Product Description

At the turn of the twentieth century, Ellen Rimbauer became the young bride of Seattle industrialist John Rimbauer, and began keeping a remarkable diary. This diary became the secret place where Ellen could confess her fears of the new marriage, her confusion over her emerging sexuality, and the nightmare that her life would become. The diary not only follows the development of a girl into womanhood, it follows the construction of the Rimbauer mansioncalled Rose Redan enormous home that would be the site of so many horrific and inexplicable tragedies in the years ahead. The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer: My Life at Rose Red is a rare document, one that gives us an unusual view of daily life among the aristocracy in the early 1900s, a window into one womans hidden emotional torment, and a record of the mysterious events at Rose Red that scandalized Seattle society at the timeevents that can only be fully understood now that the diary has come to light. Edited by Joyce Reardon, Ph.D. as part of her research, the diary is being published as preparations are being made by Dr. Reardon to enter Rose Red and fully investigate its disturbing history.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #98614 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 277 pages

From Publishers Weekly
A mysterious and haunting spirit lurks within the walls of Rose Red, the setting for Stephen King's upcoming ABC miniseries tie-in by the same name. Built on a Native American burial ground in early 20th-century Seattle, the mansion which is constantly under construction sets the scene for a multitude of inexplicable disappearances and ghastly deaths. While moody oil tycoon John Rimbauer refuses to acknowledge that the house has a mind of its own, his young wife, Ellen, dramatizes these eerie events with great detail in her diary, often personifying the house as if it were a living being. (Or, perhaps, a non-living being?) While the evolution of Ellen's character from innocent and submissive to frighteningly powerful is a slow process, the language and questioning nature of her entries entice the reader as the mystery of Rose Red is brought into full bloom. Ellen also reveals frustration and disappointment with her marriage namely her husband's unfaithfulness and alarmingly frequent involvement in voyeuristic activities as well as a growing confusion about her sexual identity and attachment to her friend and African handmaid, Sukeena. In addition to extensive dialogue that makes the diary seem a tad more like a novel than someone's personal confessions, Ellen's entries are accompanied by a handful of explanatory notes put in by the "editor" and supposed professor of paranormal studies, Joyce Reardon. The people mentioned in the diary, as well as Reardon, are all characters in Rose Red, which was created directly for television by the bestselling author. As to who penned the actual text of the diary? That remains as much of a mystery as Rose Red herself.

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

USA Today
"A clever, beautifully detailed fiction."

Customer Reviews

Best read ever
From the moment I pick up this book I couldn't put it down. The way Ellen discribes the things that go on in her life from her marriage to John Rimbauer through to the birth of April and on to the disapperance of Sukeena and so on I found to be very gripping. This book was way better than the movie based on her diary entries. I also found it interesting how in some instances I could almost see the evnts she was discribing as if I was there when it happened.

This is a book, a life worth reading about. It is both gripping and unnerving. Intreging (sorry about the spelling) and mind-boggling. A definate must read.

A Life Worth Reading
Built on a Native American burial ground in Seattle in the early 20th century, Rose Red was to be a Queen among houses. Built as a wedding gift by John Rimbauer for his wife Ellen, Rose Red claims a victim even before the foundations are laid. A foreman is shot to death; his death would only be the first, however and would be far from the last.

People begin to disappear. First a maid, then another woman. Ellen knows there is something wrong within the walls of Rose Red. Sukeena, Ellen's maid, knows there is evil within the walls too. She is an African witch woman and knows the face of evil. Ellen keeps a diary to document the events surrounding Rose Red. It becomes her confidant and the stuff of nightmares.

Wanting to find answers for the strange goings on in her house, Ellen hires a medium to hold a séance. John Rimbauer scorns this event, but it changes Ellen's life forever. The medium receives a message from the house, from Rose Red. She tells Ellen that as long as the house continues to be built, Ellen will never die.

Preparations begin the next day for new wings to be added to Rose Red. Strange things begin to happen in Rose Red. There are noises at night time; rooms exist where no room existed before. As more people continue to disappear, Ellen can't quite get over the idea that the house seems to be building itself.

Then someone is found dead. More dead bodies follow, always men. Women only disappear in Rose Red. Men are killed savagely. With each new death and disappearance, Ellen's world is plunged into turmoil. She knows she must stop the force within the house before something else happens. She is too late; Rose Red has taken her daughter.

For those of you who don't already know, "The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer" was actually written by Ridley Pearson as a movie tie in for Stephen King's three part, six hour miniseries "Stephen King's Rose Red" that aired in 2002. Stephen King has this to say on his web site:

Now it can be told--the actual author of The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer is suspense novelist (and Rock Bottom Remainder bass guitarist) Ridley Pearson. Ridley did a great job--I couldn't have done better myself..."

If you haven't seen "Stephen King's Rose Red," I urge you to do so as it is the epitome of the modern haunted house movie. One would think a movie tie in novel would be an awful rewrite of the story with no depth behind it or anything worth reading. I held back on picking up the book for so long as I was afraid that the novel would be found lacking when compared to the movie. I was happily surprised to find that I was very wrong indeed.

The novel was written as a companion to the movie. In fact, it explains more within its pages than the movie does. Several things in the movie are left without an explanation. There are explanations a plenty of the haunting at Rose Red within the diaries pages. There is even a web site that relates to the diary and the miniseries. There are pages of the diary that are only published on the web.

Apart from being part of a brilliant multi-media advertising campaign, "My Life at Rose Red - The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer" is an incredible, beautiful work. It examines the power of fear and what happens when someone is pushed to far. It takes a chilling look at the human condition and the stresses of the unknown.

What was surprising were the subplots of the novel. Ellen is a young woman in a terrible marriage. There is also the issue of lesbianism between Ellen and her maid Sukeena; Ellen examines her budding sexuality and tries to find herself, even while she is struggling with the evil that is going on around her.

The novel is more about personal discovery than anything else. It takes a look at what scares us, what torments our dreams. It is a beautiful, darkly gorgeous novel and can be read on its own apart from "Stephen King's Rose Red." Even if you don't watch the movie, read "My Life at Rose Red-The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer."

It will leave you breathless and in awe of the beauty found in the dark. Just make sure you always bring someone with you into the darkness...you may be liable to disappear.

Wonderful and suspensful!!!
RARLEY do I read mystery/thrillers...but a friend mentioned she wanted to read this, and after looking it up, it sounded really good. I'm so glad I bought it! This book kept me up very late for 2 nights in a row...but it was worth it. I love the format of the book, being all journal entries from Ellen's diary...starting in 1907 (age 19) till 1928.

It's a fascinating and riveting journey into the life of Ellen and her philandering husband John, and one cannot forget Rose Red herself. You go on to read about the demise of Ellen's sanity, and how their palace of a house starts to take on a life of it's own. It's an excellent book all around. I highly recommend it. To those who read thriller/mysteries all the time, this is probably no big deal...tame stuff. But for someone like me...it was the perfect amount of suspense and creepiness.