About the Book
Title: Halloween Fires
Author: Val McMurray
Genre: Historical / Supernatural Thriller
The time: 1340
The place: Swan
village, the estate of Sir Hubert Longhurst, on the banks of the River
Severn, and the city
of Bristol in the south west of England.
The story:
On All Hallows Eve, a
satanic mass is held in the forest across the river Severn.
A girl is sacrificed
and a young boatman dies.
A suspicious priest,
Father Simon, the Sheriff of
Bristol and three
Dominican Monks hunt the “Satanists”.
Their evil leader is
the Dominus.
The Dominus is quite
mad and plans revenge. The villagers will suffer.
In Bristol devil
worshippers are tortured and burned.
The Dominus murders
his partner and kidnaps a girl.
A black mass takes
place. There is torture and death.
A battle is fought.
The Dominus flees.
The Lord of the manor
holds a Manor Court to investigate the frightening events. Prisoners must be taken to Bristol for trial
by the church.
They, and a rich
treasure, must be escorted to Bristol.
Satanists in Bristol,
plan to fight for the treasure.
There is a battle on
the road. Many are killed, the treasure is lost.
A blacksmith and a small boy assist the
Sheriff in an attempt to regain it.
Perhaps Evil has been
overcome; however, Devil worshippers in Bristol plan another mass.
The Sheriff is lured
away.
In the Glade of Stones
the Devil may yet triumph.
Author Bio
As a child in England
I loved to write stories. I have lived in Sydney Australia for over forty
years. My children and grandchildren live close by. I worked as a trained nurse
until retirement. Sadly, then, my husband needed nursing. Now I live alone and
needed to follow my own interests. First a Book Club (all
writers need to read), and I love it. Our discussions are lively and I have
read many books that I would never have picked but for the club. It really
widened my horizons. I also joined a Writers Group in Liverpool and have found
great enjoyment and satisfaction in learning from the very different people in
the group. I have been pleased to see several of my articles in print. We
contribute to Freexpression Magazine (www.freexpression.com.au), which is edited by Peter Pike. His unfailing
encouragement and that of Michael Norris, who read the first draft of this book (and believed in it) has been the impetus needed to goad
me to finish it. The research was daunting, but I have always been interested
in history, and I soon became immersed in the 14th century. How the people
lived and their deeply felt superstitions and customs held me enthralled. There
are, inevitably, mistakes. Please forgive them. I set out to write a rollicking
good yarn, set in the south west of England, I hope that you enjoy it.
Five Reasons to write:
1)
When I am writing anything, an
article, short story or chapter of a book, I lose myself in the process. I
often think that I will just write for an hour, four hours later I stop and
wonder where the time went! I enjoy it and it makes the day pass.
2)
I belong to a writers group and
each of us must present a piece every week. It is the spur that goads us on.
Criticism is necessary and helpful but it is given with a genuine desire to
instruct and not to dampen the writer’s spirit.
3)
An idea will go round and round
in my head and give me no peace until I have written it down. Once written it
may be discarded in the next few days, as rubbish, or I may review it and think
it has possibilities. Whichever I decide, it has stopped disturbing my sleep!
4)
Our writers group can become a
bit serious or nostalgic as people reminisce about their early life in another
country, so I often try to write a light hearted piece to make everyone smile.
It may not be great literature but it is fun.
5)
Writing must be enjoyable. It
is for me, and if a piece of mine is printed in our very professional and
colourful magazine, Freexpression, (www.freexpression.com.au)
I am very happy. I know pride is a sin but just to be a little bit chuffed, is
not too awful, is it?
©Val McMurray
An excerpt from my book Halloween Fires:
Night at the warehouse:
Where had Miller gone? A noise
made them look again. Only two yards from their hiding place, a square of the
warehouse floor lifted up and a light showed. A man walked from the shadows, turned
and went down under the floor. They watched for some time before the floor
opened once more and Miller climbed out. A man, following him, climbed halfway
out and said, ‘Don’t forget, you must tell him it’s at the stone in the forest
near Swan. He’ll go after us. You join us at the glade of stones. Leave well
before curfew. Now get along.’
Wishart pulled Pitchfork back as they
watched Miller hurry away. ‘We have to be back before him,’ whispered
Pitchfork. ‘Follow me,’ urged Wishart, and he was off at a run. They raced
through foul alleys, passed filthy hovels. Rats fled their footsteps, the
bright eyes of foxes watched their progress. A few dogs barked but they saw
none. They had to dodge the watch in the one or two roads they crossed,
however, within a very short time, they were running up the side of the
Sheriff’s house. They threw off their filthy boots and flung them down the side
of their building. When Miller returned they were in their beds feigning sleep.
©Val McMurray
Links
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/545821
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