The Siren and the Specter by Jonathan Janz

Title: The Siren and the Specter
Author: Jonathan Janz
Published: Flame Tree Press, Sept. 6, 2018
Genre: Horror, Ghost Story
I was given a copy from Flame Tree Press through NetGalley for review.

When David Caine, a celebrated skeptic of the supernatural, is invited by an old friend to spend a month in “the most haunted house in Virginia,” he believes the case will be like any other. But the Alexander House is different. Built by a 1700s land baron to contain the madness and depravity of his eldest son, the house is plagued by shadows of the past and the lingering taint of bloodshed. David is haunted, as well. For twenty-two years ago, he turned away the woman he loved, and she took her life in sorrow. And David suspects she’s followed him to the Alexander House. FLAME TREE PRESS is the new fiction imprint of Flame Tree Publishing. Launching in 2018 the list brings together brilliant new authors and the more established; the award winners, and exciting, original voices. Goodreads

My Thoughts

A skeptic takes on "the most haunted house in Virginia". What could be better than that premise. The Siren and the Specter is a bone chilling ghost story with plenty of exciting scares and twists. The haunting scenes are the scariest I have ever read, and I found that I could not put it down. This novel is gory, spooky, and hedonistic to the core.

The setting is a small lake community by a forest in a house built in the 1700s. This setting provides the perfect atmospheric backdrop for a fantastic horror novel.

This small lake town is full of interesting characters including a no-nonsense sheriff and depraved neighbors. The main character David Caine is slow to believe in the supernatural, but is confronted by two spirits that will make him rethink his beliefs and face his past. He is such a great protagonist.

I would recommend The Siren and the Specter by Jonathan Janz to those who love horror and ghost stories. This one is scary, twisted, and addictive.

Rating 5 out of 5

Comments

When the Night Falls by Glenn Rolfe Book Review

Title: When the Night Falls Author: Glenn Rolfe Series: Until Summer Comes Around Book 2 Genre: Horror Published: 6/11/24 by Flame Tree Press I received a copy for review through NetGalley. A group of vampires descend upon a beach town after a documentary airs about the killings that took place there years ago. These vampires seem set on getting to Rocky, and leave a large body count in their wake. When the Night Falls is the sequel to the beach town vampire story Until Summer Comes Around. This time the story is a little bit darker and a little bit bloodier. It takes place in the 1990s with plenty of fun nods to the decade to set time and place. I would highly recommend this series to fans of vampire stories. These are fast fun reads for summer. My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Hetty by Eddie Generous

Title: Hetty Author: Eddie Generous Genre: Horror Published: September 18, 2021 by Omnium Gatherum I received a copy for review through NetGalley. What It's About: Hetty Stanley was a schoolteacher. Hetty Stanley was a prudish spinster. Hetty Stanley was a murderer. Hetty Stanley has been dead for more than a century. Dane Butler is doing his best. His best isn’t enough, but a little luck puts him into an inherited home that shares a property line with a woman and her son. Winona and her son Casey are no better off than Dane, forcing the strangers to rely on one another. One day, Dane looks up from his computer at the sound of Winona shouting. Her four-year-old son is missing—no boots and no coat, January in Minnesota. Hours pass. Police scour the woods and begin pointing fingers at the only plausible suspects, but one high-ranking officer knows the painful history. Children have been disappearing from the old schoolhouse property for decades, and although it is impossible, the...

The Dead House by Billy O'Callaghan

Book Title: The Dead House Author: Billy O'Callaghan Genre: Fiction, Gothic, Horror, Ghost Story, Thriller Goodreads This best-selling debut by an award-winning writer is both an eerie contemporary ghost story and a dread-inducing psychological thriller. Maggie is a successful young artist who has had bad luck with men. Her last put her in the hospital and, after she’s healed physically, left her needing to get out of London to heal mentally and find a place of quiet that will restore her creative spirit. On the rugged west coast of Ireland, perched on a wild cliff side, she spies the shell of a cottage that dates back to Great Famine and decides to buy it. When work on the house is done, she invites her dealer to come for the weekend to celebrate along with a couple of women friends, one of whom will become his wife. On the boozy last night, the other friend pulls out an Ouija board. What sinister thing they summon, once invited, will never go. Ireland is a country haun...

Mindy's Book Journey

Search This Blog