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“The wind howled and raged the night Abigail Moore returned to Owl Manor.”

Zita Harrison

“The wind howled and raged the night Abigail Moore returned to Owl Manor, spinning the November snow into wild gusts, painting the windowpanes white. When the knocker on the front door resounded repeatedly, Patty hurried to answer it, wondering who it could be. They had just finished dinner and were not expecting anyone. Many of the staff had left since Gilbert had passed away, and those who remained had been biding their time until they received instructions as to what to do.

The flame from Patty’s candle dashed from side to side, sending frightened flickers up the walls as she reached the door. It opened with a creak, and Patty gasped.

Dark hair blowing around a pale face in the swirling snow, it could have been the spirit of the woman who had died at Owl Manor twelve years ago. The woman who had been chased by ghosts.

But, of course, Patty knew at whom she stared.

It was Abigail, the daughter.”

Excerpt from Owl Manor – Abigail, book 2 of the Gothic Suspense trilogy by Zita Harrison. Available on Amazon for 2.99 and also on KU! Get your copies now at https://bit.ly/3C6sPU2 !

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Zita Harrison

EXCERPT FROM OWL MANOR – THE DAWNING, BOOK ONE

One day at Owl Manor, everything came to a boil. Mr. Bradstone’s bedroom erupted in thuds, bangs, and crashes, accompanied by bellows and roars as if an angry bull were trapped there. Gilbert and Grenville raced up the stairs while the rest of the staff cowered in the foyer below.

Finding the door to the master’s room locked from the inside, they knocked urgently without success. Grenville threw himself repeatedly against the door. Finally, when the two men attacked the door together, it broke open.

The sounds quieted abruptly. They entered the room to find it in shambles – furniture turned over, paintings hanging askew on the walls, the mirror cracked, drapery in shreds, decanters and glasses broken on the floor, red wine spreading on the carpet as if the room itself bled. All this the master had managed to do in a matter of minutes.

Mr. Bradstone whirled around to see who had dared to enter, his lips drawn back in a snarl, his eyes crazed. Gilbert and Grenville exited the room in haste to stand outside the door with their backs to the wall.
Then they heard the master’s voice call out from within.
“Come…Gilbert,” he said hoarsely. “Do not…worry, I will not harm you.”

Gilbert peeked around the door to find the master sitting on the edge of his armchair, head down, shoulders heaving. When he looked up at Gilbert, the look on his face was that of someone defeated, lost, someone who did not know what to do with himself.

– Owl Manor – the Dawning, by Zita Harrison, Writer, Artist

ON KU FOR A LIMITED TIME! DOWNLOAD NOW!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08625H2F3 

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Zita Harrison

BOOK REVIEW: DUPLICITY OF POWER by S. Lynn Helton

Three people are thrown together by unforeseen circumstances in a city of “thieves and assassins, harlots and renegade mages.” We have Namid, one of the deputies of a group of thieves known as the ”Shadowers”; Aames, an old adversary; and Enric, a noble from a much-disliked family.

As they run from a poisonous fog and find themselves in unknown territory outside the city, they band together to search for the second half of a magic sword possessed by Enric. Their friendship deepens as the trek across the six realms of the monarch carries them through adventures steeped in action and twists, eventually coming to a surprise ending.

The author’s descriptions were beautiful, poetic even, imparting both mood and images: “The land they crossed was dry with autumn, gentle hills covered in knee-high grass that had turned a gold-brown color…no trees grew in the stony soil of this vast prairie…”. The characters were also well developed, each bringing something different to the story. I loved Namid, a resilient, caring young woman with skills to rival those of the men.

Sometimes I thought the narration and dialog were a little overwritten and found myself skipping over them. But then I became immersed in the story again. A satisfying ride for readers of fantasy.

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Zita Harrison

For comic book fans out there, indeed, for readers as well as writers of any genre, what would you do if you suddenly found yourself facing a villain from the story? Yikes. For that is what happens in Black Hat Blues.

Scratch, a comic book villain, is a wicked, murdering sorcerer with an inflated ego. He travels the multiverse conquering different realms out of, it seems, boredom.

Mark, the creator of Scratch, is an elderly, obsolete comic book artist. He finds his work inspires more vilification than praise these days from a culture with different standards, expectations, and viewpoints.

When Scratch suddenly finds himself in the same existence as his creator, using the villain’s own words, “Reality swirls.” Mark wonders if he’s going mad, and it’s all in his head. Scratch wonders if Mark is living his fantasies through him.

I wasn’t sure about the book when I began. It seemed scattered, constantly toggling between different points of view, dimensions, and storylines. But as I read, I found myself chuckling at the dark, scathing humor, even while feeling semi-outraged. The author touches on all aspects of life, at the heart of which seems to be the turmoil of aging and the increasing inability to relate to contemporary ways of thinking. It reminded me a little of Gulliver’s Travels in its clever, satirical wit.

Written in a unique style that seems to break all the rules of writing, it could be confusing for some. But It’s funny, brazen, full of surprises, and strangely relatable. In the end, you realize it could not have been written any other way.

Good read.

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Zita Harrison

OUT NOW!

THE FINAL BOOK OF THE GOTHIC SUSPENSE OWL MANOR TRILOGY: OWL MANOR – THE FINAL STROKE IS NOW AVAILABLE ON KINDLE!

For a quarter of a century, the horrors at Owl Manor have been buried under dust and decay, forgotten and unheard.

Then Dolores hears the whispers.

Dolores, a young artist, feels the pain all around her. It is the subject of her paintings. Strangely, once the pain is on her canvas, it diminishes.

A fated encounter takes her and her two best friends to Owl Manor in the Rocky Mountains. Ignoring the rumors of a gruesome past and ghosts, they take up residence. What’s the worst that could happen?

But it is the past that has summoned Dolores.

The owls begin to circle the sky again. The whispers get louder, seeping into each of their souls. And Dolores, besieged by the pain of brutal murders in the manor’s history, has no choice but to paint.

For the lives of those close to her hang in the balance.

Inspired by authors like Edgar Allan Poe (The Raven), Daphne du Maurier (Jamaica Inn), and Shirley Jackson (The Haunting of Hill House), Owl Manor – the Final Stroke is the third and final book in the Owl Manor trilogy of Gothic Suspense novels. It follows Owl Manor – the Dawning and Owl Manor – Abigail.

BUY for $2.99
or DOWNLOAD from KINDLE UNLIMITED!

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Zita Harrison

To celebrate the release of Owl Manor – the Final Stroke, the third and final book of the Gothic Suspense trilogy, book 2 in the series, Owl Manor – Abigail, is NOW ON KINDLE UNLIMITED.

Download your copy now!

“She trusts no one and keeps herself buried in a crypt of churning emotions, away from the world.” – Owl Manor – Abigail, Zita Harrison, Writer, Artist

Book 1, Owl Manor – the Dawning is being edited and COMING ON KINDLE UNLIMITED SOON!