HAUNTINGS: A Short Collection of Ghostly Tales

By Alison Stuart

From the dark days of the English Civil War to a family camping trip in the Australian bush, this lighthearted collection of ghost stories from Alison Stuart is guaranteed if not to scare, then at least to entertain.

Stories:

THE PROMISE

Badly wounded at the battle of Worcester, the last battle of the English Civil War, Ben has returned to his home and someone is waiting for him, someone who has a promise to keep…

THE GREY LADY

The Grey Lady is only seen when the last male heir of the Compton-Barrs will die a violent death...But the Compton-Barrs have left Livingstone Hall. There are no male heirs... or are there?

THE BALL OF THE LOST SOULS

After a lifetime devoted to caring for others, Alice Collins takes a cruise to Bermuda... but this is a cruise unlike any other. What will she find at the Ball of the Lost Souls?

LOST!

A dark cloud covers Mt. Oberon and the wind blows in from the south... young Brad Cooper has gone missing on a family walk on the Lilly Pilly Gully track. Will he be found in time or will the Australian bush once more claim a life - just as it did eighteen months previously?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Oportet Publishing
• Release date: Jul 12, 2021
• ISBN: 9780645237801

Alison Stuart

Australian author Alison Stuart began her writing journey halfway up a tree in the school playground with a notebook and a dream. Her father's passion for history and her husband's love of adventure and the Australian bush led to a desire to tell stories of Australia's past.  She has travelled extensively and lived in Africa and Singapore. Before turning to writing full time, she enjoyed a long and varied career as a lawyer, both in private practice and in a range of different organisations, including the military and the emergency services.  Alison lives in a historic town in Victoria. You can connect with Alison on: Website  Facebook Instagram Twitter

Book preview

HAUNTINGS

HAUNTINGS

A short collection of ghostly tales

Alison Stuart

Contents

INTRODUCTION

THE PROMISE

THE GREY LADY

BALL OF THE LOST SOULS

LOST!

GATHER THE BONES

About the Author

BOOKS by Alison Stuart

INTRODUCTION

By Alison Stuart

Ghost stories have always held a fascination for me, fuelled no doubt by my mother’s story of her youthful encounter with a ghostly lady in a youth hostel in Wales.

Over the years I have jotted down a few short stories, although lumping them together in a ghostly anthology does rather give the twist away.

I hope you enjoy them!

THE PROMISE This short short story was originally inspired by a visit to Oak Alley, an old plantation house in Louisiana, and written at 2 am perched on the edge of a bath in the hotel in New Orleans (I didn’t want to disturb my room mate). It has been revised to move the setting but the story is universal.

THE GREY LADY and BALL OF THE LOST SOULS were originally published as part of two anthologies of short stories (no longer available) by different writers, based loosely on a fictional house - Livingstone Hall and a cruise ship - the Spirit of Bermuda.

LOST! This is one of my all time favourite short stories. Some of our happiest moments as a family has been the days we have spent camping at Tidal River on Wilson's Promontory. The story has its genesis in two actual incidents that occurred to us on separate camping trips.

The first was a quiet weekend in winter (yes we are mad enough to go camping in winter). A young man camping nearby, packed his day pack and headed off on a bush walk with a cheery wave. We were the last people to see him. He never returned from that walk. We gave statements to the police but his body was never recovered.

Camping with another family with young children, we set off for a walk on the Lilly Pilly Gully track. Young William ran on ahead and rounded a corner. When we reached the corner there was no sign of him. Fortunately he was located quickly but he had wandered off the track into the dense undergrowth.

And finally I have included an excerpt from my full length novel - GATHER THE BONES.

England 1923. Grieving widow, Helen Morrow, and the wounded and reclusive Paul, are haunted not only by the horrors of the trenches but ghosts from another time and another conflict. As the two stories become entwined, Paul and Helen will not find peace or happiness until the mysteries are solved.

THE PROMISE

First published in LITTLE GEMS: EMERALD (Romance Writers of Australia) 2006

Ben had come home at last.

Not as he had left, riding his grey gelding with his hair bright in the sun as he waved his hat to her, but wrapped in filthy blankets in the back of an old wagon.

Bess had heard the talk of the terrible battle at Worcester, a king hunted through the land, his followers dead or imprisoned or sent home, like Ben, to die.

The servants gathered in a subdued circle by the front steps to Wilmington Priory. The men, their hats in hand, and the women, their faces grave, watched as Joshua carried his master inside followed by Lady Alice and the old family servant, Sarah.

Bess followed the sad procession up the stairs but the door to the bed chamber closed, leaving her alone in the dark, panelled corridor.