Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions has stepped up to buy a package based on the Dan Simmons horror novel Summer of Night, reports Deadline.

The novel revolves around a series of hauntingly sinister events that threaten a Midwestern town, as a group of young teens unearth a centuries-old evil prophecy of biblical proportions.

Mexican helmer Isaac Ezban is set to direct a script by Ben Poole, and Ehren Kruger & Daniel Bobker are producing.

Here’s the book synopsis via Amazon:

“It’s the summer of 1960 and in the small town of Elm Haven, Illinois, five twelve-year-old boys are forging the powerful bonds that a lifetime of change will not break. From sunset bike rides to shaded hiding places in the woods, the boys’ days are marked by all of the secrets and silences of an idyllic middle-childhood. But amid the sundrenched cornfields their loyalty will be pitilessly tested. When a long-silent bell peals in the middle of the night, the townsfolk know it marks the end of their carefree days. From the depths of the Old Central School, a hulking fortress tinged with the mahogany scent of coffins, an invisible evil is rising. Strange and horrifying events begin to overtake everyday life, spreading terror through the once idyllic town. Determined to exorcize this ancient plague, Mike, Duane, Dale, Harlen, and Kevin must wage a war of blood—against an arcane abomination who owns the night…”

The Hugo-winning author’s novel “The Terror” separately was adapted for AMC as a Ridley Scott-produced series.

Ezban wrapped his English-language debut, Parallel, for Bron Studios. He made his directing debut on the nightmarish thriller The Incident and followed with The Similars, which won the award for Best Latin American Feature at the Sitges International Film Festival.