Humbug - Paperback

It's three days before Christmas. Taryn Meyer, Jeremy Lewis and Ash Buckley, all fifteen years old and ditching class, leave a matinee screening at The Outlet Complex movie theatre and quickly discover the entire place is deserted. No movie-goers, no staff. A man in his fifties, Spencer Bloom, is the only other person in the building, and his wife has vanished.

And to top it all off, the day's light snowfall has become an afternoon blizzard outside, blanketing the parking lot.

The group soon realise help isn't coming and decide to abandon the movie theatre for the mall next door. There, they walk into a similarly-bizarre situation: the lights are on, coffee cups are half-full, festive music's still playing, and everyone's gone.

Meanwhile, the Price family - Adam, Olivia and little Em - are on their way to visit grandparents for the holidays and stop off at the Complex for gas. But the whole place is knee-deep in snow and the gas station's empty. And then someone slashes their tyres. Suddenly, the Prices find themselves hurrying to the mall for shelter, and help.

None of them know what they've stumbled into. None of them realise the danger they're in until it's far too late.

There's something in the mall. And it's not done killing just yet.