news anchor men and women are talking about nothing but a child murderer who has been ravaging the streets of Florida, and Edgar sets his artistic sights on the perpetrator. He finds himself in front of the canvas yet again, and almost hypnotically paints the face of the murderer who has now been captured, only he paints him with no mouth or nose. The next day Edgar awakes to find out the killer died in his cell, seemingly asphyxiated by his own doing. Well, that's a strange coincidence.......
As Edgar walks the beach a little further each day in order to help rehabilitate his bad leg, he encounters the man next door he's seen and even waved at several times while he's been out on his walks. The man is Jerome Wireman, and he works as a caregiver for Elizabeth Eastlake, the woman who not only owns her house and Big Pink, but pretty much all of Duma Key in its entirety. As Wireman and Edgar become friends, it is clear to Edgar that something sinister is going on in Duma Key, and every single person that attaches themselves almost always ends up as part of the mystery; even Edgar himself finds he's becoming part of something bigger, but what does it want, and what's the price of his newly acquired 'gift'?
I've yet to come across a Stephen King novel I don't absolutely adore, and "Duma Key" is no exception. You can't help but fall in love with every single character you encounter, and the plight Edgar and Wireman battle in order to restore normalcy on the key feels like you're right by their sides, battling along with them. I especially love reading a book that's good, but not necessarily great, and then following it up with something from the master himself, Mr. King; it just hits that much harder for me. As always, I found myself completely absorbed in this book from the get-go, and even though it may start off leaving you questioning whether it's a horror story or not, I promise you you'll think twice the next time you see a piece of art, and if you ever come across someone wanting to paint your portrait, you'll run in the other direction.
Madness Meter: 9.1/10
NB
