A great time was had at our ‘Haunting Good Evening’ on Tuesday, October 29th. We served Wuthering Heights-inspired tea, a S’Mores Black Tea by NovelTea. We hosted special guest authors B.R. Myers and Deanna Foster, whose latest releases fall under the genre Gothic Mystery, with a pinch of romance and storyteller Cindy Campbell-Stone. After the event Deanna did Tarot readings for guests.
Storyteller Cindy Campbell-Stone wowed us and startled some with 4 stories from Bluenose Ghosts by Helen Creighton throughout the evening. Cindy is a long-time member of the Helen Creighton Folklore Society, Storytellers of Canada, Storytellers Circle of Halifax, Cole Harbour Rural Heritage Society, and Dartmouth Heritage Museum with a special interest in folklore, community, and historical stories. She is a huge fan of folklorist Dr. Helen Creighton, who collected songs and stories from around the Maritimes. Her ghost stories are found in Bluenose Ghosts, which has been in print since 1957. Cindy is always a welcome guest at our events; she adds colour and all the extras to make our events more special.
B.R Myers presented her latest book The Third Wife of Faraday House. Set in Nova Scotia’s Chester area, Mary Higgins Clark award winning author of A Dreadful Splendour blends mystery and spooky thrills with friendship and romance in this delicious love letter to Gothic fiction, featuring two brides who must band together to unravel the ghostly secrets at the heart of a crumbling island manor.
‘Til death do us part…
November 1816: Restless but naïve Emeline Fitzpatrick is desperate to escape her stifling life in foggy Halifax. Her guardian is lining up repugnant suitors, but Emeline has her eyes set on a handsome lieutenant in the British navy. She just needs to persuade him to propose, or her one chance at happiness will be gone forever.
But when Emeline’s hopes end in scandal, she finds herself with only one suitor left: the wealthy and enigmatic Captain Graves. Having already lost two wives to tragic circumstances, the unfortunate widower is seeking a new companion in his cloistered seaside manor, Faraday House. Or at least that is what Emeline had been told, because when she arrives, she is horrified to discover that the second Mrs. Graves, Georgina, has not yet died.
Emeline is only certain of two things: something ghastly is afoot at Faraday House, and no one is going to save her. She will have to rely on her own courage, her burgeoning bond with the ill but strong-willed Georgina, and the aid of a handsome reverend with a mysterious past to unravel the secrets at the heart of the manor and forge her own destiny.
Deanna Foster A Pocket Full Of Blood
When the body of a respected psychiatrist is found brutally murdered, young Agency Officer Vihaan immediately suspects his brother Shikar is responsible. Both Shikar’s brutal signature and the timing of the death match, as only hours before Shikar escaped from Wolfbridge Asylum. Shikar had both motive and means to kill one of the men responsible for his commitment years ago, and Vihaan plans to bring him to justice.
It’s not long before a second body is found, left with Shikar’s signature. But when a third body is discovered, Dr. Isabel Gardner, the Agency’s autopsy specialist, confirms the kills happened simultaneously. Vihaan is no longer hunting just one killer. Isabel and Vihaan work closely to track the potential suspects; him on foot and her in the lab.
The bodies continue to leave a bloody trail along Havelock City and that has Vihaan and Isabel frantic to solve the puzzle. As they work to stop the killers, Vihaan’s world of righteous black and white dissolves over a matter of days. He is desperate to save those he cares about and protect the citizens of Havelock City. But his family, friends, and city are drawn into a web of violence and betrayal that is rapidly tightening around them. If saving those he loves is even possible, it might cost him his soul in the process.
The eyes as treats at our event were quite significant. In Deanna Foster’s A Pocket Full Of Blood, the murderer would remove the victim’s eyes, leaving one at the scene to keep watch and taking the other as a trophy.
“Whoever killed Dr. van Kamp knew how to use medical blades, and knew how to get maximum blood loss.” She motioned around the room. “This was not an accident. Whoever did this wanted the room covered in blood. I would say they enjoyed it. And,“ she started, swallowing thickly, “the taking of the eye suggests they wanted to remember the murder. It also suggests they will kill again.”- Dr. Isabel Gardner
After our spooky stories and book readings, we poured more tea and got cozy as Deanna Foster did tarot readings with her horror deck for those who wanted, while others signed books and chatted.
One of our favourite things about hosting our events is learning fun tidbits about our authors and their books. Deanna shared her love for strong character names, as well as her great appreciation for the letter V.