Earthbound

By: Richard Matheson

Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot

David and Ellen Cooper came to the lonely beachside cottage in hopes of rekindling their troubled marriage. Yet they are not alone on their second honeymoon. Marianna, a beautiful and enigmatic stranger, comes to visit David whenever Ellen is away.

Who is Marianna, and where has she come from?

Even as he succumbs to her seductive charms, David realizes that Marianna is far more than a threat to his marriage, for her secrets lie deep in the past and beyond the grave. And her unholy desires endanger the life and soul of everyone she touches.

©1989 Richard Matheson (P)2010 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

“The author who influenced me the most as a writer was Richard Matheson.” (Stephen King)

“In 1982, before Matheson achieved the cult-and-grandmaster status he enjoys today, Playboy Press published a version of this erotic ghost story that was so severely edited that the author took his name off the book, which was presented as by ‘Logan Swanson’…the author injects some excellent suspense into this [‘approved and restored’ version].” ( Publishers Weekly)

"Matheson, master of both horror and suspense, here gives us a picture of a man obsessed, then possessed, by the ghost of Marianna, a beautiful, depraved woman...Incredibly powerful." ( Library Journal)

Definitely not Matheson's best

Bronson Pinchot's narration is, as usual, excellent. But even he wasn't able to save this book.

Fun listen

Love me some Matheson, but not his best work. Still it was a fun listen. I was disappointed that Bronson Pinchot didn't read it in his Balki voice.

Not his best, but still enjoyable

The story is an interesting exploration of what drives a man to be unfaithful. Lots and lots of inner monologue and self exploration. The ghosts activities struck me as a pale rehashing of the haunting shown in Hell House. The events of the haunting manufactured to continue the self exploration of the main character rather than drive the plot. The main character, David, is the only one who is developed and has drives and wishes. Everybody else is there to give him reasons to act. Still an enjoyable story.

The Narrator, Bronson Pinchot, is not very good. inflection misplaced constantly and some of the fight scenes are read very stiffly, as if he wasn't sure they were really shouting at each other at the time.

Huge matheson fan, disappointed in this one.

I have loved absolutely every story i've read by Richard Matheson, he really has a way of writing believable characters regardless of the setting - this book was a huge letdown. Seemed so focused on sex and the characters weren't compelling and I did not care about anything at the end. It just felt trashy and focused on sex above any character or storyline - I wouldn't recommend this one.

Matheson explores a succubus relationship

This is very different than the better known Matheson stories.
It has a lot of explicit details but I don't find it particularly erotic.
The main character and his wife take a vacation after their marriage is almost ended by his affair but the house is haunted by a ghost that wants to possess the sexual energy of the man.
For whatever reason the correct word succubus is never used for this spirit. It is slow moving with the man refusing to believe that his seductress a ghost for the longest time and musings about love and sex.
Not recommended but I did finish.