What do you think?
Rate this book
House of Dead Trees
In "Nyal's Story", bestselling indie author Rod Redux stepped outside the bounds of his popular Oldest Living Vampire series to fill in some of the gaps in the immortal Gon's memoirs. Now, he tells the mesmerizing story of the oldest living vampire's beloved immortal child, the 2,000 year old Apollonius.
The body slave of a violent and perverse aristocrat, Apollonius dreams of murdering the Roman senator who engineered the fall of his wealthy family. When he is befriended by a mysterious physician from Thessaly, a man reputed to be a magician, Apollonius finally gets his chance to avenge his family.
With dizzying rapidity, Apollonius is swept into the dreamlike world of his enigmatic benefactor. He discovers that the physician from Thessaly is no ordinary mortal man, but is instead an ancient blood drinker named Gon, a 30,000 year old vampire. Taken to Pompeii to live in his new master's sprawling villa, Apollonius finds himself torn between his desire to be an immortal, and his feelings for his new neighbor's daughter, the beautiful and headstrong Julia Varus.
Set against the backdrop of Pompeii's final days, Apollonius is a novel of innocence and evil, revenge and sacrifice, and the tragedy of doomed love.
The body slave of a violent and perverse aristocrat, Apollonius dreams of murdering the Roman senator who engineered the fall of his wealthy family. When he is befriended by a mysterious physician from Thessaly, a man reputed to be a magician, Apollonius finally gets his chance to avenge his family.
With dizzying rapidity, Apollonius is swept into the dreamlike world of his enigmatic benefactor. He discovers that the physician from Thessaly is no ordinary mortal man, but is instead an ancient blood drinker named Gon, a 30,000 year old vampire. Taken to Pompeii to live in his new master's sprawling villa, Apollonius finds himself torn between his desire to be an immortal, and his feelings for his new neighbor's daughter, the beautiful and headstrong Julia Varus.
Set against the backdrop of Pompeii's final days, Apollonius is a novel of innocence and evil, revenge and sacrifice, and the tragedy of doomed love.
373 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 12, 2011
26 people are currently reading
275 people want to read
About the author
Joseph Duncan
42 books130 followersBorn in Southern Illinois, Joseph was raised in a very liberal home environment and was exposed at an early age to the classic underground comic book scene of the sixties and seventies, as well as European graphic novels by artists like Moebius, Enki Bilal and Milo Manara. At age 9, he was reading Tolkien and Stephen King. He wrote his first novella at age 10. If you want to read the same old formulaic pop lit, don't bother with Joseph's fiction. The novels of Joseph Duncan are challenging, subversive and fantastical, merging genres and pushing the boundaries of propriety and good taste. If you have an aversion to dark subject matter, gratuitous sex and extreme violence, stay far away from Joseph's books. Far. Far. Away!
If you'd like to contact Mr. Duncan, you may do so at authorjosephduncan@gmail.com
If you'd like to contact Mr. Duncan, you may do so at authorjosephduncan@gmail.com
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
March 25, 2013
I read this book with my Shelfari horror group.
First off-what I liked. the premise of this book was excellent. A house built on land previously inhabited by certain tribes that used a form of burial called sky burial. Basically, this means they hung their corpses in trees.
This story worked in a back and forth format, from a time long ago to the present time. A team of "Ghost Hunters" arrive at an old uninhabited home that has a reputation of being haunted, to perform an investigation with the new owner. When the characters get their first glimpse of the home, the descriptions were very reminiscent of Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House". None of the angles of the house are perfect, all the doors are closed, etc. As a reader I have nothing but respect for Hill House. In my opinion it's the best "haunted house" book I've ever read. I enjoyed these references.
Now, for what I didn't like. There was a character that was abused as a child. There's a gay character too. I didn't mind the characters so much as I minded the sexual scenes, which seemed to me not to fit quite right. I saw no reason for including the child abuse portion, since it had no bearing on the story. I consider myself a seasoned horror reader and as such I have come to expect sex in my horror stories. But I do like the sex to have some kind of point to it. In this case, I didn't really see the point.
All and all I did enjoy the story. I thought the premise was excellent, but felt that the story just didn't live up to it. The character development was OK, but I thought it could have been a little better. I did enjoy the references to Hill and Hell House, but those references led me to believe that this story was akin to those, and it's not. It's not bad, but it's not them.
I will check out some other works by this author because I did like his style and I did like the premise of this book. It just failed to meet my expectations, which admittedly, were high.
First off-what I liked. the premise of this book was excellent. A house built on land previously inhabited by certain tribes that used a form of burial called sky burial. Basically, this means they hung their corpses in trees.
This story worked in a back and forth format, from a time long ago to the present time. A team of "Ghost Hunters" arrive at an old uninhabited home that has a reputation of being haunted, to perform an investigation with the new owner. When the characters get their first glimpse of the home, the descriptions were very reminiscent of Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House". None of the angles of the house are perfect, all the doors are closed, etc. As a reader I have nothing but respect for Hill House. In my opinion it's the best "haunted house" book I've ever read. I enjoyed these references.
Now, for what I didn't like. There was a character that was abused as a child. There's a gay character too. I didn't mind the characters so much as I minded the sexual scenes, which seemed to me not to fit quite right. I saw no reason for including the child abuse portion, since it had no bearing on the story. I consider myself a seasoned horror reader and as such I have come to expect sex in my horror stories. But I do like the sex to have some kind of point to it. In this case, I didn't really see the point.
All and all I did enjoy the story. I thought the premise was excellent, but felt that the story just didn't live up to it. The character development was OK, but I thought it could have been a little better. I did enjoy the references to Hill and Hell House, but those references led me to believe that this story was akin to those, and it's not. It's not bad, but it's not them.
I will check out some other works by this author because I did like his style and I did like the premise of this book. It just failed to meet my expectations, which admittedly, were high.
January 12, 2015
Another haunted house tale
House of Dead Trees is more than a haunted house story, in that the enemy is more than spirits of those who had passed but an entity in itself. The prologue, which begins the background of the entity was dull and I almost chose not to continue reading. What I liked about the book was the character's with each of their own life problems before the "Ghost Scouts" begin their investigation of what is reported to be one of the most haunted houses in the country. The house itself is not very different from the houses written about by Shirley Jackson and Richard Matheson, right down to the house having all kinds of angles in it. What I didn't care for was the crude "bathroom" humor between two of characters. One of the character's has celiac disease and this is a very serious disease; and the jokes about this character's problem are very inappropriate.
House of Dead Trees is more than a haunted house story, in that the enemy is more than spirits of those who had passed but an entity in itself. The prologue, which begins the background of the entity was dull and I almost chose not to continue reading. What I liked about the book was the character's with each of their own life problems before the "Ghost Scouts" begin their investigation of what is reported to be one of the most haunted houses in the country. The house itself is not very different from the houses written about by Shirley Jackson and Richard Matheson, right down to the house having all kinds of angles in it. What I didn't care for was the crude "bathroom" humor between two of characters. One of the character's has celiac disease and this is a very serious disease; and the jokes about this character's problem are very inappropriate.
August 6, 2012
I'm a sucker for a haunted house story, so this was a natural pick. The premise of an ancient evil encompassing a home is not a new one, but Redux is quite creative in buiding backstory for this house. That said, I would have enjoyed it more if as much creativity was used for his characters. They seem shallow and a bit underdeveloped - a couple are almost caricatures. That one character had suffered molestation as a child would have been more acceptable if that carried weight in the plot of the present day - but it didn't - so it seemed unnecessary. As I approached the climatic end of the book, I kept getting the feeling it was supposed to be longer; that the author was rushed to tie it all up. It's a quick read and has plenty of gruesome scares and will provide chills (even on a summer day) - so I did like it, but there was potential for more.
September 25, 2015
This was a good book to read right around Halloween time. I think more people would read this book if it had a another title. If you like haunted house stories and strange family histories you will like this book. It kept me interested to the very end. And the end was not a disappointment. (This story made me really miss clove cigarettes! LOL)
June 24, 2012
the book is based off the T.V. shows ghost adventures and ghost hunters. very good book with the exception of sexual abuse in the charter development that I belive could have been left out. was a fun book to read late at night
January 20, 2016
Breath taking pros story like Steven king in the old days
You know what is going to happen but never see the steps to the plot in advance. Like all of his books it is well written. I loved this story and highly recommend to all who like to be scared waiting for the next chapter
You know what is going to happen but never see the steps to the plot in advance. Like all of his books it is well written. I loved this story and highly recommend to all who like to be scared waiting for the next chapter
January 26, 2020
I love haunted house and bad house stories, and I was really excited to stumble onto Duncan's work. The concept is a little bit different, which is always good since these subgenres lend themselves to stories that are a bit formulaic, and digging into it felt fresh, with strong writing and great depth to the characters. The first half of the book read fantastically, actually, and I really enjoyed it... but then the pacing started feeling rushed... and more rushed... and more rushed, leaving me feeling like I'd read a fairly uneven book in the end.
It really did come down to pacing. The first half was carefully developed and read really well, but then the action picked up, and the second half of the book became a roller coaster that desperately needed a bit more space and depth. I hate to finish a review by saying that a book needed to be much longer in order to work, but that really is the case here just because it ended up being so uneven.
I'd certainly try Duncan's horror again, but I'd be prepared for the same pacing issues, and I'm not sure I'd rush it to the head of my reading line if it had been self-published. There's a ton of amazing self-published work out there, but this is one book that needed more time and development and revision, and if he rushed it to completion as appears to be the case, my worry is that the same would happen with his other works.
Still, for lovers of haunted house and bad house lit, this is a nice little escape if you're prepared to deal with the caveats above.
It really did come down to pacing. The first half was carefully developed and read really well, but then the action picked up, and the second half of the book became a roller coaster that desperately needed a bit more space and depth. I hate to finish a review by saying that a book needed to be much longer in order to work, but that really is the case here just because it ended up being so uneven.
I'd certainly try Duncan's horror again, but I'd be prepared for the same pacing issues, and I'm not sure I'd rush it to the head of my reading line if it had been self-published. There's a ton of amazing self-published work out there, but this is one book that needed more time and development and revision, and if he rushed it to completion as appears to be the case, my worry is that the same would happen with his other works.
Still, for lovers of haunted house and bad house lit, this is a nice little escape if you're prepared to deal with the caveats above.
January 24, 2018
Rating: 7/10
Pages: 388
This book is good, but it seems to borrow a little, or a lot, from several other ghost stories. Reality show, complete with the sexy girl and aging host. Old-time porn photos, which unfortunately was featured in Hell House, which I read directly after this, house itself a part of hte story. However, there were some great characters in here, and a lot of the descriptions of creepy haunted moments are great.
Location: Kindle
Pages: 388
This book is good, but it seems to borrow a little, or a lot, from several other ghost stories. Reality show, complete with the sexy girl and aging host. Old-time porn photos, which unfortunately was featured in Hell House, which I read directly after this, house itself a part of hte story. However, there were some great characters in here, and a lot of the descriptions of creepy haunted moments are great.
Location: Kindle
May 4, 2017
If you like a good ghost story, this is for you. But, it did leave me with some questions. I wish the story paid a little more attention to Allen and his wife. I wanted more of an explanation of what was going on. With that said, I still liked this novel.
April 16, 2021
He forgot the last chapter!
Why would you build the story to a climax and then forget to write the last chapter? The epilogue states the obvious, but the author blew the chance to wrap up (perhaps with an interesting twist?) an otherwise predictable tale. Poorly done.
Why would you build the story to a climax and then forget to write the last chapter? The epilogue states the obvious, but the author blew the chance to wrap up (perhaps with an interesting twist?) an otherwise predictable tale. Poorly done.
October 6, 2017
I really enjoyed this story very much! A real page turner. The best thing I have read by Duncan since The Vampire series. If you watch any Ghost Adventures on TV you will be sucked right in!
October 25, 2018
Scary
Omg, read in one sitting, scared me silly could not put it down. Advisory do not read late at night, lol but not.
Omg, read in one sitting, scared me silly could not put it down. Advisory do not read late at night, lol but not.
January 17, 2025
Very Entertaining!!
Joseph Duncan is an amazing writer who is highly underrated. He found a way to bring fresh life to the old haunted house type story. Fun read!
Joseph Duncan is an amazing writer who is highly underrated. He found a way to bring fresh life to the old haunted house type story. Fun read!
May 13, 2017
If I like horror then this book is for u
June 13, 2016
Brilliant book!
Initially, I got this book because I has a very high recommendation from my mother. She's an avid horror reader and told me that book had managed to do what most others could not. This book had scared her. How could I turn down a thrill like that?
I bought the book and have had it sitting on my Kindle for a while, waiting until I had a couple of days spare so I could read it at my leisure. I needn't have bothered - I devoured it in one sitting!
It really is a fresh take on that old chestnut - the haunted house. I loved every second.
The characters have depth and personality, I was genuinely concerned for all of them. I loved the history of the house, and the detail that went into explaining everything. It was a truly entertaining read.
I suppose a lot of people would say that it was a slow starter - indeed, it did seem like it was the last third of the book where things really kicked off - but I enjoyed the build up. The back stories of our luckless heroes, and the back story of the house itself, all added an element of suspense and drama to it all.
Really edge of the seat stuff. I only wish it could have gone on longer.
My only real gripe is when one of the characters, Jane, is talking about Kobolds, and mentions them as being household demons like brownies or gremlins. I don't suppose a lot of people would be bothered by this, but I know my stuff in this area and a gremlin is not a household demon. It's actually a small sprite well known for playing around with mechanisms and technology, and is supposedly responsible for several plane crashes in the World Wars.
Like a said - it's a little thing, and I choose to believe this was Jane's mistake rather than the authors.
All in all, a fantastic read, and I highly recommend it to anyone that likes a scare!
Initially, I got this book because I has a very high recommendation from my mother. She's an avid horror reader and told me that book had managed to do what most others could not. This book had scared her. How could I turn down a thrill like that?
I bought the book and have had it sitting on my Kindle for a while, waiting until I had a couple of days spare so I could read it at my leisure. I needn't have bothered - I devoured it in one sitting!
It really is a fresh take on that old chestnut - the haunted house. I loved every second.
The characters have depth and personality, I was genuinely concerned for all of them. I loved the history of the house, and the detail that went into explaining everything. It was a truly entertaining read.
I suppose a lot of people would say that it was a slow starter - indeed, it did seem like it was the last third of the book where things really kicked off - but I enjoyed the build up. The back stories of our luckless heroes, and the back story of the house itself, all added an element of suspense and drama to it all.
Really edge of the seat stuff. I only wish it could have gone on longer.
My only real gripe is when one of the characters, Jane, is talking about Kobolds, and mentions them as being household demons like brownies or gremlins. I don't suppose a lot of people would be bothered by this, but I know my stuff in this area and a gremlin is not a household demon. It's actually a small sprite well known for playing around with mechanisms and technology, and is supposedly responsible for several plane crashes in the World Wars.
Like a said - it's a little thing, and I choose to believe this was Jane's mistake rather than the authors.
All in all, a fantastic read, and I highly recommend it to anyone that likes a scare!
August 16, 2014
A group of nearly-jaded ghost hunters travel to Forester House, a locale reputed to have a brutal past and plenty of supernatural activity. Forester House is built on the land previously occupied by the Onemara, or the "Dreaming People." The Onemara propitiated the dark elemental of their land, first with sky burials, and later with forcible human sacrifice. The two timelines are bound by the land in which they play out, and Duncan sets the scene for it to be believable when the two stories intersect. All of this is good, solid horror. Very good, in fact. The setting, language, and portrayal of evil are all well-executed, and a lot of fun for a dark fiction aficionado to read.
Unfortunately, there is more story in House of Dead Trees. As so often happens with horror, the "extras" weaken the story. In particular, the details about the personal lives of the ghost hunters are ultimately extraneous. We learn of a marriage on the rocks; about an abusive relationship; learn one woman relives the trauma of childhood sexual abuse. The back stories are lurid, disturbing, and compelling. I cared about how the issues would be resolved. When none of that mattered to the final outcome of any character, and when the novel ended with those scenarios largely unresolved, I was frustrated.
House of Dead Trees is an absorbing read, despite its shortcomings. The scenes of pure haunting in the Forester House and the Onemara story are excellent. The prose is full of unexpectedly beautiful turns of phrase, which is not a given in the horror genre. I would give House of Dead Trees a two and a half for those unresolved story lines, but I'm bumping it to a solid three for the quality of writing.
Unfortunately, there is more story in House of Dead Trees. As so often happens with horror, the "extras" weaken the story. In particular, the details about the personal lives of the ghost hunters are ultimately extraneous. We learn of a marriage on the rocks; about an abusive relationship; learn one woman relives the trauma of childhood sexual abuse. The back stories are lurid, disturbing, and compelling. I cared about how the issues would be resolved. When none of that mattered to the final outcome of any character, and when the novel ended with those scenarios largely unresolved, I was frustrated.
House of Dead Trees is an absorbing read, despite its shortcomings. The scenes of pure haunting in the Forester House and the Onemara story are excellent. The prose is full of unexpectedly beautiful turns of phrase, which is not a given in the horror genre. I would give House of Dead Trees a two and a half for those unresolved story lines, but I'm bumping it to a solid three for the quality of writing.
February 23, 2015
Inventive, creepy & descriptive haunted house/horror story!
This book was a quick read-only started it yesterday and just finished now, but it was great! More like a psychological thriller than a mystery, but with mysterious ghosts & suspenseful scenes filling nearly every page near the end! Some scenes were more descriptive (both horror and sex scenes included but all are pretty short & seem fairly necessary in order to get a better angle and understanding for all of the characters. The horror scenes and creep-tastic factor also set the tone for visit they make to the haunted house itself, and more importantly help the reader to quickly begin to understand the actual capabilities this manipulative, powerful, malicious entity actually has, and all parts come together to create a horrific nightmarish atmosphere, which is definitely necessary to allow the reader to imagine the Forrester mansion in all of its glory & madness. Recommend as a fun psychological thriller, and as scary as it could be, it did make me laugh out loud throughout the book, usually while the crew collaborated & when they came together to film the ghost hunter show. My recommendation excludes anyone easily offended by lewd humor of any kind...also likely won't be a favorite for those who don't like graphic or descriptive horror!
This book was a quick read-only started it yesterday and just finished now, but it was great! More like a psychological thriller than a mystery, but with mysterious ghosts & suspenseful scenes filling nearly every page near the end! Some scenes were more descriptive (both horror and sex scenes included but all are pretty short & seem fairly necessary in order to get a better angle and understanding for all of the characters. The horror scenes and creep-tastic factor also set the tone for visit they make to the haunted house itself, and more importantly help the reader to quickly begin to understand the actual capabilities this manipulative, powerful, malicious entity actually has, and all parts come together to create a horrific nightmarish atmosphere, which is definitely necessary to allow the reader to imagine the Forrester mansion in all of its glory & madness. Recommend as a fun psychological thriller, and as scary as it could be, it did make me laugh out loud throughout the book, usually while the crew collaborated & when they came together to film the ghost hunter show. My recommendation excludes anyone easily offended by lewd humor of any kind...also likely won't be a favorite for those who don't like graphic or descriptive horror!
January 14, 2015
Scary and something new to haunted house stories.
I love a good ghost story, especially with a new twist. At first I thought there was too much sexual shenanigans taking away from the story. I was wrong. I'm not one to explain the plot, I'll just say kudos to excellent character building. For a story with so much going on and quite a few personalities, I was never lost. I felt attached to every one of them, or I'll say I understood them very well. Francis especially, bravo!
Spoiler Alert:
My only 'Why do we need to know this?' was with the action under the dining room table. What was with the non-circumcised vs circumcised thing? Hmm.
I gave it five stars because I couldn't put it down and was invested in these ghost hunters.
I love a good ghost story, especially with a new twist. At first I thought there was too much sexual shenanigans taking away from the story. I was wrong. I'm not one to explain the plot, I'll just say kudos to excellent character building. For a story with so much going on and quite a few personalities, I was never lost. I felt attached to every one of them, or I'll say I understood them very well. Francis especially, bravo!
Spoiler Alert:
My only 'Why do we need to know this?' was with the action under the dining room table. What was with the non-circumcised vs circumcised thing? Hmm.
I gave it five stars because I couldn't put it down and was invested in these ghost hunters.
March 19, 2012
This book lost points with me for spelling a character's name two different ways amongst other grammatical and continuity errors. Also, I really felt that the "ancient times" sequences were there for no reason except for a brief scene at the end which seemed thrown in to give reason to the history scenes. Finally, a few too many cliches crept in (and describing things as Lovecraftian twice counts as cliche in my book). It was a fun read, but I was a little disappointed overall.
June 3, 2012
This was a pretty fast and fun read -- if you like haunted house novels. It was really a riff off Hell House, but that is not a bad thing. I wished it was a bit more developed -- but it was action packed beginning to end. It was also coherent in explaining what was behind the haunting in a fairly plausible way -- unusual for most horror books that either tack on a silly explanation or leave loose ends.
August 18, 2012
House of Dead Trees had great Character development. The story was exciting and unique to say the least. I could not put this book down. This is not your typical horror novel. As usual Mr. Reduce uses a combination of ancient and modern day to weave a story that will intrigue you and keep you on your toes.
November 28, 2012
This was a great idea, and the back story was excellent. The pace of the book was perfect, with the development of each character coming along nicely. However, there was no need for Jane's backstory or the questions about Allen's marriage, as the ending was so abrupt. The end of the entire book came way too fast, and should have been finished more smoothly. Great idea, just poor execution.
January 13, 2015
Hell House hath no fury like The House of Dead Trees
A classic haunted house tale that isn't so classic, this is a page turner from the get go. Based on a reality show ghost hunting team investigating the most haunted house in the country, the chills, thrills and surprises make this one very scary fun house ride.
A classic haunted house tale that isn't so classic, this is a page turner from the get go. Based on a reality show ghost hunting team investigating the most haunted house in the country, the chills, thrills and surprises make this one very scary fun house ride.
November 7, 2012
Fun, scary Halloween choice. I read this pretty quickly as it is an interesting spin on your typical haunted house story. Some parts were a little more graphic than I had expected, not crazy, just not expected.
January 25, 2014
Finished this one last night. It wasn't bad. Not perfect, but fun to read. The sexual stuff, both in background and in the story itself seemed out of place. Also, I didn't like the prologue; it was unnecessary to the story.
July 10, 2014
All in all a great, quick read! I love "haunted house" stories and this was a good one. The author is obviously a huge Shirley Jackson fan which is great and he makes it work without feeling like a "rip-off story". If you are looking for a fast paced, plot driven summer read this is perfect.
January 14, 2015
Very unusual
Real glad the ghost chaser shows are not that deadly. Pun intended. Liked the title. It made me pay for book. It was worth it. Nothing could ever convince me that trees are bad but this book came close.
Real glad the ghost chaser shows are not that deadly. Pun intended. Liked the title. It made me pay for book. It was worth it. Nothing could ever convince me that trees are bad but this book came close.
June 24, 2012
There were several typos throughout the book, which were quite distracting. Otherwise, the book was entertaining and kept me reading.
July 2, 2012
A nice change from your traditional haunted house story.
July 3, 2015
This book had a few good spooky moments and some twists and turns. But it never really had that "jump out of your seat and turn the lights up" moments.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews