Bell Tower, The (A Nell West and Michael Flint Haunted House S...

“The haunted-house theme is one of the most venerable in the genre, and Rayne has given it new life in this series, drawing again and again on the secrets contained within structures built originally to keep us safe” Booklist Starred ReviewA 400-year-old crime continues to menace the present in this spine-chilling tale of supernatural suspense. When Nell West starts extending her Oxford antiques shop, she is not expecting to uncover strange fragments of its past: fragments that include a frightened message scribbled on old plasterwork, dated 1850 and referring to someone called Thaisa. She also uncovers a mysterious link with a village on the Dorset coast – a village with an ancient bell tower and dark memories of a piece of music known locally as Thaisa’s Song. The sea is gradually encroaching on the derelict tower, but the old Glaum Bell still hangs in the lonely bell chamber and although it was silenced after an act of appalling brutality during the reign of Henry VIII, local people whisper that its chime is still occasionally heard. As Nell and Michael Flint discover, the tower is mysteriously entangled with the story of Thaisa and a 400-year-old tragedy that has echoed down the centuries.

Booklist Starred Review

“The haunted-house theme is one of the most venerable in the genre, and Rayne has given it new life in this series, drawing again and again on the secrets contained within structures built originally to keep us safe”

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

The sunlight came politely into the attics, filtering through the small windows… Beneath the windows, the old plaster had fallen away in large sections, revealing the original bare stones. Written across the old stonework – written so deeply that in places the letters were slightly indented – was a name and a date. Theodora. October 1850. Intrigued, Nell bent down to see it more clearly. Under the name and the date, written in what was obviously the same hand, were more words. They were faded, but they were perfectly legible. ‘If anyone finds this, please pray for me, for it will mean the dead bell has sounded and I have suffered Thaisa’s fate…’ The writing was old enough for the words not to matter any longer, and Theodora and Thaisa, whoever they had been, were long since dead. Even so, Nell found herself shivering slightly, and when she put out a finger to trace the words, she felt as if she was touching cold, dead flesh. This was absurd, of course. Any fate that had overtaken Theodora and Thaisa was long ago. At least a hundred and fifty years.

About the Author

Sarah Rayne is the author of novels of supernatural suspense, including the new series featuring Michael Flint and Nell West. She lives in Staffordshire.

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