Hangman's Curse
Encyclopedia
Hangman's Curse is a 2001 novel
by Frank E. Peretti
. It is the first book in the Veritas Project
series for teenagers.
case taken by a family of investigators who make up the Veritas Project. About seventy years after the suicidal
hanging
of Abel Frye, a student at a high school
who hanged himself after being unable to cope with the pressures of bullying, Jocks from the school's football team begin to lose their sanity after seeing what they believe to be Abel's ghost, which is rumored to be under the control of a group of witches out for revenge.
and evolution
while their father confronts the tolerated bullying in the school.
After several of the football players are injected, Elijah and Elisha quickly learn that a group of gothic
cult
members have been blamed for the plague; they were bullied as Abel was, and it is believed that the curse is their means of revenge. The assumed leader of the group, Ian Snyder, takes credit at first, but his followers turn on him when he "loses control" of the ghost of Abel; his friend, and a few fellow classmate each die after having hallucinations. Ian drops out of the cult and turns to Elijah for spiritual help.
Later, Sarah discovers straws filled with a sugar-like substance in the lockers of the stricken students, their dog, Max, recognizes the scent all over the school. An eccentric scientist named Algernon Wheeling is called into the investigation, and determines that the sugar is actually to keep a male poisonous cross-breed of the African Spotted wolf spider
and brown recluse in the straw till he smells the female pheromone on the victim because of the dollar bill, he eats his way out and bites the victim after being agitated at not finding the female. The spiders were trapped in the straws, and the pheromone was spread through dollar bills, that circulated around the school to attract the spiders to the intended victims, who hallucinated and were later hospitalized after being bitten. However, as the dollars were spread around the school, unintended sympathizers of the cult were bitten and suffered from the poison. The mastermind of the entire project, a boy named Norman Bloom, led the cult and allowed them to believe that witches were responsible (Ian Snyder and some others).
Due to unbelievably fast reproduction, the school is overrun by the deadly spiders, and, as the school is evacuated, Elisha finds herself trapped under the school and bitten repeatedly, but is saved by Algernon Wheeling's antidote AT490. The hospitalized students recover, and the case is declared closed.
, a film based on Hangman's Curse, was released in 2003. It stars David Keith
as Nate, Mel Harris
as Sarah, Leighton Meester
as Elisha, and Douglas Smith
as Elijah. The movie was filmed largely at John R. Rogers High School in Spokane, Washington
. The movie differed greatly from the book, leaving out key scenes and turning the character of Crystal into a main character as Ian Snyder's girlfriend.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Frank E. Peretti
Frank E. Peretti
Frank Edward Peretti is a New York Times best-selling author of Christian fiction, whose novels primarily focus on the supernatural. To date, his works have sold over 15 million copies worldwide. Peretti is best known for his novels This Present Darkness and The Oath...
. It is the first book in the Veritas Project
Veritas Project
The Veritas Project is a Christian science fiction series of books written by Frank E. Peretti and targeted towards teenagers, veritas meaning truth....
series for teenagers.
Plot overview
The story centers around an apparently supernaturalSupernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
case taken by a family of investigators who make up the Veritas Project. About seventy years after the suicidal
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
hanging
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
of Abel Frye, a student at a high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
who hanged himself after being unable to cope with the pressures of bullying, Jocks from the school's football team begin to lose their sanity after seeing what they believe to be Abel's ghost, which is rumored to be under the control of a group of witches out for revenge.
Plot summary
After successfully initiating a drug bust, Nate and Sarah Springfield and their teenage children, Elijah and Elisha, are handpicked to investigate a rash of strange occurrences in an otherwise typical high school. Elijah and Elisha become students at the school and quickly make names for themselves when they debate their teachers on the lesson plans regarding humanismHumanism
Humanism is an approach in study, philosophy, world view or practice that focuses on human values and concerns. In philosophy and social science, humanism is a perspective which affirms some notion of human nature, and is contrasted with anti-humanism....
and evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
while their father confronts the tolerated bullying in the school.
After several of the football players are injected, Elijah and Elisha quickly learn that a group of gothic
Goth subculture
The goth subculture is a contemporary subculture found in many countries. It began in England during the early 1980s in the gothic rock scene, an offshoot of the post-punk genre. The goth subculture has survived much longer than others of the same era, and has continued to diversify...
cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
members have been blamed for the plague; they were bullied as Abel was, and it is believed that the curse is their means of revenge. The assumed leader of the group, Ian Snyder, takes credit at first, but his followers turn on him when he "loses control" of the ghost of Abel; his friend, and a few fellow classmate each die after having hallucinations. Ian drops out of the cult and turns to Elijah for spiritual help.
Later, Sarah discovers straws filled with a sugar-like substance in the lockers of the stricken students, their dog, Max, recognizes the scent all over the school. An eccentric scientist named Algernon Wheeling is called into the investigation, and determines that the sugar is actually to keep a male poisonous cross-breed of the African Spotted wolf spider
Wolf spider
Wolf spiders are members of the family Lycosidae, from the Ancient Greek word "" meaning "wolf". They are robust and agile hunters with good eyesight. They live mostly solitary lives and hunt alone. Some are opportunistic hunters pouncing upon prey as they find it or even chasing it over short...
and brown recluse in the straw till he smells the female pheromone on the victim because of the dollar bill, he eats his way out and bites the victim after being agitated at not finding the female. The spiders were trapped in the straws, and the pheromone was spread through dollar bills, that circulated around the school to attract the spiders to the intended victims, who hallucinated and were later hospitalized after being bitten. However, as the dollars were spread around the school, unintended sympathizers of the cult were bitten and suffered from the poison. The mastermind of the entire project, a boy named Norman Bloom, led the cult and allowed them to believe that witches were responsible (Ian Snyder and some others).
Due to unbelievably fast reproduction, the school is overrun by the deadly spiders, and, as the school is evacuated, Elisha finds herself trapped under the school and bitten repeatedly, but is saved by Algernon Wheeling's antidote AT490. The hospitalized students recover, and the case is declared closed.
Film adaptation
Hangman's Curse (film)Hangman's Curse (film)
Hangman's Curse is a movie released in 2003 which is based on the 2001 Christian novel, Hangman's Curse written by Frank Peretti.-Cast:*David Keith as Nate Springfield*Mel Harris as Sarah Springfield*Leighton Meester as Elisha Springfield...
, a film based on Hangman's Curse, was released in 2003. It stars David Keith
David Keith
David Lemuel Keith is an American actor and director. He received Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actor and New Star of the Year – Actor for his performance in An Officer and a Gentleman.-Career:...
as Nate, Mel Harris
Mel Harris
Mel Harris is an American actress.-Personal life:Harris was born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the daughter to Mary Michael "Mike", a high school science teacher, and Warren Harris, a university football coach...
as Sarah, Leighton Meester
Leighton Meester
Leighton Marissa Meester is an American actress and singer. Meester first garnered attention for playing Blair Waldorf in the CW television series Gossip Girl...
as Elisha, and Douglas Smith
Douglas Smith (actor)
Douglas Alexander Smith is a Canadian-American actor most notable for his work on the HBO series, Big Love as Ben Henrickson, the eldest son of polygamist Bill Henrickson.-Life and career:...
as Elijah. The movie was filmed largely at John R. Rogers High School in Spokane, Washington
Spokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
. The movie differed greatly from the book, leaving out key scenes and turning the character of Crystal into a main character as Ian Snyder's girlfriend.