At first glance, Dreamthorp seems as named — a charming Pennsylvania Chautauqua town set deep in the woods. A perfect haven from the pressures of urban life. But before long this "village of dreams" is enmeshed in a nightmare, a dark dream of cruel torture and savage death.

Is the cause magic, centuries old? Or is it a new and unexpected magic born of random violence and mindless brutality?

Among those searching for the answer are:

Tom Brewer, a recent widower whose attempts to reconcile with his disturbed teenage son seem as futile as his efforts as a carver to bring life out of wood...

Laura Stark, a newcomer to Dreamthorp, dealing with the mysteries of her newly discovered sexuality and the aftermath of her lover's vicious murder...

And Gilbert Rodman, more than human and far less than divine, a serial killer who lives only for revenge on the one woman his twisted mind blames for his bizarre mutilation — Laura.

As Rodman blazes his own bloody trail across the country to reach Laura, the horrors of Dreamthorp intensify, until one unholy night Tom and Laura confront the terrors that haunt not only our worst dreams, but our most feared realities.