This House Is Haunted

A striking homage to the classic nineteenth century ghost story, from the award-winning and bestselling writer John Boyne.      1867. Eliza Caine arrives in Norfolk to take up her position as governess at Gaudlin Hall on a dark and chilling night. As she makes her way across the station platform, a pair of invisible hands push her from behind into the path of an approaching train. She is only saved by the vigilance of a passing doctor.     When she finally arrives, shaken, at the hall she is greeted by the two children in her care, Isabella and Eustace. There are no parents, no adults at all, and no one to represent her mysterious employer. The children offer no explanation. Later that night in her room, a second terrifying experience further reinforces the sense that something is very wrong.     From the moment she rises the following morning, her every step seems dogged by a malign presence which lives within Gaudlin's walls. Eliza realises that if she and the children are to survive its violent attentions, she must first uncover the hall's long-buried secrets and confront the demons of its past...

From Booklist

Eliza Caine is orphaned at 21 when her father succumbs to the flu after he insisted on attending a reading by Charles Dickens in cold, wet weather. She is bereft and, like most heroines of the time, without resources. She has lost her home, and so she leaves her teaching job to take a position as governess to two children in Norfolk. The advertisement is somewhat irregular, but she summons her courage and travels to what should be her new life. But secrets and mysteries abound. There are no parents present, and no servants to speak of. No one will share any information, and terrible things keep happening. Isabella seems old beyond her years, while Eustace is sweet and lovable. Through dogged pursuit, Eliza ferrets out the horrific truth and survives the malevolence of the presence that haunts the house. As the fearful situation grows worse, Eliza finds a strength that is unexpected for her time and place. Does she solve the puzzle, and do she and the children survive? A perfect, shivery gothic tale. --Danise Hoover

New York Times Book Review

“A richly horrifying experience...a Gothic manse, honeycombed with secret passages, occult symbolism, and a subterranean river of terror, all there for the right lucky reader to stumble upon in the dead of night, candle raised.”

The Times (UK)

“Great fun… Boyne keeps up a constant barrage of surprises and the pace is terrific.”

The Daily Express (UK)

“An adventure that will delight Dickens fans and intrigue anyone who dares to follow her on her journey.”

Booklist

"A perfect, shivery gothic tale."

Minneapolis Star Tribune

"Like the writers of Victorian ghost tales to which he pays homage, Boyne is a master at creating an unsettling presence. This House Is Haunted gathers momentum right up to the stunning denouement, and ends with one word that serves as an icy finger down the spine."

The Daily Beast

"Boyne’s plotting and pacing are first-rate, and his mastery of the slow-boil is evident..."

Glamour

"[This House Is Haunted] is a classic Dickensian ghost story, with an unexpected and horrific twist."

The Record

"Boyne paints a picture that is both gloomy and thrilling, creepy and enticing...The result is a novel, just in time for Halloween, that is fast-paced, unputdownable, lively and intelligent, without being oppressively creepy."

a real indulgence and a fine read all around."

"This House Is Haunted is a good old-fashioned ghost story

in a good way

"John Boyne applies his dependably fluid writing style to this eerie Victorian ghost story, which offers an unsettling

Bookpage

"Literate horror fans will take wicked delight in [This House Is Haunted]..."

The Readist

"Rife with Gothic elements, This House is Haunted will please fans of Jane Eyre, Ann Radcliffe and the like. A beautiful call back to the height of Gothic Literature."

Fourth Street Review

"‘This House is Haunted by John Boyne is everything a classic ghost story should be...pure Gothic fun."

About the Author

John Boyne is the New York Times bestselling author of several novels, including Crippen, The Thief of Time, The Congress of Rough Riders, and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, which won two Irish Book Awards, was shortlisted for the British Book Award, and was made into an award-winning Miramax feature film. John lives in Dublin.Alison Larkin was born in Washington, DC, adopted at six weeks old by British parents, and raised in England and Africa. After graduating from Royal Holloway College, London University, and the Webber-Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, she became a playwright and classical actress on the British stage. Then, at twenty-eight, she found her birth mother, who was living in Bald Mountain, Tennessee. The experience turned her into a stand-up comic. She was soon headlining at the Comic Strip in New York and the Comedy Store in Los Angeles, while maintaining her theatrical career. She also spent three years under a studio development contract to star in her own sitcom with ABC, CBS, and Jim Henson Productions. Her unusually wide range of voices can be heard in cartoons and movies, from work by James Cameron and Robert Altman to Pocahontas and The Wonder Pets. The audiobook of The English American, narrated by Alison, won an AudioFile Earphones Award.

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