Tag: ghosts

Meet The Suffering Ghosts

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Which one will haunt you?

When Professor Josiah Grant called upon young Victorian psychic, Lucius Holgrove, to host a séance in 1876, neither of the men could have been prepared for the massacre that followed. Under Grant’s instruction, Lucius called forth 5 spirits that would represent the elements needed for his divination spell: Strength; Stealth; Frivolity; Deception; and Malice.

After the deaths of all of the attendees at the séance, Lucius managed to banish the ghosts within the walls of Brackenby House, where they have been waiting for another chance to come out.

Now a student home, Brackenby House finds itself the setting of another séance. A distant relative of Lucius Holgrove has called out The Suffering ghosts, unleashing them back into the house. The only trouble is, unlike his notorious ancestor, Kyle has no clue how to banish them.

And the ghosts are determined to continue The Suffering…

Connor Rourke (Stealth)

A thieving factory worker, Rourke was caught stealing and tried to escape his punishment, plunging to his death through a trapdoor.

The poor wretch who is haunted by Rourke is plagued with vertigo, and the fast and endless echoing footsteps of Rourke’s final run through the factory rafters before his deadly fall will drive you slowly insane. Worse still, you may find yourself giving in to the sudden urge to leap over the railing and tumble to your death. It’s not the call of the void. It’s Rourke. And he won’t stop until you take the plunge.

Anthony Pile (Deception)

A member of The Hellfire Club who committed Satanic rituals to keep his stolen fortune in the afterlife.

The squeal of tortured cats and the smell of burning follow you when Pile is attached to you. You might find chairs pulled out around the house, the seat cold from the touch of a sitting devil. Your money may go missing, but poverty is the least of your worries when Anthony Pile is following you. He made a pact with the devil. And he wants to take you with him back to hell.

Lisa Vaughan (Frivolity)

A teenaged fortune teller who, in the early 1700s, cursed the sailors who sought her wares. Days later, the men would jump from the ship into the sea, joining her woeful spectral horde.

Powerful oracle Lisa Vaughan doesn’t have to lift a finger to torment her victims. You’ll find damp and condensation in the strangest of places, and the smell of the deepest, darkest seas will permeate your clothes. She has the power to drown a person where they stand, and, if you try and fight, her horde of lost sailors will stop you in your tracks. Beware the foghorn moan of Lisa’s horde. It may mean you’re next.

Jarvis Rice (Malice)

A corrupt 17th century executioner who enjoyed his profession so much he murdered women and framed their husbands for the killings, having them sent straight to his axe block. In the final moments before their death, he would whisper the truth in the doomed innocents ears.

When Rice chooses you as his next victim, expect to hear the thudding of an axe handle slapping against an impatient hand throughout the night. A smell of decaying flesh will follow you wherever you go. And, as he gets stronger, be sure to duck if you hear the swish of an axe cutting through the air. Executions are Rice’s favourite hobby. And he doesn’t intend to stop any time soon.

Po (Strength)

An ancient Peruvian monster. Not much is known about Po, apart from the fact that he has nothing in the sockets under his brows and 3 hate-filled eyes across his forehead. And that he’s the size of a truck.

Crashes and creaks in the basement just might mean that the Incan giant, Po, is lurking in the shadows. A tickle of breath on the back of your neck or a grunt in your ear may mean he’s edging closer. And, when the giant gets too close, close enough to touch you, you may just fall victim to the brute’s huge hands, ripping you to pieces in the blink of one of his 3 eyes.

As each of the 5 students at Brackenby are targeted by one of the ghosts, they face a race against time to uncover the secrets of the original séance before it’s too late. But the ghosts are growing stronger every day. And there’s no guarantee that Kyle, Cassie, Pete, Tad, and Lance will ever make it out of the second Suffering alive.

The Suffering – Prepare to Suffer! Available at Amazon

Meet the Students of Brackenby House!

Would you want to live in a haunted Victorian murder house?

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How about if the rent was dirt cheap?

That was the dilemma faced by Cassie, Pete, Lance, and Tad, when they first moved into Brackenby House. And it wasn’t too much of a dilemma at the time. The house was famous in the local area, and it had featured in a few dark history books, but the students were sceptical about the rumours that the home was still haunted. Their friend Kyle (housemate and son of the current homeowner) liked to tell them regularly that his distant relative, the psychic Lucius Holgrove, had managed to banish the ghosts within the walls of Brackenby House after the séance massacre of 1876. So they accepted Kyle’s offer of low rent and the 5 of them settled into both university life and Brackenby in no time. That is until Halloween night 2016, when the group decide it will be fun to hold a séance of their own. Nothing bad will happen – not in this day and age. Right?

Plus, the jury was still out on what really happened that fateful night back in 1876. Did Lucius’s séance really pull forth 5 cursed ghosts from hell in order to fulfil a spell found in an ancient book? Did the hapless group of wealthy merchants and professionals, guests of Brackenby’s then-owner, Professor Josiah Grant, really die gruesome deaths at the hands of each of the ghosts? Or was Lucius the only survivor for another reason. A reason no-less dark. After spending months in jail awaiting trial, and then being freed into a sanitorium, Lucius was finally freed. The judge and jury hesitantly agreed – surely one young man couldn’t have been responsible for the carnage discovered at the house. A house that would claim another victim, when Lucius leapt from a cliff to his death shortly after being released. Victorian newspaper records detailed the initial carnage, Lucius’s graphic and terrifying testimony, and the news of his untimely death all too thoroughly. The séance was dubbed The Suffering, a sensationalist name that had lasted, almost 150 years later.

Kyle loves to big-up his distant uncle and his astonishing abilities not only to resurrect the dead but to send them back to whence they came. But trying to emulate him for a Halloween party trick doesn’t go the way he’d hoped. Now, the 5 ghosts are released back in the house: Jarvis Rice, a 17th century executioner who framed men for murder so he could get the thrill of killing twice. Connor Rourke, who died falling from the rafters of the grain factory he stole from, his footsteps a constant echo along Brackenby’s landing. Anthony Pile, a member of the Hellfire Club who struck a deal with the devil so he could keep his ill-gotten riches in the afterlife. Lisa Vaughan, a fortune teller who cursed the sailors who visited her, forcing them to jump into the sea and join her deadly hoard halfway through their next sail. And, most terrifying of all, the ancient pre-Incan giant, Po. Rumour has it Po has nothing in his eye sockets, and 3 eyes on his forehead. And he’s now residing in Brackenby’s basement.

Each of the ghosts latches onto one of the students, the individual hauntings driving them all to the brink. But the students soon learn that they can’t leave Brackenbury. When they do, the people around them are at risk, and the ghosts only grow stronger. Only Kyle’s uncle Caleb can help. Unlike their distant ancestor, Lucius, Caleb isn’t dashing, charming, or remotely psychic. But, as gruff and rude as he is, Caleb has his uses. He’s been trying to get to the bottom of the house’s secrets for years. And he may just have found a solution that turns the reported history of the séance on its head. The housemates must each do battle with their own individual ghost. But not all of them can make it out alive…

The Suffering, published by Wicked House Publishing – coming soon!

Next up: Meet The Suffering Ghosts! Which one will haunt you?