To Dust You Shall Return

Fred Venturini has eleven scars from eleven separate incidents, the most interesting of which is the time he was set on fire. He is the acclaimed author of the novels THE HEART DOES NOT GROW BACK and THE ESCAPE OF LIGHT, and his short fiction has been featured in Chuck Palahniuk’s BURNT TONGUES anthology. He lives in Southern Illinois with his wife and daughter.

"To Dust You Shall Return is a sprawling, haunting, unsettling story of hunger, abuse, and power. The vibe is Angel Heart meets The Walking Dead, via a Southern Gothic filter that oozes with a depraved history and terrible secrets. Welcome to the horror of Fred Venturini, one of my favorite authors writing today." —Richard Thomas, Bram Stoker, Shirley Jackson, and Thriller Award nominated author of Disintegration and Breaker"Reminiscent of a Twilight Zone episode...[Venturini] keeps us engaged until the spellbinding conclusion..and cements his legacy within the horror genre." ––Horror News NetTo Dust You Shall Return is a wildly entertaining, mythic-level battle royale fought between a monstrous hitman with a busted spirit and a wanna-be king with supernatural powers. When the two forces collide on the small-town stage of Harlow, blood bursts from the dust like geysers and you can hear the bones snapping from outer space. Venturini has created a modern-day clash of the titans, an epic tale of revenge that’s more Penny Dreadful than Homer and has the body count to prove it. A masterful tour-de-force of violence and terror; a gruesome, gory reveal of the dark which lies hidden deep within the meat of the human heart.” ––Philip Fracassi, author of Beneath a Pale Sky"To Dust You Shall Return is a masterclass in frenetic, frayed-nerve horror storytelling [p]ulsing with chaotic intensity and soaked in malice." –Taylor Zajnic, award-winning author of The Maw “A horror thriller about redemption, family, and trust, To Dust You Shall Return is a brilliant mix of genres that is at once both terrifying and thrilling. Venturini again delivers complex and unforgettable characters in Curtis Quinn and Beth Jarvis, blending the violent secrets of a small town’s characters into a captivating story with an ending you won’t soon forget.” —Michael Nye, author of Until We Have Faces and All the Castles Burned"To Dust You Shall Return is a gruesome, horrifyingly heartfelt tale of what one will do when given the power to rule, how love can set you free, and the hope that one person can bring despite all odds against him...it’s one of my favorite books of the year and the story of Harlow will long stay with me." –Pop Horror "Harlow itself is one of the most intriguing fictional towns ever invented...Prepare to be blown away. This is beyond highly recommended." –Monster Librarian"Known for morphing genres into his own...[Venturini] is candid about his experiences with his childhood trauma of bullying and often chews the fat of it in dark settings with sprightly teeth. To Dust You Shall Return is a continued theme of growing up in a batshit crazy world and dealing with the monsters who made it that way." –Fangoria