A House of Ghosts

Author/Guide: William Ryan

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1917: Dare you enter Blackwater Abbey?

ISBN: 978-1785767128
Genre: Ghost/supernatural

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What you need to know before your trail

Winter 1917. As the First World War enters its most brutal phase, back home in England, everyone is seeking answers to the darkness that has seeped into their lives. At Blackwater Abbey, on an island off the Devon coast, Lord Highmount has arranged a spiritualist gathering to contact his two sons who were lost in the conflict. But as his guests begin to arrive, it gradually becomes clear that each has something they would rather keep hidden. Then, when a storm descends on the island, the guests will find themselves trapped. Soon one of their number will die. For Blackwater Abbey is haunted in more ways than one . . .

Locations

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Travel Guide

Map from the book (c) William Ryan

Devon

Blackwater …

The sea was black as ink and the small fishing boat, travelling under a loose sail, moved slowly across its glass-flat calm. Ahead of them, the island was barely visible through the early morning mist, but he could just about make pout the cliffs that ringed its Southern tip. Normally they were a hard grey, but thanks to the soft rain that clung to the sea mist there were darker still – foreboding even to someone who knew them well.

This is how you are introduced to this, luckily fictional , island off Devon.

There are names of places such as Wreckers Spine, a series of jagged rocks and Maiden’s Whisper, a line of pebbles in the sea.

The island has some interesting history – believed to have been owned by the Blackwater family for many years. It was given to them as a gift by King Henry during the Reformation and has plenty of tales and legends of ghosts attached.

Tis a spooky and unsettling place to be…

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Booktrailer Review

Susan: @thebooktrailer

I read this in daylight as, well, I wasn’t sure….

Blackwater Abbey on a fictional island off the coast in Devon makes this sound very chilling and otherworldly. It reminded me early on of that house and island in the Agatha Christie novel And then There were None. The grey walls, the sharp and jagged rocks below, the howling winds and then there’s the strange noises…

This is not a straight forward ghost story though as the ghosts are not what and who you think they might be. Well not exactly. It’s hard to say too much without giving anything away but it’s a goosebumpy ride getting there!

I think what really makes this a shivery read is the fact that the spiritualists are trying to get in touch with the ghosts of those lost in the war. And so the history and backstory of a lot of people comes out as do their secrets….and lies

An immersive read.