Welcome to The Friday 56 hosted by Freda’s Voice.
This is a really fun meme!
The only rules are to grab a book (any book), turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader and find a sentence or a few (no spoilers) that grabs you and post it.
Then go over to Freda’s Voice and leave your link so we can visit your 56!
My 56 for this week is from
The Haunting Of Gillespie House
by Darcy Coates
My 56
Almost without deciding to, I found myself climbing the stairs to the third floor. It had been dim the last time I’d been up there, thanks to the lack of electric lighting, but now, with the storm blocking out almost all natural light, it was nearly impossible to see.
When I read this scene, I couldn’t help but think, “It was a dark and stormy night…” LOL
Lots of atmosphere!
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My Review
I do enjoy a good haunted house story.
Elle needs to get away from things for a bit. She grabs the opportunity to house sit for a month at the Gillespie’s house. It’s more of an estate with the large forests and somewhat neglected mansion.
First things first, Elle explores the house, finding rooms filled with beautiful antiques. Then she walks the grounds, surrounded by heavy brush and trees, stumbling onto a graveyard filled with crumbling tombstones. Something peculiar catches her eye. All of these people died on the same date.
Not one to pass up a good mystery, Elle explores deeper into the house, looking for some history.
It’s not long before doors start slamming, ghostly footsteps prowl the floors, and scratches from the walls interrupt her sleep.
Someone or something is in the house.
This had all the makings for a creepy haunted tale and the sense of foreboding grew throughout the book.
The run down mansion with it’s dark corners and hidden secrets.
A previous owner that dabbled in the occult.
The strange tombstones in the cemetery.
Haunting noises and terror filled dreams.
Elle was a curious character. At first I couldn’t believe she’d stay in a haunted house. You’ve seen the movies. Don’t go in the basement. Don’t go see what made that noise. Elle did all of those things. I had to keep reminding myself, if she didn’t there wouldn’t be much of a story.
And I remembered something. As a teenager, I was home alone and heard a loud crash in the basement. I did go down to see what it was. Granted, I was scared to go down those steps. But I was more scared not to. It turned out to be a cat that got in through an open window, jumping on a table and breaking something.
It’s not that simple for Elle.
There’s an Author’s Note after the end where Darcy Coates explains the origins of The Haunting Of Gillespie House. It stared out to be a short story but grew.
She includes the free short story, Crawlspace, that started it all.
If you like tales that give you the heebie jeebies, have you looking over shoulder, and make the hairs stand up on the back of your neck, you’ll enjoy this book.
4 Stars
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Synopsis
Elle can’t believe her luck; she’s spending a month house-sitting the beautiful Gillespie property. Hidden near the edge of the woods and an hour’s drive from the nearest town, its dark rooms and rich furniture entice her to explore its secrets. There’s even a graveyard hidden behind the house, filled with tombstones that bear an identical year of death.
If only the scratching in the walls would be quiet…
The house’s dark and deadly history quickly becomes tangled with Elle’s life. At the centre of it is Jonathan Gillespie, the tyrannical cult leader and original owner of the house. As Elle soon learns – just because he’s dead, doesn’t mean he’s gone.
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For more about Darcy Coates, her books, and where to find her, head on over to GOODREADS.
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