Skip to main content

Owl Manor the Dawning by Zita Harrison

Title: Owl Manor: the Dawning
Author: Zita Harrison
Genre: Gothic, Supernatural, Romantic Suspense
Published: October 2018

“I slowly became aware of other sounds: low hooting, hissing, snapping, rustling…the forest spoke, swelling and pulsing with life. I closed my eyes and listened. And felt as though I were melting into something vast and endless. What on earth was happening to me?"
THE SPELL OF OWL MANOR
We would believe that we have command over destiny, spend our lives trying to carve out our desires. But sometimes the tide sweeps us in paths beyond the imagination. And we have no choice but to swim powerless towards the fog that awaits us, and to wonder why.

This is the story of Eva. Stifled by the repression of women in the 1800s, trapped in a loveless marriage, Eva lives a life of dissatisfaction and frustration. Fate leads her to the Rocky Mountains during the gold rush in 1859, where she finds unexpected hope at Owl Manor, a strange, dark place with owls in the very fabric of its walls. But the stakes are perilous. Shadows wander the dim corridors, and the owner of the manor is moody and volatile. Does she dare trust him?

Owl Manor – the Dawning, the first standalone book in a trilogy of Gothic romantic suspense novels, is inspired by authors such as Daphne du Maurier (Jamaica Inn, Rebecca), Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Marina, Shadow of the Wind), Kate Morton (The Forgotten Garden). Filled with Poe-esque atmosphere, dark desires and supernatural elements, this book is a must read for fans of the modern Gothic. Goodreads
My Thoughts
 I received an copy of this novel on Net Galley. 


Owl Manor- the Dawning  by Zita Harrison is an independently published modern Gothic set in the 1800's that is dripping with atmosphere. It builds a sense a dread through people as well as supernatural elements. The main character Eva is a forward thinking woman who ends up with a life she never expected. When she starts working at owl manor she is meets the owner who is a very strange mysterious man. You will not even believe his back story. This story is wonderful in so many ways including: setting, atmosphere, mood, and characters. There are 2 more novels coming in this series. The next one will be Owl Manor- Abigail. I recommend this series to those that enjoy dark, suspenseful, Gothic novels.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Riding the Nightmare by Lisa Tuttle

  Title: Riding the Nightmare Author: Lisa Tuttle Genre: Horror Short Story Collection Published: 8/22/23 by Valancourt Books I received a copy for review through NetGalley.  This new collection from a Lisa Tuttle collects stories previously published between 1986 and 2017 with a new expanded version of 'The Dragon's Bride'. The stories seem to fit together in that they all explore unconventional types of relationships from the female prospective. The plots themselves are varied. Some worked better for me than others. This is a great release from Valancourt Books from this great author of Nest of Nightmares and Familiar Spirit. Ride the Nightmare:   Being second to a man in an open marriage isn't easy. For Tess it brings on a prophetic nightmare.The nightmare imagery is great. 4 stars Bits and Pieces: A woman realizes the men that leave her life leave parts of themselves behind. In the pursuit of creating a perfect man she goes to great lengths to get what she wants. 

Boys in the Valley by Philip Fracassi

  Title: Boys in the Valley Author: Philip Fracassi Genre: Religious Horror/ Coming of Age Published: July 11, 2023 by TOR Nightfire  I received a copy for review through NetGalley. It is not easy growing up in a turn of the century group home for boys run by priests like the orphans in this religious horror story. Peter is a 16 year old orphan trying to choose between becoming a priest and being with the girl he loves. The toughest things the boys have to deal with are punishments from overzealous staff and small food rations until one night the sheriff rolls in with someone he believes to be possessed. That is when all hell breaks loose. This was a super scary thrill ride of a novel. The characters were all developed so well. There are characters to love and some to hate, but none are one sided. Well, except the demon who is all evil. The boys have had to deal with so much in their lives and I did not want anything to happen to them. If you cannot handle reading harm coming to ch

They Lurk by Ronald Malfi

  Title: They Lurk Author: Ronald Malfi Genre: Horror Published: July 18, 2023 by Titan Books I received a copy for review through NetGalley. They Lurk is a collection of five novellas about the evil that lurks just out of sight waiting to strike. The first four novellas in the collection were previously published by DarkFuse in 2009. Now they are being reprinted by Titan with the addition of a new novella Fierce which is a 100% must read. The novellas seemed to be ordered from least amount of tension and horror to the most. The first two novellas were quiet slow burn stories and then things really kick off from there with ever increasing dread until the ultimate peak in Fierce.  Skullbelly - A private investigator is hired by the families of a group of campers that go missing in the Pacific Northwest where he learns the terrifying local legend of the cryptid, Skullbelly. The character study of the PI, the backwoods small town atmosphere, and the truly horrifying description of Sku