Frank Hunter got my attention with an email he didn't even sign. Only the screen name "Dreamcatcher" was attached to the message. But what he had to say was so intriguing, I couldn't let it drop. He asked me a simple question—a question I'd been trying to answer for years: Are there certain places on earth that are inherently evil? Places that have been cursed from the beginning of time? More importantly, was the Black Hills Forest one of those places?

Frank had experienced a nightmare so terrifying, he was convinced the answer was yes. When I found out the nightmare began in the Black Hills, I jumped at the chance to learn more about what Frank had experienced. I had no idea I'd also be compiling information about Native American beliefs, sleep disorders, Wiccan magic, and the sometimes terrible power of dreams.

In the end, I lost a lot of sleep-and learned more than I'd bargained for in the case file I call BLOOD NIGHTMARE.