The Color of Night (Vintage Contemporaries)
Bell’s novels all have roots that reach to the underworld. He has always opened himself to the monstrous, the nihilistic, the darkly erotic. And now, in this poisonous snake of a tale, he rides a river of terror as it flows through one deeply damaged woman and yokes together acts of incomprehensible violence. Mae deals cards in a Nevada casino and spends what’s left of her long nights prowling the desert, rifle in hand. She is mesmerized by the television coverage of 9/11 after catching a glimpse of a long-lost lover. Memories of Mae’s outlaw past begin to crash into the carapace of her solitude like the death-planes gliding into the towers. Her memories range from her brother’s diabolical abuse to her easy recruitment into what we recognize as the Manson family, with the kill-cult’s hallucinogen-fueled orgies and grotesque killing sprees. Among their peripheral casualties are a famous musician known as O_____ and his love, Eerie, haunting variations of Orpheus and Eurydice. In this sharp blade of a novel, every word is weaponized as Bell stands at the portal to chthonic evil.       HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Through 15 books, Bell has developed a devoted literary following; aided by nationwide advertising and special reading-group promotion, his latest novel, about a former Manson family member, could crossover to James Ellroy–like mainstream sales. --Donna Seaman