Homer Gamache’s Last Night

The Dark Half

Homer Gamache’s ordinary routine ends in a brutal murder that gives the novel its first tangible crime and draws Alan toward Thad.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

A Habitual Evening A Habitual Evening from "The Dark Half". A Habitual Evening Familiar routine Homer leaves for his regular bowling night and drives the same route home.

A Habitual Evening from "The Dark Half". A Habitual Evening Familiar routine Homer leaves for his regular bowling night and drives the same route home.

A Habitual Evening Familiar routine Homer leaves for his regular bowling night and drives the same route home. His wife expects him back as usual and calls when he does not arrive. A small uncertainty Alan initially assumes Homer may have stayed with a bowling friend. The ordinary explanation delays the recognition that something far worse has happened.

A Hitchhiker in a Suit A Hitchhiker in a Suit from "The Dark Half". A Hitchhiker in a Suit A witness’s recollection Dolly Arsenault sees a suited man beside the road.

A Hitchhiker in a Suit from "The Dark Half". A Hitchhiker in a Suit A witness’s recollection Dolly Arsenault sees a suited man beside the road.

A Hitchhiker in a Suit A witness’s recollection Dolly Arsenault sees a suited man beside the road. Homer stops and lets him into the pickup, though the hour and the stranger’s clothes seem odd. The fatal kindness Homer’s willingness to help becomes the killer’s opportunity. The witness account gives Alan a last known point in the victim’s journey.

The Body in the Ditch The Body in the Ditch from "The Dark Half". The Body in the Ditch A brutal discovery A boy finds Homer’s body beside the road.

The Body in the Ditch A brutal discovery A boy finds Homer’s body beside the road. His prosthesis has been used as the murder weapon, transforming a familiar object into evidence of exceptional cruelty. A personal investigation Alan recognizes the victim and struggles with the unnecessary violence. The crime becomes more than another case in a busy county.

A Strange Grave Hole A Strange Grave Hole from "The Dark Half". A Strange Grave Hole Tracks without a grave Steven “Digger” Holt discovers a rough hole near George Stark’s staged burial site.

A Strange Grave Hole from "The Dark Half". A Strange Grave Hole Tracks without a grave Steven “Digger” Holt discovers a rough hole near George Stark’s staged burial site.

A Strange Grave Hole Tracks without a grave Steven “Digger” Holt discovers a rough hole near George Stark’s staged burial site. Tracks suggest a large person climbed out, though no body should be there. An image of return Digger fills the hole but cannot forget it. His discovery quietly links the public joke of Stark’s burial to the violence now spreading through town.

The Case Reaches Thad The Case Reaches Thad from "The Dark Half". The Case Reaches Thad A print identifies the suspect The truck turns up far from Maine with blood and fingerprints.

The Case Reaches Thad from "The Dark Half". The Case Reaches Thad A print identifies the suspect The truck turns up far from Maine with blood and fingerprints.

The Case Reaches Thad A print identifies the suspect The truck turns up far from Maine with blood and fingerprints. Computer comparison returns Thad’s records, bringing Alan to the writer’s home. Grief meets disbelief Thad is astonished by the accusation, while Alan cannot dismiss the evidence. Homer’s death becomes the first link in a mystery neither man can explain.

May 31, 1988, before midnight

Around 12:45 a.m., June 1, on Route 35

Morning of June 1, near Route 35

Morning of June 1, at Homeland Cemetery

June 1988, after Gamache’s pickup is found