English Gothic

An aristocratic birthright and the luxurious comforts of profound wealth did nothing to comfort Fontaine Pratina following the death of her beloved parents. After two years in the guardianship of her mother’s arrogant and selfish sister, Carileena Wetherton, Fontaine’s only moments of joy and peace were found in the company of the loyal servants of Pratina Manor. Only in the kitchens and servant’s quarters of her grand domicile did Fontaine find friendship, laughter and affection. The life of a wealthy orphan destined to inherit loomed before Fontaine—a dark cloud of shallow, ...

This omnibus brings together seven of H.E. Bulstrode’s ghost stories originally published between 2016 and 2018. These are: The Ghost of Scarside Beck A newly-wed Cumbrian vicar and his wife experience a night like none they could ever have foreseen. He may have answered his calling, but who, or what, is calling her? Old Crotchet The year is 1920, and it's Twelfth Night by the old reckoning. Festivities are about to commence at Hinton St Cuthbert Manor when something sinister stirs from its protracted dormancy, awakened, it would seem, by the arrival of two young guests. The old ways, ...

The Westgate Galleria Mall was once a sprawling, shining monument to American consumerism and suburban growth. Now, it is a crumbling reminder of how both have fallen - an architectural ghost, haunting the outskirts of society. That makes it the perfect filming location for a YouTube channel devoted to the exploration of abandoned places. But the mall isn't as empty as it seems, and the residents have sinister obscene plans for them. Now, with the daylight still hours away, both the hunters and the hunted will fight to stay alive...and desperately try to make it home.

We love the Haunted Mansion as an entertaining dark ride, but does it also resonate with us for deeper reasons? K. R. Bailey suggests that it answers a fundamental need to approach the topic of death in a manner we find comfortable in what has been termed a "death-denying" culture. Bailey reaches into the Victorian era and its Celebration of Death to identify symbols that are close enough to have a dark meaning, but distant enough not to threaten, and discusses their use in the works of Edward Gorey and Tim Burton, and Disney's Haunted Mansion ride.

Salem Salazar is fascinated with death. The black sheep of her scandal-ridden, wealthy family, she arrives at Mortimer University as a legacy on the hunt for answers about what happened to her perfect, older sister. There, she discovers that her sister is far from the only girl to have gone missing at Mortimer. Salem will do anything to discover what dark forces are killing Mortimer's students...even if it means using herself as bait. And Cazimir van der Waal has caught her scent.

A cursed palace. A thief who unravels its deadly illusion. A queen trapped in time. For centuries, the Palace of Valrith has hosted a never-ending masquerade, its noble guests frozen in a gilded dream where time does not touch them. No one who enters ever returns. Until now. Master thief Sylvain never believed in ghost stories. When he infiltrates the legendary palace to steal a rare Black Lotus, he expects wealth beyond measure—not an invitation to a world where reality twists, mirrors whisper secrets, and the past refuses to stay buried. At the heart of it all is Queen Lysara, who does ...

Created when they intermingled with demons, the dark elves who rule over the fae of Sinaryos have come to rely on humans to keep their race alive. The royal family is no exception, with a king on the verge of death, a court riddled with spies, and a broken line of succession. Despite everything working against him, Prince Fallon Blackwood has met all the demands of the crown for nearly 100 years...except for one. After avoiding this obligation for too long, the time has come for him to take a harem and prove that he's capable of continuing his family's bloodline.

She’s being held captive against her will. He will stop at nothing to find her. Nora has the perfect life and spends her time focusing on her art. Her home is hidden away in the Swiss Alps where she is never disturbed. Jerome, the man whom she believes she loves, dotes on her and gives her everything she wants. Or, at least, that is what she’s been led to believe. Her dreams reveal that her life is not what it seems. When memories of a long-lost love resurface, Nora realizes her dream life is actually a nightmare, and she’s being held captive against her will. How long has she been in...

A Victorian-era vampire romance that will sweep you off your feet. Book One - Rescued London 1860 Miss Amelia Darlington was once happy, but that was a long time ago. After her father, Lord Darlington, leaves her destitute, Amelia is forced to fend for herself and seek employment as a servant. After being rescued from the lecherous hands of her new employer, Amelia is surprised to find that her savior, Lord Blackwell, wishes her to re-enter society and find a husband of her own. He has nothing but kind consideration for her, but Amelia cannot accept his kindness without wondering what he ...

We are in a small room with the vampire, face to face, as he speaks--as he pours out the hypnotic, shocking, moving, and erotically charged confessions of his first two hundred years as one of the living dead. . . He speaks quietly, plainly, even gently . . . carrying us back to the night when he departed human existence as heir--young, romantic, cultivated--to a great Louisiana plantation, and was inducted by the radiant and sinister Lestat into the other, the "endless," life....

Isla Montgomery I came to Blackwood University to bury my past and start over, but the moment I stepped onto campus, I was drawn into a world of secrets and shadows. Now, I’m caught between two men—one dark and dangerous, the other haunted by his own demons. But no matter what I choose, I know I’ll never be the same. Ronan Blackwood Power runs in my blood, and I’ve spent my life building a world where I control everything. But Isla… she’s different. She’s strong, defiant, and I want her at my side. But trust is dangerous, and in this game, only one of us can win.

“CHILLING HISTORICAL HORROR” “Wildly imaginative” A delicious mix of history, horror, and love. Three early American gothic tales, including America’s last witch trial in 1730, the birth of the Jersey Devil in 1735, and the true origin of the Headless Horseman in 1776. In 1730 Ben Franklin published a story about a witch trial in Mount Holly, in The Pennsylvania Gazette. But did he tell the complete story, or was it a coverup of more sinister and frightening events? Emmet, an aspiring reporter, takes his first assignment for Franklin’s Pennsylvania Gazette and travels to New ...

A heart rendering story about a twelve-year old girl's struggle to take care of her single mother who has cancer.

Asmodeus Asmodeus is a book of rituals dedicated to the daemon Asmodeus, King of Daemons and King of the Jinn. This book provides detailed instructions on how to summon and work with this powerful daemon to achieve your goals of wealth and riches. Asmodeus is a powerful daemon who can grant you immense wealth and power. However, he is also a daemon of Wrath, and you must be careful not to anger him. This book will teach you how to properly summon and work with Asmodeus to get what you desire, while avoiding his wrath. With this book as your guide, you'll be able to summon Asmodeus and tap ...

When Madeline comes home from college, she is dreading having to see her annoying stepbrother again. But when she sees him, she isn’t prepared for the instant effect he has on her. She tries to explain away her feelings, but they are too strong, and she knows that she has to have him. Will she be able to get past the fact that he’s her stepbrother? And what will happen when she finds out Ethan is a wolf shifter? Find out in the tantalizing new shifter romance from Alexis Davie. AUTHOR’S NOTE: This is a stand-alone novella. Story contains mature themes and language, and is intended for...

I never knew I was a werewolf. I thought my obsession with Conor O’Malley was just a harmless celebrity crush. Until the night I shifted for the first time—and my entire life exploded. Conor is powerful. Dangerous. And completely off-limits. He was told to stay away from me because I was raised human and knew nothing of the shifter world. But now that he’s caught my scent, he refuses to let me go. Turns out, I’m not just any wolf. I’m heir to a matriarchal pack with ancient blood and enemies who’d rather see me dead than on the throne. My grandmother wants to train me. My cousin...

He watches her from across the crowded dance club, a sensual black-haired stranger who stirs Gabrielle Maxwell's deepest fantasies. But nothing about this night---or this man---is what it seems. For when Gabrielle witnesses a murder outside the club, reality shifts into something dark and deadly. In that shattering instant she is thrust into a realm she never knew existed---a realm where vampires stalk the shadows and a blood war is set to ignite.

From Chapter 2: ... “Did you see those folks from off while you were up there?” Gramps asked, but I didn’t answer, nor did I think Granny had seen me at all, but Gramps was good at guessing what I’d been up to. “What folks?” I asked as innocently as possible. Gramps grinned ever so slightly as he nodded toward my feet. “You got that red clay dirt on the bottom of your feet. That mountain is the only place where you can find that kind of red dirt.” I looked down and sure enough my feet were stained slightly orange by the red dirt I’d walked through instead of plain old ...

"Joe Giampaolo has written the most helpful and informative guide to the Gothic genre. The Reader's Companion to the Gothic Genre is written in clear and understandable language, providing the student of literature and the faithful reader of Gothic novels with a guide to understanding the genre's origin and the elements that place a novel in this genre." ~ Readers' Favorite This essay is the third installment in the Reader's Companion collection and it is a brief analysis of the Gothic genre in British literature from its origins in the middle of the 18th century to the ghost stories and ...

The gods commanded me to kill the child who might destroy them… and in obeying, I lost the woman I loved. For years, I was their weapon—the Earth Gods’ assassin, bound by compulsion. When they called, I answered. I had no choice. But then they whispered a new command: kill the boy born of Death and Life. The child whose very existence terrified them. In giving that order, they didn’t just sentence the boy—they condemned me. Because the moment Daphne learned the truth—who I really was, what I had been sent to do—I lost her. Her trust. Her love. And the only chance I had to ...