The Secrets of Smugglers Light: A Tale of Secrets, Spirits, and Suspense

By V. L. Harrison

I would describe this book as : Harry Potter meets Beatrix Potter meets Enid Blyton..
The animals are the stars of the book, having numerous adventures, while their owners have no idea at all that they all lead double lives!
Set in a fairly remote spot on a wild coast, the history of the old lighthouse ties itself to its contemporary occupants with astonishing results. Highs, lows, panic & terror are just some of the emotions to grip the friends in their quest to salvage some old stolen treasure!
Things are never what they seem; with ghosts, witches and wizards all adding to the strange brew!!
Life will never be the same again..

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Nov 21, 2019
• ISBN: 9781728395692

V. L. Harrison

I studied art, graphic design, and illustration @ art school in the 60's. Followed by Archaeology & English Literature & Art History B.A. in the 80's, & Science with the O.U. in the in the late 90's. My working life has included: printing, art & design with H.M.S.O & Mc Millan Publishers, & painting & manufacturing prosthetic eyes of the NHS. I have also worked in Electronic Engineering. I am now retired, & enjoy writing, reading, painting & crafts.

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2019 V. L. Harrison. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

AuthorHouse™ UK

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403 USA

www.authorhouse.co.uk

Phone: [phone] (Domestic TFN)

[phone] (International)

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-7283-9570-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-7283-9569-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2019918706

Published by AuthorHouse 01/08/2020

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The

Secrets of

Smugglers

Light

A Tale of Secrets, Spirits, and Suspense

Written and illustrated by

V. L. Harrison

Contents

Dedicated to

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1 Gizzie Arrives at Smugglers Light

Chapter 2 Gizzie Jumps Ship

Chapter 3 The Secrets of the Attic Rooms

Chapter 4 The Arrival of Rags; the Trio Is Formed

Chapter 5 Rags Meets the Captain and Mango

Chapter 6 Plans Go Pear-Shaped!

Chapter 7 The Rescue of the Boys

Chapter 8 Return to the Attic

Chapter 9 The Witch’s Curse

Chapter 10 Preparation for Another Battle!

Chapter 11 Marmaduke Recruits His Friends

Chapter 12 A Surprise in Store for the Trio

Chapter 13 Preparing the Boats

Chapter 14 The Mice Load up the Treasure

Chapter 15 A Little Wizardry Goes a Long Way

Chapter 16 The Pirate Ghosts Help the Mice

Chapter 17 Returning the Pirate Ghosts

Chapter 18 Marmaduke and the Pirates Talk to Cap’n Con

Chapter 19 Gizzie Steps Up

Chapter 20 The Ship Is Laid to Rest

Chapter 21 Tom Checks Out the Deeds

Chapter 22 Smugglers Light Secrets Are Revealed

Chapter 23 Christmas in York Is Magical

Dedicated to

Miss Valerie Perry, an inspirational tutor.

Acknowledgements

With many thanks to Colin and Tina for helping with all the technical stuff, and to Graham for his constant support.

All the characters in this book, animal or person, are based on real individuals (apart from the witch and ghosts!)

The location is based on Yorkshire’s East Coast, where most of us live!

Chapter 1

Chapter%201.jpg

Gizzie Arrives at Smugglers Light

M armaduke the cat, Gizzie the parakeet, and Rags the dog lived with their owners, Phoebe and Tom, in an old lighthouse high up on a cliff overlooking the sea. Completely surrounding the lighthouse was a huge, equally old house with secret passages leading to secret rooms which were once thought to have held smugglers’ booty! Some of the passages went downwards into the caves below, and at high tide the caves became flooded and inaccessible from the beach, though they were still accessible from the house. On the days when the wind blew and the rain was constant all day, the friends had to find adventures indoors!

They waited until Tom and Phoebe were busy with their chores or work, and then they scurried off to either the secret attic rooms, where they stashed their treasure, or down to the caves below to see what had washed in with the tide.

Although the friends all lived together now, it hadn’t always been so. When Phoebe and Tom fell in love with and bought the house, they did not have any pets of their own. But they were told that whoever bought the house and lighthouse must keep the lighthouse cat Marmaduke because it had always been his home. Phoebe and Tom readily agreed to this, and it was obvious upon their initial meeting with the cat that there was an instant bond between them all. When they asked how old Marmaduke was, Mr Wybron, the solicitor, looked over his spectacles, shook his head, and said, Nobody knows, only that he has always been at the house with the old captain and his housekeeper.

Things at the lighthouse ticked along merrily for Phoebe, Tom, and Marmaduke. Moving in had been fairly easy because there was a decent road leading from the village of Ducks-upon-the Water a mile away, and after having escaped from the city and all its noise, they were looking forward to a peaceful existence working from home.

One windswept day, however, things changed. Phoebe and Tom had decided to stay in and decorate the parlour when Marmaduke rushed in meowing and fussing. He’s probably eaten all his food and wants more, Phoebe noted with a laugh, but Tom looked concerned.

No, he said, I think he’s trying to tell us something. I think something is wrong! Marmaduke headed for the door, still mewing, and Phoebe and Tom followed. He ran into the lounge, up to