Cold Remains

by Sally Spedding

When Jason Robbins arrives at the eerie Heron House in deepest Carmarthenshire for a writing course, he soon meets its two weird servants who seem to exercise a sinister power over their scheming employer, Monty Flynn. Another newcomer is Helen Jenkins, a cook, to whom Jason is instantly attracted. Together they discover what dangers really lurk behind those ivy-clad walls. How the terrible post-war past bleeds into the present when the tormented soul of the young woman haunting them will stop at nothing to have her story told. But is her version of events to be trusted? And at what cost to Jason and Helen when they attempt to find out the truth?

304 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Cora Tea Party Princess · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review may change as I think more about what I have just read. This book was pretty amazing and different to anything I've read.

This book has a fantastic, well paced beginning. It's a slow to start but not a bad slow. A good slow which builds pace and lets the plot unravel wonderfully. I like the idea of an aspiring writer being the main protagonist too, and I'm not sure why.

Set in the dramatic Welsh mountains, this mystery/thriller/horror/crime novel is every bit as dark and brooding (and mysterious) as the cover implies. And then some. OK, so I cannot pronounce most of the Welsh but hey-ho, I'm not Welsh. It didn't really matter really. I spent a lot of time placing myself there, in the remote mountains, surrounded by evergreen plantation forests and rusting equipment, swirling mist and soaking rain. I could smell the cloying scent of roses, hear the rooks calling.

As the story goes on it gets creepier and creepier. I found myself reading faster and faster, eager to know what malevolent turn this book would take next. It is deliciously dark and twisted and atmospheric. and just when you think you have everything worked out BAM! Oh no you don't. Because there is another unexpected sinister twist.

This book is as haunting as the plot and the characters, and will probably stay with me for a long time.

ISBN: 9781907230394

[Lizzie Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Cold Remains’ by Sally Spedding
Published by Sparkling Books, 2012. ISBN: 978-1-907230-28-8

For Jason Robbins things have not been going well, recently made redundant, evicted by his brother from his flat share and still traumatized from events in Basra, he answers an advert to attend a writing course at Heron House in deepest Carmarthenshire to be inspired to write a best seller by top fiction writer Monty Flynn.

Arriving at Heron House things are not quite as described in the advert. Collected at the station by ex-artist Helen Jenkins, Jason’s illusions of the ‘all modern comforts,’ and ‘cordon bleu cooking’ are immediately shattered, added to which he learns that the talented Monty Flynn is a big time lush. Coupled with the weird servants Idris and Gwenno Davies, (the latter who seems to exercise power over her employer), the whole set-up seems odd, but Jason has nowhere else to go.

Both Jason and Helen Jenkins experience some strange unexplained occurrences, of the goose-bumps variety. When they discover a dead body they draw together to uncover the killer and uncover the secret of Heron House and the weird events that they are both experiencing. But they have no conception of the power and evil that lurks within Heron House.

The present day events are interspersed with a narrative by Lionel Hargreaves from October 1946, for the horror of Heron House has it’s origins in the past. In order to make sense of the past Jason and Helen attempt to discover who actually owns Heron House, but it, and it’s previous occupants are shrouded in mystery.

Cold Remains is chilling story, at the heart of which is the tormented soul of a young woman. But is she to be trusted? As Jason and Helen seek to uncover the truth, they put themselves in great danger, for there are powerful people behind the secrets of Heron House and they will do anything to ensure that everything, and I mean everything, remains buried.

As with all good mysteries not everyone is what they seem, and Cold Remains is no exception. There are many surprising twists which keep the reader turning pages, although at times I was almost too scared to continue reading.
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Reviewer: Lizzie Hayes

[Ionia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting this book to be as brilliant as it turned out to be . The beginning was a little slower for me, but by the third chapter the book began rolling along at a really nice pace. This book is terrifying and startling in places. The psychological aspect of this book makes it worth the read. Even when you are certain that you have it all figured out, the author takes a sudden turn and makes you question everything you thought you knew.

The main character is somewhat solitary and confined by his own fears. At the same time, he has an adventuresome spirit that leads the way through the complicated plot perfectly. He is the type of flawed character that makes you want to keep turning the pages. I appreciated that the author did not just tell me everything that was happening, but rather through her literary persuasion, allowed me to experience the events of the book with a healthy dose of my own imagination.

If you are looking for a frightening thriller that will keep you awake at night, this is the one to choose. I will look for more books by this author.

ISBN:978-1-907230-39-4

I received a digital copy of this book from Netgalley.

[Christoph Fischer · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Cold Remains" by Sally Spedding is a gripping and at times frightening read. Very dark and bleak in places it tells a complex tale, blending a narrative from 1946 with one in 2009, both taking place at the same property. In the present storyline a man joins a writer's retreat in Wales and gets on the trail of an old mystery.
Very gradually the tension and suspense creep into your veins. Spedding understands how to work her way into your mind.
I picked up this book at a book fair in Wales, eager to read literature set in my new home, and I certainly was not disappointed. The novel portrays language and people in realistic ways, I could empathise with the 'outsider' character many times.
The actual story is really twisted and has plenty of surprises for you in store. If you like noir then this should not disappoint you. An excellent read.

[Chris Mclean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read a netgalleys copy.

This was a great ghost story and mystery set in Wales. The main characters, Jason and Helen, meet at the Heron House....Helen works there and Jason comes for a writers retreat. As the situation gets darker, fewer people can be trusted. The novel's twists and turns, and its movement from the past to the present, make it totally suspenseful.

One difficult thing for this American reader...lots of Welsh terms. I am glad that I read this on my iPad, because at least once every 30 pages or so I had to look something up. That was not an issue for me (in fact, I liked learning this stuff) but it could be for some readers or for anyone who does not have reference sources easily available.

[Majanka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Review originally published here: http://www.iheartreading.net/mini-rev...

This book was different, in a way that was sometimes good, sometimes not so good. I found it a bit wordy, the descriptions too lenghty to keep up the suspense at times. I loved how a ghost did some of the storytelling though, and it definitely had original elements. It’s a mix of mystery, suspense, horror, thriller, set in a beautiful, atmospheric landscape.

[Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read my full review:http://bit.ly/11LokJv

My opinion: It took me a bit longer to get into this sleeper novel. It was very gothic and "noir-ish" in nature. Once I did, it took off and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The mystery laid out well and I enjoyed the twisted-ness of the characters. One thing I didn't like about this book was that it flipped back and forth in periods of time. However, there was something that was slightly reminiscent of Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House.

[J.A. Corrigan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Sally Spedding's work, and this story didn't disappoint. Drawn in from the beginning, the story is both authentic and realistic in the ordinary everyday scenes, whilst gothic and disturbing in the more supernatural parts of the book. The weaving of the story is seamless and pacy. The narrative illustrates Spedding's gift for language and love of the poetic.
Highly recommended.

[Tracy Paddock · Rating 1 out of 5]

Jesus christ what an awful book! Was really looking forward to reading it, usually takes me 2 or 3 days at most to read a book, this one about two weeks and I can only give you the bare bones of what it was about and no idea what the ending was, I'm that confused! Not recommended I'm afraid.

[Helen Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite living in the area where the book is based, I found it very confusing in many places. I won't rush to read another of the author's novels.

[Join the Penguin Resistance! · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of Cold Remains by Sally Spedding
5 stars

“Cold Remains” is my introduction to the novels of Sally Spedding, and now I am determined to find and read more. This is a novel that will not surrender its hold on my mind. The storyline is brutal, violent, abusive; yet compelling, riveting, intriguing. I found myself frequently with jaw dropped at the hubris and arrogance and conceit of many of the characters, and simultaneously cheering on “the good guys,” Helen and Jason and Bestsan and Gwylim and others. Yes, there are really good guys (and women) on the police departments here also; just as there is real present evil in all walks of life. Like turning over a stone and finding maggot-ridden meat, this novel turns over the facades of upscale life (and those in poverty as well) and uncovers the good and the evil concealed within.

Circling around Heron House in rural Wales, present and past, is a conglomeration of individuals, very few of whom tell the truth, or even are honest about their identities and purposes. Formerly the home of a wealthy judge, Heron House is now “run” by Monty Flynn, supposedly a best-selling writer, and the weirdest pair of servants since-well, at least since Daphne du Maurier’s “Mrs. Danvers.” Helen, art graduate, is hired to cook, and Jason is the first of several prospective authors-to-be. What they find is the most complex, incredible, yet realistic Gordian knot I’ve read of in a very long time-if ever.

I received an e-book copy via NetGalley in return for my fair and impartial review.

[Joy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sally Spedding’s Cold Remains has been called a “noir-ish thriller” -- a darkly atmospheric mystery novel with supernatural elements. And I suppose, strictly speaking, that’s a fair description; I agree it’s a very dark tale. And I generally love that. But something about the book just kept repelling me, and I don’t think it was spookiness. (It also wasn’t the fact that every other sentence seemed to be about Helen's menstrual cycle -- that was pretty repellent, too, but it was there for a reason.)

For one thing, there were at least two storylines going on, in two different time periods, and a host of characters to keep track of, in each. That’s fairly standard for novels these days, I know -- and I know it shouldn’t bother me by now, but in this case it did. Also, it seemed to me that Spedding never really decided if she was writing a mystery or a supernatural thriller, and she never combined the two very convincingly: Most of the time, that supernatural part of the book felt really tacked-on.

I found a lot of the action confusing, too -- jumping around in time and from place to place. And throughout the book, I had trouble understanding exactly what motivated the characters, and that kept me from caring much about them. I suppose that might have been part of the mystery -- not giving too much away before the big reveal at the end. But it just didn’t work for me.

[Note: This review refers to an electronic edition of the book, furnished free of charge by the publisher, through the NetGalley website. No other compensation was received.]

[HÜLYA · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gerilim gizem romanı Geçmişin Soğuk İzleri..İki farklı zamanda geçiyor...Bu romanın başlangıcını biraz durağan buldum.
Doğa üstü ögeler içeren karanlık bir atmosfer romanı. Okurken oldukça da ürktüm..
İlk defa bu tarz bir roman okuyorum..Özellikle gerilim ve gotik hikaye severler çok severek okuyacaklar...
Ama benim çok da sevdiğim bir kitap olamadı nedense belki de okurken olaylardan fazla etkisinde kaldığım içindir...

[Mark Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

You might call this Welsh Gothic. Set in and around the part of mid-Wales where I went to school the story concerns some rather unpleasant goings-on in a small Welsh village just after the war and subsequent ramifications sixty years later. A great read!

[Lisa B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The more I read, the better this got. I’m glad I stuck with it.

[Krista (CubicleBlindness Reviews) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jason was by far my favorite character and the ending was good. But the time it took to get there was frustrating.

[DAISY READS HORROR · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received a free copy from the publisher.

Unfortunately I couldn't get into the book. The lingo spoken was not something I could understand.