It is the summer of 1960. The sultry heat is taking a toll on everyone in Elm Haven, Illinois, and the days drift by sluggishly. For the five friends Mike, Duane, Dale, Harlan, and Kevin, this time will become the summer of their lives, with events that will forge an unbreakable bond of friendship and shared horror between them. For they are still unaware of what lurks in the basement of their school. Elm Haven remains peacefully enveloped in the summer heat. With Elm Haven, which includes the two novels Summer of Night and A Winter's Tale, Dan Simmons has crafted a great classic of American horror literature.