“I am afraid we are dealing with things well beyond the realms of what men like you and I think possible, and we must adjust our expectations accordingly.” So sayeth a character in Adam Macqueen’s terrific new horror novel, which is being released in time for Halloween. It’s a deliciously creepy tale told over two timelines, one of which is in the early 1900s. Here, Henry—a rather buttoned-up bookseller’s assistant—journeys to Hareswood Lodge. The house is to be sold, along with the extensive library, and Henry has been tasked with evaluating the books in the collection. The only other two people in the house are a husband-and-wife team—both servants of long standing—who are very reticent about venturing into the library. The other timeline is set in the present day. Ben, a 30-something council officer, has been asked to investigate an unassuming brick building that is holding up the development of a new housing estate. The building doesn’t have any windows or doors, and Ben discovers that it’s standing in the exact same location that a grand old house— Hareswood Lodge— used to stand. Macqueen scored a hit with ‘Haunted Tales’, a goosebump-inducing collection of short stories, and he’s obviously a huge fan of the genre, sprinkling ‘Hobbe’s Folly’ with little nods to other twisted tales. And while, yes, it does feature some familiar tropes associated with occultism and the like, he still manages to find enough new angles to keep things fresh. It all builds to a Grand Guignol finale that he absolutely nails. RM

Published by Swift Press