Start reading Stranglehold on your Kindle in under a minute. Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here.

Deliver to your Kindle or other device

 
 
 

Try it free

Sample the beginning of this book for free

Deliver to your Kindle or other device

Read books on your computer or other mobile devices with our FREE Kindle Reading Apps.
Stranglehold
 
 
Share your own customer images

Stranglehold [Kindle Edition]

Jack Ketchum (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
Kindle Price: £3.18 includes VAT* & free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet
* Unlike print books, digital books are subject to VAT.

Formats

 Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition £3.18   -- --
Mass Market Paperback --   -- --
Audio Download, Unabridged £11.39 or Free with Audible.co.uk 30-day free trial

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Product Description

Product Description

Lydia McCloud meets Arthur Danse at a wedding party in Plymouth, N.H., and she thinks he's a man she could grow to love. Arthur sees things differently. In Lydia, he sees the sort of woman people always want to protect. He decides he's going to show her "she wouldn't always be protected." Once their only child, Robert, is born, Arthur's behavior worsens. When the courts become involved, the nightmare really begins. This scathing novel is an indictment of a justice system that makes a mockery of its very name.

Product details

  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • File Size: 465 KB
  • Print Length: 1 pages
  • Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
  • Publisher: Crossroad Press & Macabre Ink Digital; Crossroad Press Digital Edition edition (10 May 2011)
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B0050G0V5S
  • Text-to-Speech: Enabled
  • X-Ray: Not Enabled
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #122,948 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

    •  Would you like to give feedback on images?

More About the Author

› Visit Amazon's Jack Ketchum Page
Jack Ketchum
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?

› Explore similar items

Customer Reviews

5 star
1
4 star
0
3 star
0
2 star
0
1 star
0
5.0 out of 5 stars
1 review
5.0 out of 5 stars
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Stranglehold a.k.a. Only Child 14 May 2011
By Ghost
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
My first encounter with Jack Ketchum's work was reading his novel 'Red'. A somewhat slim book, I finished reading it in one day. You know if a book is going to be worthwhile usually after the first couple of chapters, and the time spent reading 'Red' was thoroughly worthwhile. It still remains one of the best pieces of fiction I have encountered, which brings me to ...
... 'Stranglehold'.

Like 'Red', this novel is fairly slim. But that is as it should be. There is no room for wasted words in Jack's writing. He gets to the point quickly and effectively, inviting his readers into a nightmare journey - a mixture of fiction and reality. It is exactly this juxtaposition of taboo realism and carefully crafted fictional characters that lends Jack's writing its uniqueness. He deals with the cruelty and evil inherent in society, bringing such issues to the surface, almost as if he is attempting to release his anger by way of writing.

Violence in 'Stranglehold' is extreme and, at times, graphically depicted. In this way, the novel can be likened to Richard Laymon's work. But there is nothing supernatural about this book. Jack's horror is about the experiences some people suffer everyday of their lives - people who want to escape from their tormentors but are too terrified to take a stand, because of the consequences should they fail. Lydia McCloud, however, does make a stand.

Married to the fraudulently good-natured Arthur Danse, Lydia soon discovers his dark side. For Danse does not adhere to the rules of society. Undoubtedly disturbed, Danse believes he is here for a reason ... to ensure that he teaches humankind that both fear and pain are necessary, and that he has been chosen to inflict such pain on anyone who refuses his demands.... Read more ›
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Yes
No
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com: 4.2 out of 5 stars  21 reviews
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Second only to _Girl Next Door_ in its power to disturb. 18 April 2001
By Craig Larson - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Despite what one or two of the other reviewers has said, this is indeed a great novel. It is not an easy novel to read, however, given the highly disturbing nature of the subject matter--child abuse--and the realistic way Ketchum portrays it. It is also a novel in which good does not triumph over evil (that's not really much of a spoiler, by the way--this almost never happens in a Ketchum book), which might also limit your enjoyment. It's not the book to choose if you want to curl up in front of the fireplace and enjoy a comforting, light, easy read. But, if you're willing to confront some of the more disturbing aspects of the human condition and the flawed nature of some of our society's institutions which sometimes enable, rather than prevent, nasty things to happen, give this book a try. It's second only to Ketchum's _The Girl Next Door_ in the level of nasty, disturbing, realistic horror that he's able to bring to his storytelling.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Great, but truly disturbing! 30 Dec 1997
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Mass Market Paperback
I'd read two other Ketchum novels (Joyride and Red), and a couple of his short stories. While I enjoyed all of them tremendously, NOTHING prepared me for this one! It is a superior novel, one that is impossible to put down once started (although you'll probably be tempted to out of sheer disgust at the subject matter and the way Ketchum presents it). It is also, possibly the most disturbing novel that I've ever read, and I'm a twenty-five year hardened veteran of all types of horror. The prose is clean, lean and mean, but don't expect your typical lightweight SK type of read. I loved the book, and highly recommend it, but only to those with a strong constitution. The reason I didn't go all out and give this one a "10" is that the ending was SO upsetting... it left a bad taste in my mouth for days after finishing it.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Ketchum NEEDS to be read!!! 11 Dec 1996
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Mass Market Paperback
I recently discovered a new author. His name is Jack Ketchum. I found several of his short stories first in a small-press magazine.
I saw the titles of several of his novels listed in the introduction to the short story.
I picked up a copy of Stranglehold and was blown away by the subject material that Ketchum chose to explore.
This book deals with the very ugly side of child abuse in the same vein as Andrew Vachss' Burke novels albeit Ketchum is more graphic.
I was physically disgusted by the aftermath of the scenes as I well should be.
I don't want to ruin the book's ending for anyone but it does not have the typical ending one expects from a book that explores this subject matter.
Suffice it to say I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who is bored with all of the King/Koontz reprints so readily purchased at any supermarket checkout line.
After reading this book, I was physically and mentally weary and had lost some faith in human beings.
I dare anyone to claim they have experienced that feeling after reading any novel of recent memory.
I then went out and found 2 more of his books (Joyride and Cover).
Were these reviews helpful?   Let us know
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums

Look for similar items by category


There's a problem loading this menu at the moment.

Learn more about Amazon Prime.

    Your Shopping Basket is empty.

    Give it purpose -- fill it with books, DVDs, clothes, electronics and more.

    If you already have an account, sign in.

    There's a problem previewing your shopping basket at the moment.

    Check your Internet connection and go to your cart, or try again.

    View Shopping Basket (0 items)
      Amazon Media EU S.à r.l. Privacy Statement Amazon Media EU S.à r.l. Delivery Information Amazon Media EU S.à r.l. Returns & Exchanges