When the small, remote working-class town of Bedford, Maine, was destroyed by the environmental fall-out after its paper mill burned down (read THE KEEPER), clouds of sulfur were released into the surrounding forest. Luckily, the neighboring town of Corpus Christi was not affected. That is, until one of its school teachers takes her young class on a field trip to the desolate town.

The disappearance of, and ensuing search for one of the students sets in motion a nightmare so horrific it's beyond comprehension. For in that deadly forest, the young boy has released a noxious virus that transforms everyone it contaminates into vicious, rapacious, flesh-devouring fiends. As the infected turn on each other and succumb to this evil plague of unknown origin, is there anything that will stop its spread?

Oh, boy, this is chilling horror at its finest! I've never been a big fan of Stephen King, but I am of Sarah Langan. Her writing is crisp and precise, her characters sharp and vivid, as she keeps the plot on a high level of spine-tingling tension. And she provides just enough of the grisly details to incite the reader's imagination to fill in the rest. I could not get THE MISSING out of my head -- a great read by a very talented new voice in the horror genre.