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David Hammond #2
Oliver's Voice: If ghosts are not real, what is happening to Alex?
At first, all Alex heard was the voice, of a boy of his own age, and the sickly cough of somebody dying. He only heard the voice at night, when the house was as quiet as a whisper.
Alex’s parents paid little attention. He must be hearing sounds that carried from somewhere, a neighbouring house, or from across the street. Even when Alex claimed to have seen the boy, to have spoken with him, they dismissed such childish imaginings. When Alex described the life of this boy from more than a century ago, they found it no more than a curiosity. Until that is, they found so many of these trivial details of a time long ago to be undeniably accurate and true.
As Alex became ill, pale and lethargic, finding it difficult to breathe, disbelieving their son and his imaginary friendship began to look more like denial. What was happening to Alex, had once happened to another boy of his age.
A boy called Oliver.
Alex’s parents paid little attention. He must be hearing sounds that carried from somewhere, a neighbouring house, or from across the street. Even when Alex claimed to have seen the boy, to have spoken with him, they dismissed such childish imaginings. When Alex described the life of this boy from more than a century ago, they found it no more than a curiosity. Until that is, they found so many of these trivial details of a time long ago to be undeniably accurate and true.
As Alex became ill, pale and lethargic, finding it difficult to breathe, disbelieving their son and his imaginary friendship began to look more like denial. What was happening to Alex, had once happened to another boy of his age.
A boy called Oliver.
463 pages, Paperback
Published November 4, 2025
1 person want to read
About the author
Nigel Code
2 books3 followersNigel brings a fresh series of mystery novels with the David Hammond books, exploring if perhaps there is some truth behind beliefs in hauntings after all, if you scrape away the hysteria and fantasy. Having studied sciences before working in industry, he is now a researcher and scriptwriter for science programmes. Rarely without a book to hand when not writing, he has a deep love for the English language, its history and varieties, and all the many accents that make it so interesting. He lives in the North East of England, overlooking a restless sea.
Nigel has written seven books in the David Hammond collection, starting with The Gate in the Shadows. The eighth is now making its way onto paper. These chart David's unusual career from 2006 to the present day, and all will be published exclusively on Amazon 2025/26.
Find out more on his website.
Nigel has written seven books in the David Hammond collection, starting with The Gate in the Shadows. The eighth is now making its way onto paper. These chart David's unusual career from 2006 to the present day, and all will be published exclusively on Amazon 2025/26.
Find out more on his website.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 9, 2026
This is a tricky one I have to admit. Going into this I thought it would be a story of a regular haunting. It was so much more than that. We have an Oliver Teasedale who lived in 1902 in a house that is now occupied by a different family with a boy of around Oliver’s age named Alex Tait. Alex begins hearing coughing during the night when it’s quiet and he is trying to fall asleep and tries to tell his parents who just suspect him of dreaming. As time goes by Alex hears more and more coughing and it’s getting worse and he starts hearing a woman’s voice as well and eventually find himself back in 1902 in Oliver’s room and meets Oliver who is ill with consumption and befriends him. Going forward this happens more and more and Alex begins to become unwell himself showing the same symptoms as Oliver and Alex’s parents are getting very worried. At this point it became clear that this was no ordinary haunting, this was something more sinister.
In comes a “medium per se David Hammond who can pick up energies and after receiving an email from Alex’s father as to what is happening to Alex, David and his wife Janet come to the house and upon first entry David could pick up multiple spirits, however not all friendly, there was some downright evil going on here. David did some investigating into mental illnesses that could affect the psyche however upon reading this I do not believe that this is what it was. In my opinion this was not just a poltergeist but also a sinister echo left over by the death of a Teasedale child, Emily , Oliver’s sister. At first everything pointed to Oliver dying of consumption but Alex brought back antibiotics to treat the consumption and Oliver lived however Emily died by drowning. To me it seemed her spirit was influencing the other spirits in the house and was able to come over into the real world and cause some serious possession. (Learned alot from Supernatural, Sam & Dean Winchester) lol.
With help from David he and Alex were able to “visit” 1902 and observe and talk to the spirits of the Teasedale family, as this is what they were stuck in their house in the spirit world,. I could keep on going bc this book has so much depth that I had to really think of what to put in my review. At the end of the book David was literally drained of all energy and he needed to pull Alex “out” as fast as possible which tells me some bad stuff was about to go down.
This book kept me on my toes the whole time and really made me think of what the hell was happening here?! I enjoyed the character development and how the story flowed and gave me the creeps at the same time! I am looking forward to the next book in the David Hammond series.
I received this ARC from BookSirens and I am voluntarily leaving my review.
In comes a “medium per se David Hammond who can pick up energies and after receiving an email from Alex’s father as to what is happening to Alex, David and his wife Janet come to the house and upon first entry David could pick up multiple spirits, however not all friendly, there was some downright evil going on here. David did some investigating into mental illnesses that could affect the psyche however upon reading this I do not believe that this is what it was. In my opinion this was not just a poltergeist but also a sinister echo left over by the death of a Teasedale child, Emily , Oliver’s sister. At first everything pointed to Oliver dying of consumption but Alex brought back antibiotics to treat the consumption and Oliver lived however Emily died by drowning. To me it seemed her spirit was influencing the other spirits in the house and was able to come over into the real world and cause some serious possession. (Learned alot from Supernatural, Sam & Dean Winchester) lol.
With help from David he and Alex were able to “visit” 1902 and observe and talk to the spirits of the Teasedale family, as this is what they were stuck in their house in the spirit world,. I could keep on going bc this book has so much depth that I had to really think of what to put in my review. At the end of the book David was literally drained of all energy and he needed to pull Alex “out” as fast as possible which tells me some bad stuff was about to go down.
This book kept me on my toes the whole time and really made me think of what the hell was happening here?! I enjoyed the character development and how the story flowed and gave me the creeps at the same time! I am looking forward to the next book in the David Hammond series.
I received this ARC from BookSirens and I am voluntarily leaving my review.
February 26, 2026
Oliver's Voice was a very interesting book with an intriguing premise. What seems like a standard ghost story quickly morphs into a thriller with a possible time travel twist. 14 year old Alex lives in an old house where another 14 year old boy died of consumption 100 years earlier. When he starts hearing coughing and then apparently travels back to meet the young boy and his family, a renowned TV psychic is called in to investigate. Things are not as they seem in the house and a deadly anniversary approaches that sets sinister events in motion.
I really enjoyed the book and the varying viewpoints of the boy, his family, and the psychic team. However, there were unresolved issues such as the evil presence that was sensed by the psychic upon first entering the home but which was ignored later in the book. The phenomenon was never fully explained, and the events at the end were not really believable - changing an event in the past rewrites everything going forward and does not cause people that no one remembers to suddenly appear in the present . Time is linear so that was totally implausible, although the ever-changing documents was a really fun touch!!
All-in-all, this book is well worth the read, and has a lot of intriguing theories for what is explained away as paranormal experiences. I will definitely read the rest of the series as it is released.
I read an advance copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a reiew.
I really enjoyed the book and the varying viewpoints of the boy, his family, and the psychic team. However, there were unresolved issues such as the evil presence that was sensed by the psychic upon first entering the home but which was ignored later in the book. The phenomenon was never fully explained, and the events at the end were not really believable - changing an event in the past rewrites everything going forward and does not cause people that no one remembers to suddenly appear in the present . Time is linear so that was totally implausible, although the ever-changing documents was a really fun touch!!
All-in-all, this book is well worth the read, and has a lot of intriguing theories for what is explained away as paranormal experiences. I will definitely read the rest of the series as it is released.
I read an advance copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a reiew.
November 6, 2025
Oliver’s Voice is an eerie, emotionally charged ghost story that lingers long after the final page. Nigel Code captures the fragile line between imagination and the supernatural with unsettling precision. The story of Alex a young boy haunted by whispers from another century unfolds with a haunting calm that grows steadily more chilling. What begins as a child’s strange experiences becomes a deeply human tale about belief, denial, and the shadows that connect past and present. Thought-provoking, mysterious, and quietly heartbreaking, Oliver’s Voice is a reminder that some stories don’t fade they echo.
January 28, 2026
This book started out slowly, but was interesting enough. When it got about halfway through, WHAM! They hit you with the plot twist and whoa… I would have never guessed the thing that would happen in this story or how it would end. I will say I was mostly happy with the ending. I still have a few lingering questions. I would definitely read more by this author. I like the way he keeps it suspenseful and just creepy enough to keep you on edge. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
January 19, 2026
Really enjoyed Oliver's story. I wasn't sure if it was a time slip or a ghost story, but either way, the characters kept me enthralled and I didn't want it to end.
What intrigued me was the concept that the actions of people in the present can change outcomes in the past. A refreshing change to the pragmatic 'what is done is done.'
What intrigued me was the concept that the actions of people in the present can change outcomes in the past. A refreshing change to the pragmatic 'what is done is done.'
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews