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Sgt. Janus and the House That Loved Death
Who is Death at the End?
Life and Death. Sgt. Janus struggles with these two concepts every single day of his existence to balance the scales when wrongs and injustices are perpetrated in the paranormal realm. But what does he truly know—truly understand—about the nature of either?
A mysterious and macabre stranger-killer is on the loose in Mount Airy, taunting the authorities with letters to a local newspaper’s editor-in-chief, and baffling everyone with a seemingingly supernatural ability to stalk and murder their victims. What the killer doesn’t count on, though, is the intervention of the Spirit-Breaker himself, Roman Janus, when death strikes far too close for comfort within the sergeant’s personal circle of friends.
The stage is set for Sgt. Janus’ greatest challenge yet—to stop death itself, even though his very possessions may be working against him to prevent it. The battle is fought on more than one plane, and everything he knows of the spirit world may be turned upside down before the dust clears and a victor emerges.
SGT. JANUS AND THE HOUSE THAT LOVED DEATH brings writer Jim Beard back to the adventures of the celebrated ghost hunter who has charmed and entertained fans of the classic occult detective genre in three previous volumes. Beware, though—the house is open and waiting for you to enter, but only the brave may be able to leave to tell its tale.
Life and Death. Sgt. Janus struggles with these two concepts every single day of his existence to balance the scales when wrongs and injustices are perpetrated in the paranormal realm. But what does he truly know—truly understand—about the nature of either?
A mysterious and macabre stranger-killer is on the loose in Mount Airy, taunting the authorities with letters to a local newspaper’s editor-in-chief, and baffling everyone with a seemingingly supernatural ability to stalk and murder their victims. What the killer doesn’t count on, though, is the intervention of the Spirit-Breaker himself, Roman Janus, when death strikes far too close for comfort within the sergeant’s personal circle of friends.
The stage is set for Sgt. Janus’ greatest challenge yet—to stop death itself, even though his very possessions may be working against him to prevent it. The battle is fought on more than one plane, and everything he knows of the spirit world may be turned upside down before the dust clears and a victor emerges.
SGT. JANUS AND THE HOUSE THAT LOVED DEATH brings writer Jim Beard back to the adventures of the celebrated ghost hunter who has charmed and entertained fans of the classic occult detective genre in three previous volumes. Beware, though—the house is open and waiting for you to enter, but only the brave may be able to leave to tell its tale.
204 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 11, 2025
About the author
Jim Beard
18 books9 followersLibrarian Note: There are several authors in the GoodReads database with this name. Those listed below have multiple books listed on GoodReads.
Jim Beard (2 spaces): GR author comics, sci/fi
Jim Beard (3 spaces): chef James Beard
Jim Beard (4 spaces): outdoorsman
Jim Beard (2 spaces): GR author comics, sci/fi
Jim Beard (3 spaces): chef James Beard
Jim Beard (4 spaces): outdoorsman
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
June 11, 2025
The fourth, and possibly final, Sgt. Janus book from Jim Beard, follows in fine form from its predecessors and brings us to yet another crossroads in the life of the Spirit-Breaker.
I am a big fan of epistolary novels, ever since first reading Dracula. Moreso than the previous volumes, Sgt. Janus and the House That Loved Death reminds me of Dracula, in the number of points of view presented and the way they are expressed: letters, newspaper clippings, personal diaries, audio recordings, official records, press releases, and .see come in to play.
And like Dracula, we never get anything from the POV of the title character. Sgt. Roman Janus has, over the past few years, become one of my favorite Occult Detectives despite (or maybe because) of the fact that we never actually learn what's going on in his own head.
We do get to know the supporting cast pretty well ... and I'm begging you, Jim Bear: please give us a book of the adventures of Joshua Hargreaves!
If this is the final adventure of Sgt. Janus, it ends the series on a very satisfactory and yet also perfectly mysterious note, as is appropriate.
I am a big fan of epistolary novels, ever since first reading Dracula. Moreso than the previous volumes, Sgt. Janus and the House That Loved Death reminds me of Dracula, in the number of points of view presented and the way they are expressed: letters, newspaper clippings, personal diaries, audio recordings, official records, press releases, and .see come in to play.
And like Dracula, we never get anything from the POV of the title character. Sgt. Roman Janus has, over the past few years, become one of my favorite Occult Detectives despite (or maybe because) of the fact that we never actually learn what's going on in his own head.
We do get to know the supporting cast pretty well ... and I'm begging you, Jim Bear: please give us a book of the adventures of Joshua Hargreaves!
If this is the final adventure of Sgt. Janus, it ends the series on a very satisfactory and yet also perfectly mysterious note, as is appropriate.
Displaying 1 of 1 review