Winterbay Abbey: A Ghost Story
By John Bladek and Davonna Juroe
4/5
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About this ebook
Fans of Susan Hill's "The Woman in Black" and Alejandro Amenábar's "The Others" will be eager to read this contemporary ghost story. Written in the tradition of classic English ghost tales, "Winterbay Abbey" is an unsettling Gothic thriller.
Will Larson has one last chance to save his stagnant career as an architect: design a grand restoration for a long-abandoned abbey. Looming above the breathtaking, windswept coast of Maine, Winterbay Abbey offers a picturesque spot for a charming hotel. But the locals harbor a peculiar distaste for the ruined Gothic convent.
After witnessing a drowning within sight of the abbey, Will wonders why the police seem disinterested in the case. He begins looking deeper into the incident, gradually uncovering chilling secrets behind the old nunnery's walls. Will's wife, Emily, becomes convinced the drowning is a ghostly replay of a forgotten death. But their investigation into the abbey's frightening history results in a tragic end with no escape from Winterbay's dark curse.
Buy "Winterbay Abbey" today to add some needed chill to your home library.
"Juroe's skill is evident in her writing...."
- Dayla F. M., Seattle Post-Intelligencer Book Review
"This book was exceptionally well-written with...a chilling setting in the old abbey. I'm a novelist, too. This book earned my highest praise: I wish I'd written it!"
- Linda George, author and novelist
John Bladek
John Bladek grew up in Washington State (named for a dead president, but unfortunately not haunted by him). He’s always been fascinated by scary stories. The first story he can remember reading on his own was called Spook’s Bones, a tale of two boys who grant a ghost’s last wish to have his bones properly buried, and then enjoy sandwiches in celebration. He also liked listening to ghost stories on the radio and sneaking into the basement on Friday nights to watch the scary TV show, Ghost Story, which his mom did not approve of. Every day on his way home from school in 3rd grade, he visited a haunted house. Since then, John has stopped hiding under his pillow when listening to spooky stories, but he still enjoys a good scare. To fuel his cravings, John earned a PhD in History, where all ghosts come from. He loves to play trivia and wonders why he doesn’t run into haunted houses anymore.John’s other books include the humorous middle-grade adventure, Roll up the Streets! (Kane Miller, 2010) and the funny ghost story, Lost in Ghostville (Capstone, 2016).
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Reviews for Winterbay Abbey
9 ratings3 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This was a nice classic ghost story. Architect Will Larson accepts an assignment to restore an old abbey in Maine into a first class hotel and resort. Will is torn because he has to leave his pregnant wife in Seattle. When he arrives in Maine he decides to send for his wife. He does this before he visits the long deserted and really, really creepy abbey. On his first visit, he sees what appears to be a young nun walking into the sea. He tries to rescue her, but the he can't reach her. Search teams find nothing. So begins a quest to solve the mystery of the abbey.I enjoyed this book. I could see the waves crashing and smell the sea air. Will is a nice guy who is in a bad situation. His wife was a bit harder for me to like. There is the classic crabby old guy who seems to know all the secrets. The police who know something is up but won't admit it. The towns people who throw vague shade at his restoration project. All the things that add to the creep factor. And that is one of the nice things about this book. Some terrible things happen but we don't get a blow by blow account. It is really creepy, not gross. I like that in a ghost story.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Very predictable. For the young adult reader this would be a good story. For the adult reader, not so much. Could not understand the actions/reactions of the main character at all. His baby rattle turning up at the abbey was way beyond belief even for a ghost story.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5We started off on a high note, getting to know our lead characters, and diving head first into the history of Winterbay from the locals. Let's just say that "colorful" doesn't do it justice. From a convent to a home for wayward girls to the severely creepy shell that remains today, aside from the location having a great (and dangerous!) view...it's beyond me why anyone would want to set foot there. Certainly not Will Larson, especially after everything he learns AND experiences.
We are shown echoes of the past as Will explores the Abbey for all its worth. He's trying his best to secure a good life for both himself and his growing family, but while he's plagued by his own missteps, these new intrusions are seriously making him question his sanity. Strange additions to his drawings, mysterious blankets with a rather familiar signature, figures on the beach calling out for...help? Revenge? Justice? Just WHY was he the one reached out to? Was there no other soul to connect with that would understand the strangeness of what was going on...the lingering hurt from generations of bad deeds done in the name of good? There was much to puzzle and several leaps of imagination to take as the story twists and turns, binding you to its bones like so much cement in a foundation. I will admit that the seagulls outside my work totally had me flashing back to the Abbey and not in the most pleasant of ways after having finished a fairly precarious scene before having to pause things and head into work. *-*
In the end, though certainly not in a format I favor, the story itself was definitely a winner! If you're a fan of gothic horror or simply love a good spooky story, this one's for you. The characters are memorable for so many reasons and the perilous nature of everything as it currently stands will keep you on the edge of your seat. Try to guess along the way just how things will turn out...and even if you're a stickler for details thinking you might rival the great Holmes himself, I bet you don't see everything coming.