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Taryn's Camera #1
Windwood Farm
Windwood Farm has a terrible secret–one that's been buried for more than 75 years...Thirty year old Taryn Magill has spent her professional life exploring historical buildings and abandoned homes. She uses her camera and oil paints to recreate the once beloved and grand structures of yesterday for her clients, showing them how the buildings would have appeared in their prime. With her latest assignment at Windwood Farm, however, she may have bitten off more than she can chew.
Commissioned by the Stokes County Historical Society to paint the once grand stone house before a development company turns the surrounding farm into a subdivision, the job starts like any other. Soon, however, as Taryn becomes involved in the photographing and painting of the house, unusual occurrences begin to happen.
For the first time ever, when Taryn looks through her camera, she sees more than decay and empty rooms; she’s finally able to see the past come alive as the formerly grand house begins to fill with furniture and belongings before her very eyes.
Every old house is supposed to be haunted, but this one seems to take the cake. Why does the young woman weep from the upstairs bedroom? Why is the sense of evil so strong that even vandals have stayed away for more than 50 years? What happened to the young neighbor who disappeared in the 1920s and does his disappearance have anything to do with the house’s mysteries?
More importantly, will Taryn herself be able to escape with her sanity and life before the house comes down? Because now it seems like someone is trying to kill her! Using what her camera reveals to her and her wits, she’ll try to unravel the mysteries of the farm and get out before it’s too late
Commissioned by the Stokes County Historical Society to paint the once grand stone house before a development company turns the surrounding farm into a subdivision, the job starts like any other. Soon, however, as Taryn becomes involved in the photographing and painting of the house, unusual occurrences begin to happen.
For the first time ever, when Taryn looks through her camera, she sees more than decay and empty rooms; she’s finally able to see the past come alive as the formerly grand house begins to fill with furniture and belongings before her very eyes.
Every old house is supposed to be haunted, but this one seems to take the cake. Why does the young woman weep from the upstairs bedroom? Why is the sense of evil so strong that even vandals have stayed away for more than 50 years? What happened to the young neighbor who disappeared in the 1920s and does his disappearance have anything to do with the house’s mysteries?
More importantly, will Taryn herself be able to escape with her sanity and life before the house comes down? Because now it seems like someone is trying to kill her! Using what her camera reveals to her and her wits, she’ll try to unravel the mysteries of the farm and get out before it’s too late
255 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 3, 2014
394 people are currently reading
1310 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 92 reviews
April 11, 2015
Taryn Magill was hired by the Stokes County Historical Society to paint a picture of Windwood Farms. The locals referred to the farm as the devils house. Even the vandals didn't dare to go near the stone house. First Taryn would take pictures of the run down building from the outside and then from the inside. It was strange that the inside of the farm house looked like it had been in the 1920's. Taryn thinks that she hears some strange noises while inside but maybe her mind is just playing tricks on her. There is an evil force in that house, that doesn't like intruders.With her camera Taryn can see strange images from the past. This was a different approach to a haunted house story and it was an enjoyable read. This is the first book of a series. I plan on checking out other works by this author.
April 4, 2016
I anticipated “Windwood Farm” so highly, I watched for a price drop. I was stunned to see Rebecca Patrick-Howard must be self-published despite being prolific. This was one draft shy of being polished. I understand having to learn how to express a great idea into a novel. We can see where we were headed but the molasses was too thick; including mistaken characters and a ton of redundancy. For the first time, I wished I’d had a PDF in lieu of a $12.00 paperback plus tax. This is a wonderfully original story about a gifted sketcher and painter. Her specialty is architecture: showing how buildings looked when they were new. Paranormal activity in Kentucky reveals the mystery of a girl.
Stories are successful when we know a protagonist’s emotions. However it needs to trot along with mobility like a movie. We were too much in Taryn’s unhappy head to travel like a movie. Loss was implied but not fed in aptly. The second-most detrimental flaw was contradiction. Taryn’s personality was shaped jerkily; a loner admitting sleeplessness without her Grandma and fiancé. She spoke of kinship with a house.... that she found stifling and negative. She made cliché protestations about God and spirits but constantly detected presences. None of the psychology jived with belief in a spellcasting best friend!
I would love to read Rebecca’s novels, with streamlined manuscripts. I was invested, until a common faux-pas appeared. Clara’s mystery grew exiting. Maddeningly, instead of letting it escalate on its own: authors think a living culprit is necessary. A ridiculous turn was tacked-on, so nonsensically; it spoiled the rush of discovering 80 year-old secrets. Such a hasty stretch nixed the three stars I wanted to give. Respectfully, I see why professional publishing is a euphoric privilege and how it makes a difference.
Stories are successful when we know a protagonist’s emotions. However it needs to trot along with mobility like a movie. We were too much in Taryn’s unhappy head to travel like a movie. Loss was implied but not fed in aptly. The second-most detrimental flaw was contradiction. Taryn’s personality was shaped jerkily; a loner admitting sleeplessness without her Grandma and fiancé. She spoke of kinship with a house.... that she found stifling and negative. She made cliché protestations about God and spirits but constantly detected presences. None of the psychology jived with belief in a spellcasting best friend!
I would love to read Rebecca’s novels, with streamlined manuscripts. I was invested, until a common faux-pas appeared. Clara’s mystery grew exiting. Maddeningly, instead of letting it escalate on its own: authors think a living culprit is necessary. A ridiculous turn was tacked-on, so nonsensically; it spoiled the rush of discovering 80 year-old secrets. Such a hasty stretch nixed the three stars I wanted to give. Respectfully, I see why professional publishing is a euphoric privilege and how it makes a difference.
August 31, 2021
Didn't Get Very Far
I didn't like this book. It reminded me of that Tom Hanks movie where he was alone on an island with the coconut for a friend. Except that movie was more interesting. After reading 25% of the book I gave up. The writing kept being being repetitive around the main storyline up to that point - Taryn loved being alone, she felt she could feel old house, this one felt off.
I really wanted to hear the story the house had to tell but I just did not want to read about Taryn anymore.
I didn't like this book. It reminded me of that Tom Hanks movie where he was alone on an island with the coconut for a friend. Except that movie was more interesting. After reading 25% of the book I gave up. The writing kept being being repetitive around the main storyline up to that point - Taryn loved being alone, she felt she could feel old house, this one felt off.
I really wanted to hear the story the house had to tell but I just did not want to read about Taryn anymore.
August 24, 2017
Enjoyable, could have been scarier.
May 19, 2014
This is a ghost story containing everything you could possibly ask for: a main character who can “see” history through the camera lens, old tumble-down buildings and rumours about ghosts and terrible crimes, and people who fear what she might stumble upon.
Taryn has just turned thirty and she is painting historic buildings to pay her bills and as soon as she arrives at the old farm she knows something is wrong. Apart form being very talented at painting she has a weird knack for what a place looked like before it became derelict, and this gift is stronger than ever at Windwood Farm. The local historical society has commissioned a painting before the old farm house is due to be demolished to pave the way for a new development and Taryn is risking everything to find out what happened to give the place such a terrifying reputation.
Windwood Farm is one of those books that keep you captivated until the end and you find you are equally eager as the main character to discover the truth. It is a book for the holiday or a rainy evening and it is a promising start for a new literary heroine, who solves old crimes while she is ghost hunting through rural backwaters. I thoroughly enjoyed the novel and am looking forward to the sequel.
I was given a copy of the novel to read and review.
May 3, 2016
Maybe more of 3.5 or 3.75. I'm held back from 4 stars because I listened to the audio version of this book (I'm packing to move, and am short on time, so the audio was the way I had to go). I think the author has some talent, I enjoyed the story for the most part. But the narrator is AWFUL! I don't know if she naturally has that accent or - more likely - she was trying to put on a Southern/Kentucky/Tennessee accent for the book, but all she did was make the whole thing sound like it was drunk. One of the worst narrators I've come across yet.
But even with the awful narrator, I did look for book 2. No audio version, so I probably won't get to it for a while, but maybe that's a good thing too.
But even with the awful narrator, I did look for book 2. No audio version, so I probably won't get to it for a while, but maybe that's a good thing too.
July 21, 2015
Book one
I really wanted it to be scarier, but it kept me reading. There was a lot of editing mistakes, which always throws me off. I'm going to try the 2nd book in the series, if it isn't better, I will probably put it down.
I really wanted it to be scarier, but it kept me reading. There was a lot of editing mistakes, which always throws me off. I'm going to try the 2nd book in the series, if it isn't better, I will probably put it down.
October 7, 2016
Very good story...really enjoyed it. Look forward to reading her other stories.
Author really kept the story going....very well done.....just downloaded her next book....hope it is as good as the first one
Author really kept the story going....very well done.....just downloaded her next book....hope it is as good as the first one
September 22, 2015
I thought this was a good ghost story. I enjoyed it and trying to figure it all out. The mystery in it made it interesting.
October 18, 2018
This was very different to the story I expected. The author does an excellent job of slowing unfolding Taryn's backstory and although a great deal of the novel is purely narrative, with Taryn working by herself, I found myself immersed in the story of the house and her reactions to it.
The other characters (and there were only a few really) were well developed (I loved Matt!) and although this was not a 'horror' story, the creepiness factor was pretty high.
A good fun read that I finished in two sessions.
The other characters (and there were only a few really) were well developed (I loved Matt!) and although this was not a 'horror' story, the creepiness factor was pretty high.
A good fun read that I finished in two sessions.
December 4, 2018
The premise of the story is great but the story but characters and story were so underdeveloped that you didn’t know what was going on at some points. Not to mention, the main character is kind of obnoxious. The swearing was completely unnecessary and was a complete turn off against the main character. Likewise, it was amazing how little development was given in the majority of the book that you felt lost most of the time but then one other part, that doesn’t really add to the story, was given a whole lot more detail then necessary...
October 8, 2021
This is a decent first book for a series. It definitely has some weak points, like it feels kind of redundant at times with her not asking questions of people when she should and then having to come back and ask someone else, some of the plot has few little holes, the word selection is a little simplistic.
But I liked the premise, and the main character reminded me of a younger version of my mom, which endeared her to me.
But I liked the premise, and the main character reminded me of a younger version of my mom, which endeared her to me.
March 12, 2023
This book was okay. I was really enjoying the story, although it was paced a little weird. There were some mistakes from editing, but that could just have been how it was formatted with the Nook book. (Things like quotation marks in the wrong place etc) I did feel like the ending was rushed and not 100% authentic to the story.
Overall, I did love Taryn and her characters job, but it just didn’t blow me away.
Overall, I did love Taryn and her characters job, but it just didn’t blow me away.
February 24, 2018
Book
At first this book was long and drawn out, it was very hard to get interested in it, too much information that really was irrelevant to the story line. Probably a little more then halfway through it, it kind of got interesting. I did finish it, because once I start a book, I will read it all. Not sure if I will purchase the next one or not
At first this book was long and drawn out, it was very hard to get interested in it, too much information that really was irrelevant to the story line. Probably a little more then halfway through it, it kind of got interesting. I did finish it, because once I start a book, I will read it all. Not sure if I will purchase the next one or not
March 21, 2018
Not a bad read, it takes you on an interesting perspective of the supernatural ghosts and whispers of the past. My only real complaint is how long it takes before the “juicy bits” come out. I felt like I had read a good majority of the book but only getting small teasers of what to come. Did the build up lead to high expectations? You will need to decide that for yourself!
May 17, 2017
Very good book
This was the first book I've read by Rebecca Patrick-Howard and I must say I was very impressed. If you love mystery, paranormal with a touch of love, then you really need to read this one!
This was the first book I've read by Rebecca Patrick-Howard and I must say I was very impressed. If you love mystery, paranormal with a touch of love, then you really need to read this one!
August 1, 2018
Paranormal Mystery
What a great read! A gifted artist finds her artwork isn't her only gift. A fascinating tale with some surprising twists and turns. Intriguing and well written. Interesting characters and an interesting plot.
What a great read! A gifted artist finds her artwork isn't her only gift. A fascinating tale with some surprising twists and turns. Intriguing and well written. Interesting characters and an interesting plot.
November 17, 2018
Suspense!!!!
Do you like scary reads? Books that keep you guessing as to what's going on. Well this is just for you. It is a edge of the seat thriller that you do not want to put down til the end. Hope you enjoy it as I did.
Do you like scary reads? Books that keep you guessing as to what's going on. Well this is just for you. It is a edge of the seat thriller that you do not want to put down til the end. Hope you enjoy it as I did.
April 16, 2020
It was a decent book - would consider it more of a comfy mystery than a real haunted house. Predictable though the idea of seeing ghosts and past things through a camera is quite fun. I may read the next one but haven't decided yet.
June 8, 2020
A whole new world opening
Taryn loves to paint old buildings. They seem to come alive for her. Windwood farms is calling to her. What happened here? Why would someone be trying to hurt her.
Taryn loves to paint old buildings. They seem to come alive for her. Windwood farms is calling to her. What happened here? Why would someone be trying to hurt her.
May 15, 2017
Could've Been Better
There were too many typos for my liking but it was a pretty good story for the most part. Not sure I'd recommend it though.
There were too many typos for my liking but it was a pretty good story for the most part. Not sure I'd recommend it though.
July 26, 2017
Love the entire Taryn's Camera series. Wonderful stories combining old buildings, history and ghosts.
December 17, 2017
I just could not get into this book.
February 3, 2018
A bit too chic-lit for me. It's a cute ghost story but you guess who did what half way through the book. However, it's an easy read to pass a couple of hours on the beach.
August 1, 2018
It is an interesting concept - what she sees through her camera. The book was a quick read and not a bad mystery. Nice resolution. I would read more.
September 17, 2018
Get ready for great twists
Loved it kept me guessing right to the end was hard to put down. If u like a good story this is it.
Loved it kept me guessing right to the end was hard to put down. If u like a good story this is it.
September 16, 2019
A bit slow in spots, but the concept is ingenious! I just love a good ghost story!
Read
July 12, 2020Needs some serious work with an editor.
November 11, 2020
Good read
Good read. I recommend this book. I could easily picture the characters and story in this book.The author is talented with her way of telling the story.
Good read. I recommend this book. I could easily picture the characters and story in this book.The author is talented with her way of telling the story.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 92 reviews