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    The Ridge
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    The Ridge
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    The Ridge
    Audiobook10 hours

    The Ridge

    Written by Michael Koryta

    Narrated by Robert Petkoff

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    In an isolated stretch of eastern Kentucky, on a hilltop known as Blade Ridge, stands a lighthouse that illuminates nothing but the surrounding woods. For years the lighthouse has been considered no more than an eccentric local landmark-until its builder is found dead at the top of the light, and his belongings reveal a troubling local history.

    For deputy sheriff Kevin Kimble, the lighthouse-keeper's death is disturbing and personal. Years ago, Kimble was shot while on duty. Somehow the death suggests a connection between the lighthouse and the most terrifying moment of his life.

    Audrey Clark is in the midst of moving her large-cat sanctuary onto land adjacent to the lighthouse. Sixty-seven tigers, lions, leopards, and one legendary black panther are about to have a new home there. Her husband, the sanctuary's founder, died scouting the new property, and Audrey is determined to see his vision through.

    As strange occurrences multiply at the Ridge, the animals grow ever more restless, and Kimble and Audrey try to understand what evil forces are moving through this ancient landscape, just past the divide between dark and light.

    The Ridge is the new thriller from international bestseller Michael Koryta, further evidence of why Dean Koontz has said "Michael Koryta's work resonates into deeper strata than does most of what I read" and why Michael Connelly has named him "one of the best of the best."
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHachette Audio
    Release dateJun 8, 2011
    ISBN9781609412340
    Unavailable
    The Ridge
    Author

    Michael Koryta

    Michael Koryta is the New York Times bestselling author of fourteen novels. His work has been translated into more than twenty languages and has won or been nominated for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Edgar Award, Shamus Award, Barry Award, Quill Award, International Thriller Writers Award and the Golden Dagger.

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    Reviews for The Ridge

    4/5

    155 ratings22 reviews

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    • 4/5
      The Ridge tells the story of a ridges past and how it affects the present. Although a little slow at times, the ridge turns into a page turner with unknowing what is going to happen next.
    • 4/5
      This is a workmanlike suspense novel about a ridge in the Kentucky mountains where there have been many unexplained deaths over the years. An old drunk kook builds a lighthouse there for his own bizarre reasons, but then he is found a victim of suicide, just as a big-cat sanctuary is moving in next door. And the deaths start up again. Of course, there is a supernatural cause to this mystery. I found this mildly entertaining, but not deep--a decent poolside read.
    • 4/5
      First time with this author and I liked it. I will be reading more from Michael Koryta.
    • 4/5
      First time with this author and I liked it. I will be reading more from Michael Koryta.
    • 4/5
      Creepy but good. A gentle handling of good and evil. Koryta is always presenting a somewhat easy going story that presents you with a distinctive hook at the end that seems to stay with you as you review the subject in your mind.
    • 3/5
      In eastern Kentucky, the town drunk built a lighthouse in the middle of the woods for no apparent reason. His suicide note calls upon deputy sheriff Kevin Kimble and reporter Roy Darmus to investigate, implying his suicide was not entirely voluntary. Wyatt's death is not the first on Blade Ridge. Far from it. But what's the connection between the incidents at the Ridge, the lighthouse, and the large cats in the sanctuary who are clearly wary of their new home? Koryta's tale is a suspenseful thriller with a supernatural element. The more appealing factor is the large-cat sanctuary and some readers may find themselves wishing for more detail about the cats and less about the evil roaming the Ridge. Koryta leaves a lot of loose ends so, although it proves to be a diverting read, The Ridge fails to completely satisfy.
    • 5/5
      Stephen King fans would love this. The Ridge is a tale of supernatural evil, made believable. It takes place in the woods of Kentucky, populated by a lighthouse and a sanctuary for big cats. The Ridge has the very real characters I've come to expect from Koryta, has a larger supernatural element than some of this other works, and takes the suspense up a notch.
    • 4/5
      This was a pretty good book. I had trouble getting into it, but once I did, it was a good read.
    • 5/5
      Earlier last year, I reviewed Koryta's "Cypress House." (Please see it on my blog in 2010) It was my first introduction to his writing. I became an immediate addict...Michael Koryta is a master storyteller. He is the type of author who could have us mesmerized for hours while we waited out a hurricane! And, we'd never even know we were in the midst of one except that it would be a fitting setting for his story. I could read his books in tandem and be entertained all week without boredom.Koryta's genius, it seems to me, is that he draws us in right away by making the circumstances quite ordinary and believable. The first chapter leaves us with a handful of questions; some of them not so obvious until we muse upon them. So much fun to do that. And, from that moment on, we are hooked. We are driven by an urge to know... His characters are so real, I feel as if I know them. They are easily visualized. They are easily understood from a psychological perspective. However, this doesn't mean all is immediately as it seems, ever, in a Koryta novel. My attention is driven by his type of characterization with the "brick hasn't yet fallen" suspense. What I'm trying to convey is that you think you can "see" the characters, but he always leaves you with that mote of doubt that irritates your seeker's eye.I wasn't expecting the supernatural context of this novel. I frankly refrained from reading the overleaf because I didn't want to spoil a minute of the actual read for myself. That's how good Mr. Koryta is! So, I didn't expect this ghostly intrigue and it was a surprising addition for me. From his typical writing genre as I knew it from "Cypress House" it was an unusual twist. Reminiscent of the Gothic novel, it worked perfectly with a modern day police suspense/mystery in the end."The Ridge" is a book I couldn't stop reading until the end. I dreamt of it...I read it when I was eating, and I read it during commercials between the Casey Anthony murder trial. This gives you some idea of the intensity of the writing skills of this author. I'm obsessive about the Anthony Trial...and "The Ridge" tore me away at times!I can do no more than strongly urge you to get to know Michael Koryta as an author with his mind and fingers on the pulse of new suspense/thriller writing. If there is an evolution of writers with vision in this genre, Michael Koryta is leading the curve. His work reminds me why I read suspense and thrillers.Without going into the storyline of this book, which other reviews and the actual bookcover review do , I want to also say that it's a story that just left me with wide eyes and the feeling that it might really happen. I'm not one to chase after ghosts and demons, but this book made me think twice...5 starsDeborah/TheBookishDame
    • 3/5
      Entertaining horror/mystery/thriller novel that certainly kept me reading. Not as good as I wanted it to be, but certainly clever and chilling.
    • 5/5
      Loved the reader for this book. There are some places you can use the skip 10 sec ahead. But all it was a nice listen....
    • 4/5
      nice mix of supernatural thriller and police story. A lighthouse in the middle of nowhere and a rescue center for cats--what could go wrong? The bad guy is a weird thing. Ending is cool.
    • 4/5
      Although paranormal/supernatural is not my usual reading fare, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The setting held unique elements and the characters felt very real. The storyline was intriguing and kept me guessing about things up until the very end. Lots of twists and turns made the pace quick and engaging. Solid writing with no missteps, and a satisfying ending.
    • 4/5
      Koryta writes splendid mysteries. This one has the added advantage of the supernatural. It's not a horror story, although some may find any story involving ghosts and pacts with evil disturbing. I won't tell you if Good triumphs over Evil . You can find that out for yourself.This is the second book of Koryta's I have read, and it seems he is devilishly clever at taking the reader right up a plot switch with only the merest hint of what's coming. Those mere hints are enough to give the reader a sweet "Ahah!" moment just before the climax. Such clever plotting. I look forward to reading more of his work.
    • 4/5
      I really got sucked into the story. It was creepy enough and it kept me wanting more. Pretty good ghost story. I'll definetely read more from the author.
    • 2/5
      An old eccentric living in the remote hills of eastern Kentucky makes building and maintaining a lighthouse, which illuminates nothing, his life’s work. When he is discovered dead at the top of his structure, investigation into his death reveals some disturbing town secrets. At the same time a wild cat sanctuary is moving in adjacent to the lighthouse property and as the investigation progresses the animals become more and more restless in their new surroundings. Is it just their surroundings, or is something evil afoot in Blade Ridge?

      Mr. Koryta gives the reader a good story and a really interesting moral question throughout this book. I am, however, still on my quest for a really awesome ghost story, and although a good read, this one did not quite fill that criteria.
    • 5/5
      Begins as a crime novel,but quickly turns into a novel of the supernatural. A reclusive and drunkard man builds a lighthouse in the middle of the woods,miles from the sea. A number of accidents occur in the area in which many of the victims escape with their lives. There are also a larger than normal number of murders in which those involved in the accidents reappear as the murderers.Near to the lighthouse is a sanctuary for 'big cats' and these animals are becoming increasingly restless.Blends the two genres very well indeed.
    • 4/5
      A lighthouse in the middle of nowhere. A haunted railroad trestle. Strange lights in the night. A big cat rescue sanctuary. And murders stacking up. This novel was written well and the story drew my interest. The lighthouse in the woods was a weird image and it made for a good central point that the story sort of revolved around. The lighthouse was built by an old alcoholic who no one took seriously. His death is investigated by an unlikely team of a sheriff's investigator and a former newspaper reporter. This team works on the mystery, digging into the past to figure out what exactly is happening out there on Blade Ridge. The big cats add another layer to the tale. They sense things that the humans do not. The author did a great job of making the characters believable, while their circumstances are somewhat otherworldly. It is a very suspenseful story, and scary too. Don't read the last few chapters with the lights out! If you like ghost stories, you will like this one. It's not the usual haunted house stuff. It's downright scary.
    • 4/5
      There is a little bit of everything in the story of two men searching - one for what happened to his parents so long ago, and the other for the missing piece of the puzzle when his life was drastically altered. There is love and obsession here. Koryta's storytelling is natural and effortless and he has a knack for writing troubled characters whose rough charm and difficult circumstances unfailingly steal your heart.
    • 4/5
      Anyone who knows me well knows that I love a good scary story. Ghosts and spooky things that go bump in the night have always appealed to me, and rather than try to shut that odd side of me out, I have found that embracing it makes me infinitely happier. So it was a happy discovery when I found Michael Koryta had released a new book, The Ridge. I read The Cypress House earlier in the year and while I did like the chilling tale of the man who could see death before it arrived, I enjoyed The Ridge far more. Koryta is brilliant at taking the ordinary and making it scary, and I really admire him for that.

      In the opening pages, deputy sheriff Kevin Kimble, a man in love with a woman who shot him, receives an ominous phone call from the town drunk and lighthouse keeper Wyatt French. Uneasy after their conversation, Kimble continues his day, unknowing that French also contacts local journalist Roy Darmus. The two men are drawn together when French is found dead in his lighthouse, surrounded by technical light equipment, maps of the Ridge, and photos of people with the word ‘NO’ scrawled over them. In the days that follow, Kimble and Darmus will discover a terrifying past surrounding the Ridge, and be forced to make decisions that could change their lives forever.

      At the same time, Audrey Clark is moving her wildcat sanctuary to the land adjacent to the lighthouse. With sixty-seven cats in total, including a rare black panther named Ira, the move should be a relatively easy undertaking. Nothing could have prepared Clark and her staff for the feline response to their new home, and Ira’s fabulous escape is just the start of the problems that arise when the sun sets and darkness descends upon the Ridge.

      To say that I loved this novel almost feels like an understatement. The rich back-story to support the modern mystery, the tormented characters who try their best to get through the day, and the presence of unimaginable evil all form this magnificent story that makes the reader question what they would do if, when they were about to run out of time, they were offered more time, but at a price. When your life is on the line, will you admit defeat? Or do you snatch life from the jaws of death, but in doing so condemn another to take your place? The Ridge is a fantastic story that ticks the boxes as both a creepy ghost tale and taught psychological thriller. An absolute must read for 2011.
    • 4/5
      Beware the ridge. Strange things happen out there. Do the dead really walk among us? Are they out for revenge? And who, if anyone, controls them? And more importantly, can someone stop them? It’s been going on for some time now, and the person who knows the most is, unfortunately, the town drunk, and as such, not believed. But when he dies mysteriously, the local deputy sheriff is drawn into investigating. Trying to figure out the connection between the strange lighthouse and the wild cat sanctuary, he puts his own life in jeopardy. A tale of the supernatural, this well written tale will first draw you into the story, and then keep you there.
    • 5/5
      The Ridge by Michael Koryta is a very creative and enjoyable novel. It takes place in a rural area of the forested hills of Eastern Kentucky near a small town. Wyatt French, a long-time eccentric resident of the area, built a lighthouse on the ridge that runs through his property. The powerful light shines its beacon over the forested valley and the small river that flows through it. It also illuminates a big cat sanctuary that is adjacent to French’s property and provides a home to numerous lions, tigers, mountain lions and other wild cats that have been rescued from unsuitable situations. Deputy Sheriff Kevin Kimble and his staff become involved when Wyatt French, the lighthouse owner, commits suicide. However, their investigation expands when one of the mountain lions escapes from the sanctuary and a sanctuary staff member is apparently killed by one of the cats. The investigation gets more complicated when it is determined that the death was not caused by the cat. The man was shot. The situation continues to escalate when one of the sheriff’s deputies is murdered at the sanctuary. Eventually, the investigation reveals that many deaths and murders have taken place in the area near the sanctuary and lighthouse over many years. This book is an amazingly good thriller. The plot is complex, the characters are interesting, and the action is gory and suspenseful. In addition, the book is an amazingly good, and eerie, ghost story, which includes a creepy setting and a unique and compelling story that keeps the reader speeding through the pages. These ghosts are malevolent and (of course) Chief Deputy Kimble and his companions risk their lives and their immortal souls while pursuing their investigation. Koryta does a nice job of linking the lighthouse, the cat sanctuary, and the ghosts together in this supernatural mystery. I enjoyed The Ridge very much and I look forward to reading more of Koryta’s work.