The House of Wood - promo post

Today, I'm thrilled to feature new Crooked Cat Publishing author, Anthony Price, whose first novel, The House of Wood, is due out on 5th April.

The atmospheric cover sets the scene perfectly for this dark horror story. No hiding behind cushions here... 

~hides~



Blurb:

IT SITS OUT THERE ON THE HILLTOP. 
Dark.  Foreboding.  The locals steer clear of it. The House of Wood.  

Rachel James, a college student in her third year at The University of Maine, knows the house all too well. 

When she receives a phone call informing her that her parents have died in a house fire, she must return to her hometown.  Rachel is forced to confront her biggest fear when she discovers the house of wood has been rebuilt in the last three years.  But it’s not until she accepts a dinner date with the mysterious Dr. David Cochrane that things take a turn for the worse, as now she must recount the story of what happened at the house three years earlier. 

Past and present collide in a haunting tale of friendship, betrayal and fear.  The House of Wood is a story within a story, one that asks two questions:

What happens when a house sees so much horror it becomes evil incarnate? 

And can a person ever really escape their past?

The answers are waiting for you...

~~~

Excerpt:

Silent it stood.  The house of wood on the hill.  Nothing surrounding it but fields.  A vast, open expanse stretching as far as the eye could see.  Ancient woodlands dotted the fields like pox marks.  But, the house stood like a solitary statue, alone and foreboding.  Its whitewashed wood shone out on the stark landscape like a beacon of despair.  The only decoration was a single, dead oak tree in the front garden.  A child’s swing hung limply from a lifeless branch.  No one lived there anymore.  They hadn’t for years.  Without love and care the building had fallen into disrepair.  Now, only the blackbirds were brave enough to land nearby.  Usually, nothing stirred, except the swing blowing in the cold breeze.  But not today.  Two shadows danced across the window.

“Why are you doing this to me?”

“Come on, it’s fun.”
“Please, I can help you.  Just let me go.”
“I don’t need help,” the standing shadow snarled.  Its hand whipped out, landing with a sharp snap across the face of the battered and bruised victim tied to the chair.  “No one can help me.”
The victim stared at the attacker.  There was no way out.  The rope bit the flesh of their wrists as they tried to twist free.  Pain filled them.  Tears welled in their eyes.
“Awww, poor baby.  Here, let me wipe your eyes.” A piercing scream filled the night air, as fingers jammed in to the sockets.  “All better now?”
“I just want to go home,” the victim sobbed, all hope evaporating.  “Please, let me go.”
“You’re not leaving me.  You’re never leaving me.” A perverse smile stretched across the attacker’s face.  “We’re meant to be, you know that, sugar pie.” 
“I-I-I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“But you love me.  You always have.”
“No I don’t, you’re deluded and you need help.”
“There you go again, denying your feelings.  Well I know how to cure that.”
The attacker’s shadow slid across the living room floor, stopping at the open fireplace.  Flames swayed like Egyptian belly dancers, hypnotic and seductive.  The face of McCain in the portrait over the mantel stared out.
“What’re you doing?  Look, someone will come up here and stop you.  Let me go now and you can escape, I won’t send the police.”
“Now, now sugar pie, I got a surprise for you.” The attacker turned towards the victim.  “You’ll like this.”
A petrified scream filled the night air.  A young girl stood silently by her swing, watching the couple, a dark red stain across her beautiful white dress.  She turned away, her expressionless face looking out over the desolate hillside.  She sat down on her swing, and listened to the agonising screams emerging from the house.  

~~~

Author Bio:

Anthony Price is a twenty-eight year old male residing in the UK, in Canterbury.  An avid reader and film fanatic and having always wanted to be a writer, he was first published at age fifteen and since achieving his MA in Creative Writing, has had several short stories published in e-zines and anthologies.  He’s also the author of his own horror anthology titled, Tales of Merryville, which is available to buy in e-book format on Amazon.  

His novel, The House of Wood, has been in the works for three years and started off as a small writing exercise on his MA.  Being a disabled writer, he has had his fair share of doubters, so this novel is extra special.  It’s out in paperback and e-book format April 5^th.

Anthony is currently working on several creative projects to look out for in the future, including more horror novels, a feature film and a TV show.

Follow him on:
Facebook - 
Twitter - @anthonyprice84
About.Me -