 On Tem's novel "Prodigal"(1991), Dan Simmons applauded it saying, “Melanie Tem may be the literary successor to Shirley Jackson”.Edward Bryant described "Prodigal" as being written “surely and precisely” and compared it to Stephen King's "Pet Sematary" but she "digs even deeper into the disturbing, layered, complex, collective psyche of a family in deep trouble”.