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The Ghosts of Hardacre book 2 Death is not an ending... I faced the truth of my family history and my childhood trauma. But adjusting to this new reality meant writing the book I had done my best to avoid. Once finished, I sat absorbed in the last Death is not an ending. This is certainly true with my ancestry. In death, all Hardacres return to the Priory. However, I awoke to a solitary existence. Then Josie Scarfe arrived at the door, wanting answers. We were never friends as children, but now I cannot ignore our connection. Returning the holy relic may have banished the evil, yet we have only just begun to unravel the ancient lore at the foundations of Hardacre Priory.
275 pages, Paperback
Published October 13, 2023
2 people are currently reading
20 people want to read
About the author
Becky Wright
8 books151 followersBecky Wright is an author with a passion for Gothic literature, history, the supernatural and things that go bump in the night. She lives in the heart of the Suffolk countryside, surrounded by rolling fields, picturesque timber-framed villages, rural churches, and many haunted houses. With her inherent fascination for the macabre, her writing leans towards the dark side.
www.beckywrightauthor.com
www.beckywrightauthor.com
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 24, 2023
The Priory opens its doors again and shares some more of its secrets.
Becky Wright takes the readers back inside the Priory with Oliver, after the final events on the previous book, where the last of the Hardacres must now face the aftermath of what occurred. Believing they've put an end to the evil that haunts those lands by returning the relick to its rightful place, Oliver finds himself lost within the grounds of the Priory, as if dead to the world. On the other hand, Josie and her mother fear he has sacrificed himself to cleanse those grounds of what plagued upon generations of his family. But not all is as it seems, and when Josie and Oliver start exchanging messages through the mailbox at the gates of the Priory, a new truth emerges.
This time, we are taken into the past of the Hardacre family at Elizabethan times, where we learn the tale of the two twin ghost boys we had glimpses of in Priory. Theirs is a sad tale, one that sheds light on the real evil lurking in those lands. Seeped into the ground, it has been luring and seducing anyone who dares seek its dark powers to achieve their hearts desire - be it love, lust, luck or revenge. The more it gives, though, the more it takes. With learning of what lies beyond the oak tree, and revelations that will sweep us off our feet, we dive deeper into the lore of the Hardacre curse and make discoveries that promise to clarify every one of our doubts.
But in a coup that is nothing short of genius, the author throws the reader one final blow that will reel you off your feet as your near the end of this tale, the question now back to our heads as we wonder what in fact is going on, and have we been wrong all along about the truth of the Priory?
I seriously cannot wait for the next book so that I can finally find out what lies beyond the fog that hides the Priory!
Becky Wright takes the readers back inside the Priory with Oliver, after the final events on the previous book, where the last of the Hardacres must now face the aftermath of what occurred. Believing they've put an end to the evil that haunts those lands by returning the relick to its rightful place, Oliver finds himself lost within the grounds of the Priory, as if dead to the world. On the other hand, Josie and her mother fear he has sacrificed himself to cleanse those grounds of what plagued upon generations of his family. But not all is as it seems, and when Josie and Oliver start exchanging messages through the mailbox at the gates of the Priory, a new truth emerges.
This time, we are taken into the past of the Hardacre family at Elizabethan times, where we learn the tale of the two twin ghost boys we had glimpses of in Priory. Theirs is a sad tale, one that sheds light on the real evil lurking in those lands. Seeped into the ground, it has been luring and seducing anyone who dares seek its dark powers to achieve their hearts desire - be it love, lust, luck or revenge. The more it gives, though, the more it takes. With learning of what lies beyond the oak tree, and revelations that will sweep us off our feet, we dive deeper into the lore of the Hardacre curse and make discoveries that promise to clarify every one of our doubts.
But in a coup that is nothing short of genius, the author throws the reader one final blow that will reel you off your feet as your near the end of this tale, the question now back to our heads as we wonder what in fact is going on, and have we been wrong all along about the truth of the Priory?
I seriously cannot wait for the next book so that I can finally find out what lies beyond the fog that hides the Priory!
September 30, 2023
After adoring Priory, book 1 in this series, I was terribly impatient for Lore to come out. So, when I received an ARC, I was thrilled. This book continues with the slow drip intensity, the constant dark teasing of Oliver Hardacre's existence within the confines of the Hardacre estate and the legacy the land and the oak tree force him to endure. Heartstrings are definitely tugged with the tragedies that unfold within this story. Again, Becky keeps the reader guessing, hooked on the what and the why of the story, maintaining a deeply sinister feel throughout. The ending... i want to talk about it but clearly can't spoil anything other than to say...what the hell? I need book 3 now!
If you love historical fantasy, timeslips, sinister gothic stories that make you think and wonder and cringe, this series is for you.
If you love historical fantasy, timeslips, sinister gothic stories that make you think and wonder and cringe, this series is for you.
October 28, 2023
In her latest spine-tingling tale, Lore, Becky Wright once again demonstrates her mastery of quiet, psychological Gothic horror. This haunting novel continues Wright's Ghosts of Hardacre Series, delving deeper into the chilling history of Hardacre Priory and the legacy that curses its unfortunate inheritors. As with her previous work, Wright blurs the boundaries between past and present, real and imagined, light and dark to create an atmosphere dripping with unease.
The author’s talent lies in breaking down the walls between the everyday landscape and those that inhabit it, and the ghostly. Side-by-side stories of loss and corrupted bargains leave the reader with a creeping sense of uncertainty about what is real. There are no easy answers or cliched shocks. Instead, Wright allows our imagination to fill the gaps, letting fear take root.
Slow paced, rich in prose, and disturbing, this worthy second in series bears all the signature intense horror elements that will appeal to fans of classic Gothic literature. A worthy understudy to James Herbert, though her style is quite distinct, Wright’s words brood and simmer, teasing us with the hope that everything will be alright before she releases her dark imagination on our first read through naivety, compelling us to read on. Overall, Lore is a suspenseful, emotional, and unsettling read perfect for those who enjoy quiet, supernatural horror.
Trust me, you need the lights ‘on’ for this one…
The author’s talent lies in breaking down the walls between the everyday landscape and those that inhabit it, and the ghostly. Side-by-side stories of loss and corrupted bargains leave the reader with a creeping sense of uncertainty about what is real. There are no easy answers or cliched shocks. Instead, Wright allows our imagination to fill the gaps, letting fear take root.
Slow paced, rich in prose, and disturbing, this worthy second in series bears all the signature intense horror elements that will appeal to fans of classic Gothic literature. A worthy understudy to James Herbert, though her style is quite distinct, Wright’s words brood and simmer, teasing us with the hope that everything will be alright before she releases her dark imagination on our first read through naivety, compelling us to read on. Overall, Lore is a suspenseful, emotional, and unsettling read perfect for those who enjoy quiet, supernatural horror.
Trust me, you need the lights ‘on’ for this one…
Read
October 28, 2023Becky Wright is one of our modern masters of Gothic Horror. She writes with a perfectly crafted voice to build anxiety and dread in the reader, while seducing us on with her beautiful language and macabre tales of malevolent evil and unsettled histories. The pace is slow in a deliciously creepy way, so what you get is that prickling sensation that her characters often feel; when the presence of the supernatural is on them.
Lore is book two in The Ghosts of Hardacre Series. In it, a great deal more of the history of Hardache, and those who have suffered within its boundaries, comes to light. What a twisted history it is. The hauntings run so deep, that even the dead are haunted. Reality begins to deteriorate and mystery upon mystery is carefully handed out in surprising and disturbing pieces. It is so dizzyingly disorienting, that there were times when I wasn’t sure if I were haunted myself. Yes, it’s that good, that strange, that bizarre; dark and delightful. It’s best to read book one, Priory, first. And you will be glad you did.
The ending of Lore was a real shock and we understand this tale of evil will only get stranger. It was so much fun reading this just before Halloween, when the veil is thin, but, any cold winter evening or rainy summer day will do.
Lore is book two in The Ghosts of Hardacre Series. In it, a great deal more of the history of Hardache, and those who have suffered within its boundaries, comes to light. What a twisted history it is. The hauntings run so deep, that even the dead are haunted. Reality begins to deteriorate and mystery upon mystery is carefully handed out in surprising and disturbing pieces. It is so dizzyingly disorienting, that there were times when I wasn’t sure if I were haunted myself. Yes, it’s that good, that strange, that bizarre; dark and delightful. It’s best to read book one, Priory, first. And you will be glad you did.
The ending of Lore was a real shock and we understand this tale of evil will only get stranger. It was so much fun reading this just before Halloween, when the veil is thin, but, any cold winter evening or rainy summer day will do.
November 28, 2023
Lore
A gripping gothic tale full of melancholy, longing and unrighted wrongs.
Written in Wrights flowing and lyrical style we are drawn into a web of confusion where nothing is as it seems and time slips like quicksilver through our fingers.
The urgency of despair felt by the generations bound to the Priory and connected by an unknown evil that stalks its halls, binds us to the story as it gathers pace towards a malicious conclusion.
Fear ye all who enter it’s dark portals.
A gripping gothic tale full of melancholy, longing and unrighted wrongs.
Written in Wrights flowing and lyrical style we are drawn into a web of confusion where nothing is as it seems and time slips like quicksilver through our fingers.
The urgency of despair felt by the generations bound to the Priory and connected by an unknown evil that stalks its halls, binds us to the story as it gathers pace towards a malicious conclusion.
Fear ye all who enter it’s dark portals.
October 17, 2023
"To fully understand the present, you must delve into history's depths and unravel its layers. Otherwise, there may be no future..."
I loved Priory, the first book in Becky Wright’s The Ghosts of Hardacre trilogy, and have been waiting eagerly to read Lore, the second instalment. It’s easily as gripping and chilling as the first. Lore shows how the present reflects the past, through the tragic fates of two sets of twins. It delves deeper into the history of Hardacre Priory and discovers the origins of the curse that haunts the family. Like Wright’s brilliant ghost story, Daughter of the Oak, it sees two stories intertwined, a historical tale of corruption and evil and a modern-day haunting.
The historical tale, which makes up the major section of the book, drips with fog and wintry Tudor atmosphere. It focuses on the terror of a twisted deal made by a noblewoman to further her offspring, a deal made at the base of the grisly oak in the Priory grounds, a tree that seems to emanate evil itself.
Some mysteries are unlocked but others manifest, particularly in relation to the strange, bark-skinned woman who propels Elliot and Josie to their ancient vision, and to the man she wishes to help, the man whose hands dig blood from the earth.
Becky Wright’s true talent is to break down the distance between the real and ghostly, past and present, concrete and imagined, light and dark. This blurring of boundaries leaves us with a profound sense of unease and disquiet, rarely matched by other horror authors. No one writes fear like Becky Wright.
I loved Priory, the first book in Becky Wright’s The Ghosts of Hardacre trilogy, and have been waiting eagerly to read Lore, the second instalment. It’s easily as gripping and chilling as the first. Lore shows how the present reflects the past, through the tragic fates of two sets of twins. It delves deeper into the history of Hardacre Priory and discovers the origins of the curse that haunts the family. Like Wright’s brilliant ghost story, Daughter of the Oak, it sees two stories intertwined, a historical tale of corruption and evil and a modern-day haunting.
The historical tale, which makes up the major section of the book, drips with fog and wintry Tudor atmosphere. It focuses on the terror of a twisted deal made by a noblewoman to further her offspring, a deal made at the base of the grisly oak in the Priory grounds, a tree that seems to emanate evil itself.
Some mysteries are unlocked but others manifest, particularly in relation to the strange, bark-skinned woman who propels Elliot and Josie to their ancient vision, and to the man she wishes to help, the man whose hands dig blood from the earth.
Becky Wright’s true talent is to break down the distance between the real and ghostly, past and present, concrete and imagined, light and dark. This blurring of boundaries leaves us with a profound sense of unease and disquiet, rarely matched by other horror authors. No one writes fear like Becky Wright.
October 13, 2023
Deeply disturbing and intense, Lore by Becky Wright is book two in the Hardacre series and picks up where Priory left off. After the shocking climax to Priory, Elliot Hardacre is isolated and adrift in his ancestral home. Swathed in fog, the Priory appears cut off from the outside world and those Elliot left behind desperately wonder if he’s still alive.
Magnificently written, the prose is rich, and the pacing is slow, as the reader explores the history and secrets of the Priory with Elliot. Not an easy read, this is a book that demands attention. With a twisting, surprising, and, at times, downright bizarre plot, this is possibly a book that not all will appreciate and is one that will divide opinion.
Brimming with suspense and detailed descriptions, it is Gothic literature at its best as only this author can write it, and although it teeters on the edge of horror it never descends into cliched gore. Instead, the author teases and tantalises with things seen in the corner of the eye and noises heard out of context. Cleverly, she implies just enough for the reader’s imagination to run wild and fill in the blanks.
There were moments when I caught my breath in anticipation, and times when I scratched my head and hoped the answers to oh-so-many questions would be answered in the next book. With an ending that I did not see coming, Lore is a book I will need to read again to fully appreciate and absorb its words and meaning.
A spine-chilling 5 stars from me.
Magnificently written, the prose is rich, and the pacing is slow, as the reader explores the history and secrets of the Priory with Elliot. Not an easy read, this is a book that demands attention. With a twisting, surprising, and, at times, downright bizarre plot, this is possibly a book that not all will appreciate and is one that will divide opinion.
Brimming with suspense and detailed descriptions, it is Gothic literature at its best as only this author can write it, and although it teeters on the edge of horror it never descends into cliched gore. Instead, the author teases and tantalises with things seen in the corner of the eye and noises heard out of context. Cleverly, she implies just enough for the reader’s imagination to run wild and fill in the blanks.
There were moments when I caught my breath in anticipation, and times when I scratched my head and hoped the answers to oh-so-many questions would be answered in the next book. With an ending that I did not see coming, Lore is a book I will need to read again to fully appreciate and absorb its words and meaning.
A spine-chilling 5 stars from me.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews