Having built a solid following with his science fiction, Orson Scott Card has, in recent works, delved into the supernatural.

His latest novel, "Homebody," strengthens Card's place in his new genre.A single father and owner of a successful contracting business, Don Lark "drops out" after his only child dies in a car crash. Shattered by the loss, he wanders from place to place renovating derelict homes and selling them.

Lark's demons catch up to him in Greensboro, N.C., when he undertakes his most ambitious project, renovating the Bellamy house. He soon discovers that the old Southern mansion has its own demons. The house seems to have a hold on Sylvie, a homeless waif who lives there, and on the "Weird Sisters" next door.

As in his previous supernatural novels, "Lost Boys" and "Treasure Box," Card's strength lies in character development. The house doesn't spring itself on Lark; rather, its demons are revealed slowly. Lark doesn't believe in the demons at first and tries to justify the abnormalities. Only when the evidence is standing in front of him does he accept that unnatural forces are at work. Revelations are made gradually, creating an air of mystery that pulls the reader along.

The novel's supernatural aspects are even more forceful when contrasted with the characters' human traits. Lark doesn't possess any unusual strength or powers for combating evil. He must rely on his natural strength to destroy the house that would otherwise destroy him. To do so, he must overcome his rage about his daughter's death and relearn to love.

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Card, a master of science fiction, is quickly earning a similar reputation as a writer of the supernatural.

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