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The House On The Moor
David Blacklaw and Hugh Fraswer were celebrities in the days before it became a dirty word. They had done it all, in grand style—until the mysterious scandal that brought their fame crashing to an end. Now Fraser’s grandson, John, has come to the crumbling Blacklaw ancestral home on the Scottish moors, looking for answers, in search of a story that will make his career.
But what he finds is much more than a cover-up of a scandalous secret. A brooding terror lurks in the shadows of Black law House, something that skitters in the eaves and rustles in the pages of the books in the old library—a dark entity that whispers in John’s ear, seducing and promising. Meanwhile, outside in the mist, something walks the fog-bound moors, getting ever closer to the house even as Jon closes in on the secret.
The race is on for John to find the answer and reap the prize, before the horror takes root in his soul.
But what he finds is much more than a cover-up of a scandalous secret. A brooding terror lurks in the shadows of Black law House, something that skitters in the eaves and rustles in the pages of the books in the old library—a dark entity that whispers in John’s ear, seducing and promising. Meanwhile, outside in the mist, something walks the fog-bound moors, getting ever closer to the house even as Jon closes in on the secret.
The race is on for John to find the answer and reap the prize, before the horror takes root in his soul.
- GenresHorrorGothicSupernatural
144 pages, Hardcover
First published November 20, 2015
27 people are currently reading
81 people want to read
About the author
William Meikle
408 books1,849 followersI'm a Scottish writer, now living in Canada, with more than thirty novels published in the genre press and over 300 short story credits in thirteen countries.
My work has appeared in a number of professional anthologies and I have recent short story sales to NATURE Futures and Galaxy's Edge. When I'm not writing I play guitar, drink beer and dream of fortune and glory.
For an intro to me, my writing and my accent see my Youtube channel
My work has appeared in a number of professional anthologies and I have recent short story sales to NATURE Futures and Galaxy's Edge. When I'm not writing I play guitar, drink beer and dream of fortune and glory.
For an intro to me, my writing and my accent see my Youtube channel
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
November 28, 2015
The House On The Moor by William Meikleis an old style Gothic novella taking place in Scotland complete with a haunted house and ritual magic. The house is creepy and there are strange skuddling sounds in the night, especially in the library andr the basement.
Scotland is widely thought to be one of the most haunted countries in the World, and home to more ghosts, ghouls, banshees and long-legged beasts than anywhere else in the world. Much of the folklore surrounding the ghosts of Scotland have appeared in literature stretching back centuries, and have their roots in the fog of time.
Mr. Meikle has done an excellent job in adding to the Scottish cannon of good ghost stories. According To Dark Renaissance Books this the second book in the Haunted House series.
There are nice full page color illustrations by Wayne Miller.
This is copy number 49 of 100 signed numbered copies, signed by William Meikle the cover is illustrated by M. Wayne Miller.
Scotland is widely thought to be one of the most haunted countries in the World, and home to more ghosts, ghouls, banshees and long-legged beasts than anywhere else in the world. Much of the folklore surrounding the ghosts of Scotland have appeared in literature stretching back centuries, and have their roots in the fog of time.
Mr. Meikle has done an excellent job in adding to the Scottish cannon of good ghost stories. According To Dark Renaissance Books this the second book in the Haunted House series.
There are nice full page color illustrations by Wayne Miller.
This is copy number 49 of 100 signed numbered copies, signed by William Meikle the cover is illustrated by M. Wayne Miller.
March 4, 2024
Entertaining horror listening 🎶🔰
This kindle e-book novella is from my Kindle Unlimited account a stand alone book
They have been summoned to a house in the moors. There they meet a friend of his grandfather and the fun begins.
I would recommend this novella and author to 👍 readers of fantasy world 🌎 haunting horror ghost 👻 adventure novels 👍🔰. 2024
This kindle e-book novella is from my Kindle Unlimited account a stand alone book
They have been summoned to a house in the moors. There they meet a friend of his grandfather and the fun begins.
I would recommend this novella and author to 👍 readers of fantasy world 🌎 haunting horror ghost 👻 adventure novels 👍🔰. 2024
November 3, 2016
I read the S/L version of this one.
January 16, 2016
The House on the Moor, by William Meikle is the second book in Dark Renaissance's "Haunted House" imprint.
John Fraser and his wife, Carole, pay a weekend visit to David Blacklaw. Blacklaw was John's Grandfather's best friend, and the two had quite a reputation when they were young: climbing the tallest mountains, beating world records, etc. Then John's Grandfather, Hugh, died young--and nothing more was ever said.
John--desiring to write a bestselling book about his Grandfather--is hoping that Blacklaw will quickly provide the true reason behind Hugh Fraser's untimely death. As John soon laments, "...the glacial speed at which that was proceeding was enough to have him stifling a scream."
The Scottish moor is rich with folklore, atmosphere, and mystery. Willaim Meikle is a master at using the elements here to provide us with a story full of suspense, tension, and the perfect environment to intensify the fear of what "may" be lurking out there in the fog. A great tale that seemed more about "location" and the characters than the actual house, itself; however, a harrowing story of the desire and greed of men who dabble in things they can never truly understand....
Recommended!
John Fraser and his wife, Carole, pay a weekend visit to David Blacklaw. Blacklaw was John's Grandfather's best friend, and the two had quite a reputation when they were young: climbing the tallest mountains, beating world records, etc. Then John's Grandfather, Hugh, died young--and nothing more was ever said.
John--desiring to write a bestselling book about his Grandfather--is hoping that Blacklaw will quickly provide the true reason behind Hugh Fraser's untimely death. As John soon laments, "...the glacial speed at which that was proceeding was enough to have him stifling a scream."
The Scottish moor is rich with folklore, atmosphere, and mystery. Willaim Meikle is a master at using the elements here to provide us with a story full of suspense, tension, and the perfect environment to intensify the fear of what "may" be lurking out there in the fog. A great tale that seemed more about "location" and the characters than the actual house, itself; however, a harrowing story of the desire and greed of men who dabble in things they can never truly understand....
Recommended!
November 29, 2015
A young man sets out to learn the mysterious circumstances surrounding his grandfather’s death and gain some fame of his own by documenting it, and thereby hangs a tale as eerie as the original….
Hugh Fraser and David Blacklaw were famous in their day, and they did it simply by being themselves, living life to its fullest and letting the world know about it through Hugh’s freelance stories and photographs. Then, in 1968, Hugh died peacefully in his sleep and Blacklaw and Fraser passed into legend…
…until…
Hugh’s grandson, John, decides to interview the surviving member of the team and write his grandfather’s biography, hoping to revive his own flagging career. With wife Carole in tow, he heads to Scotland and a meeting with David Blacklaw, now an invalid in his eighties.
As one might expect, the house is a truly Gothic mansion in as bleak a setting as can be envisioned of the Scottish moors in March. What happens in the house is nothing as John anticipates, however. He doesn’t realize Blacklaw is going to tell him he’s almost his grandfather’s image, a fact which gives the old man quite a start at their first meeting. John is also taken aback by the actual facts of Hugh’s death.
Blacklaw’s open enough about retelling their story, and from McKinnon, the butler, John gets a confirming version. With marriage and a family and their lives settling into their thirties, Hugh wanted to make a “comeback,” and decided the way to do it was to film a television documentary, investigating the supernatural. He’d found a book purporting to contain instructions on how to summon a certain entity and was going to use it……only something went wrong and Hugh died in the process. For his family’s sake, the entire affair was hushed up.
Now John is about to re-open a very deadly supernatural can of worms.
Given the tapes recording the actual ceremony, John hears his grandfather’s own voice tell what he plans to do. There’s a photograph album in the library, a pictorial history of David and Hugh’s adventures together and the last one in the album… Hugh, lying inside a circle-enclosed pentagram…very obviously dead.
There are other things not so tangible…a weird scrambling in the library, books tossed about whenever John’s present…and a hunched, shambling figure seen at long-distance on the moor… John is excited and delves further, researching the thing Hugh was pretending to summon, discovering perhaps he actually succeeded…
He gets the bright idea to re-enact the ceremony and discover what, if anything Hugh actually called up that night, what killed him, and if it’s his grandfather’s spirit or something else now trapped in the library.
Carole tries to reason with him, Blacklaw warns him of what happened to his grandfather, but John is like Hugh in this respect. He’s determined…guided by his grandfather’s voice on the tapes, he knows what happened before, so he won’t make the same mistakes Hugh did. He’s positive he’ll come through unharmed and with the answers he needs…
…but with the supernatural, as with Life in general, nothing turns out as he or anyone else expects.
John’s about to learn that his grandfather succeeded only too well.
The House on the Moor is filled with Gothic nuances and atmosphere. There’s always that expectation of something waiting just around the turn of the corridor or lurking in the shadows off the stairs. There are echoes of The Haunting in the rustlings and sounds emanating from the darkened library ceiling and the memories imprinted in the stones of the basement where the ceremony was held, as well as glimpses of Lovecraft’s unmentionable creations in the translations of the ancient manuscript.
If the reader likes a tale of isolated old houses with dark brooding atmospheres and long-hidden secrets begging to be revealed, of forbidden creatures from past eons waiting to be released on an unsuspecting world, The House on the Moor will appeal.
Best read it before sunset, however…after dark, the rustlings in the library may come back to taunt you.
Hugh Fraser and David Blacklaw were famous in their day, and they did it simply by being themselves, living life to its fullest and letting the world know about it through Hugh’s freelance stories and photographs. Then, in 1968, Hugh died peacefully in his sleep and Blacklaw and Fraser passed into legend…
…until…
Hugh’s grandson, John, decides to interview the surviving member of the team and write his grandfather’s biography, hoping to revive his own flagging career. With wife Carole in tow, he heads to Scotland and a meeting with David Blacklaw, now an invalid in his eighties.
As one might expect, the house is a truly Gothic mansion in as bleak a setting as can be envisioned of the Scottish moors in March. What happens in the house is nothing as John anticipates, however. He doesn’t realize Blacklaw is going to tell him he’s almost his grandfather’s image, a fact which gives the old man quite a start at their first meeting. John is also taken aback by the actual facts of Hugh’s death.
Blacklaw’s open enough about retelling their story, and from McKinnon, the butler, John gets a confirming version. With marriage and a family and their lives settling into their thirties, Hugh wanted to make a “comeback,” and decided the way to do it was to film a television documentary, investigating the supernatural. He’d found a book purporting to contain instructions on how to summon a certain entity and was going to use it……only something went wrong and Hugh died in the process. For his family’s sake, the entire affair was hushed up.
Now John is about to re-open a very deadly supernatural can of worms.
Given the tapes recording the actual ceremony, John hears his grandfather’s own voice tell what he plans to do. There’s a photograph album in the library, a pictorial history of David and Hugh’s adventures together and the last one in the album… Hugh, lying inside a circle-enclosed pentagram…very obviously dead.
There are other things not so tangible…a weird scrambling in the library, books tossed about whenever John’s present…and a hunched, shambling figure seen at long-distance on the moor… John is excited and delves further, researching the thing Hugh was pretending to summon, discovering perhaps he actually succeeded…
He gets the bright idea to re-enact the ceremony and discover what, if anything Hugh actually called up that night, what killed him, and if it’s his grandfather’s spirit or something else now trapped in the library.
Carole tries to reason with him, Blacklaw warns him of what happened to his grandfather, but John is like Hugh in this respect. He’s determined…guided by his grandfather’s voice on the tapes, he knows what happened before, so he won’t make the same mistakes Hugh did. He’s positive he’ll come through unharmed and with the answers he needs…
…but with the supernatural, as with Life in general, nothing turns out as he or anyone else expects.
John’s about to learn that his grandfather succeeded only too well.
The House on the Moor is filled with Gothic nuances and atmosphere. There’s always that expectation of something waiting just around the turn of the corridor or lurking in the shadows off the stairs. There are echoes of The Haunting in the rustlings and sounds emanating from the darkened library ceiling and the memories imprinted in the stones of the basement where the ceremony was held, as well as glimpses of Lovecraft’s unmentionable creations in the translations of the ancient manuscript.
If the reader likes a tale of isolated old houses with dark brooding atmospheres and long-hidden secrets begging to be revealed, of forbidden creatures from past eons waiting to be released on an unsuspecting world, The House on the Moor will appeal.
Best read it before sunset, however…after dark, the rustlings in the library may come back to taunt you.
March 7, 2016
Neat haunted house story.
January 13, 2019
William Meikle writes interesting stories with occult and fantasy elements. I greatly enjoyed Dunfield Terror. The House on the Moor will give readers a taste of his skill in writing creepy, detailed settings - scenery that makes you feel uneasy. This story is a taste of this skill, but not his best.
A large portion of The House on the Moor is the retelling of past events. Flashbacks, reliving stories, playing audio recordings .... not my favorite type of reading experience.
There is a handful of artwork sprinkled throughout the story. Very well done and amazing work.
I will revisit Meikle’s offerings and look for another creepy tale.
A large portion of The House on the Moor is the retelling of past events. Flashbacks, reliving stories, playing audio recordings .... not my favorite type of reading experience.
There is a handful of artwork sprinkled throughout the story. Very well done and amazing work.
I will revisit Meikle’s offerings and look for another creepy tale.
January 6, 2021
There's no one like William Meikle to give you a good old fashioned case of shivers up your spine. This tale unfolded from the outset at a cracking pace, and the Lovecraftian overtones worked a treat, to reach the thrilling climax. A brilliant read, I thoroughly enjoyed this atmospheric romp. As ever, another great story from one of my favourite authors, thank you Mr Meikle for some much needed escapism!
February 13, 2022
Writing a story on his dead grandad, John ends up at the home of his best friend on the Scottish Highlands. As he pushes for information, strange things start happening, which point to his dead grandad trying to contact him from the grave. Good short story, that moves at a nice pace.
June 13, 2024
An eerie tale to read in an afternoon or evening, at the beach, on a train, in a plane, in the rain it will entertain. Very moody and a pretty straighforward story. I usually read creature stories from William Meikle, but he certainly has the chops to do supernatural. Very enjoyable.
July 9, 2019
Great read! I feel if I try to review it more than that, I'll just end up spoiling it for someone else....so just read it!!
January 26, 2020
Ok Meikle. Good setting, subpar treatment, still OK read.
April 27, 2020
Creepy. Short. Very good.
September 15, 2021
Another good one
Mr. M is a top notch pulp author. Excellent take on Scotland horror stories. Characters are real and the atmosphere creepy. Stay away from old tomes.
Mr. M is a top notch pulp author. Excellent take on Scotland horror stories. Characters are real and the atmosphere creepy. Stay away from old tomes.
March 3, 2017
I recently set out in search of something to read by Willie Meikle. I quickly settled on THE HOUSE ON THE MOOR published by DARK REGIONS PRESS (2015). Why? Because it's a haunted house story, which is my favorite type of fiction. Here are my thoughts.
The story begins with John Fraser taking his wife Carole with him to visit his grandfather's best friend David Blacklaw at his secluded house on the moors of Scotland. John is a writer who's researching the strange events surrounding his grandfather Hugh's mysterious death years ago. Only the elderly Blacklaw can provide those answers. In their youth the two friends were adventurous celebrities who'd do most anything to keep their fame on the rise, but that all ended with Hugh's passing.
Blacklaw is a cordial, generous host who, over several days spent at his house, tells John of the bizarre events of those final days. While there, John and Carole begin to experience supernatural occurrences around the house. There are the whisperings of things unseen within its ancient walls, the strange faded symbols drawn on the cellar floor, a mysterious hunched figure glimpsed by Carole lurking ever closer to the house, and something that skitters amongst the high ceilings of Blacklaw's incredible library. The closer John gets to the answers he seeks the more danger he puts himself and his wife in from the dark forces surrounding them.
This is a well-paced, supernatural horror story which is hard to put down as, just like John Fraser, you want to find the answers to the intriguing mysteries saturating Blacklaw house. The characters, Carole and David Blacklaw in particular, are interesting, and the revealed answers to the secrets of the house are satisfying. I very much enjoyed THE HOUSE ON THE MOOR and would highly recommend it to any fan of the horror genre.
The story begins with John Fraser taking his wife Carole with him to visit his grandfather's best friend David Blacklaw at his secluded house on the moors of Scotland. John is a writer who's researching the strange events surrounding his grandfather Hugh's mysterious death years ago. Only the elderly Blacklaw can provide those answers. In their youth the two friends were adventurous celebrities who'd do most anything to keep their fame on the rise, but that all ended with Hugh's passing.
Blacklaw is a cordial, generous host who, over several days spent at his house, tells John of the bizarre events of those final days. While there, John and Carole begin to experience supernatural occurrences around the house. There are the whisperings of things unseen within its ancient walls, the strange faded symbols drawn on the cellar floor, a mysterious hunched figure glimpsed by Carole lurking ever closer to the house, and something that skitters amongst the high ceilings of Blacklaw's incredible library. The closer John gets to the answers he seeks the more danger he puts himself and his wife in from the dark forces surrounding them.
This is a well-paced, supernatural horror story which is hard to put down as, just like John Fraser, you want to find the answers to the intriguing mysteries saturating Blacklaw house. The characters, Carole and David Blacklaw in particular, are interesting, and the revealed answers to the secrets of the house are satisfying. I very much enjoyed THE HOUSE ON THE MOOR and would highly recommend it to any fan of the horror genre.
April 7, 2025
“In the dim light they looked black, almost menacing. Apart from a marching row of telegraph poles that headed off in that direction, there was no other sign of life to be seen in the whole panorama.”
The House on the Moor by William Keikle offers a chilling exploration of isolation and the supernatural. One of the standout moments in the story is when Joseph listens to the audio recordings of a strange ritual, and the voices that emerge from the tape are so eerie and unsettling that they crawl under your skin. Keikle’s writing in this scene is superb, capturing the terror and mounting dread with incredible precision, making it a truly haunting experience.
However, while the atmosphere and tension build beautifully, the novel suffers from a slow pace that occasionally hinders the momentum. The ending, unfortunately, feels anticlimactic. Joseph’s disappearance, with no clear resolution or follow-up, left me frustrated—an unresolved thread that doesn’t offer the catharsis I had been hoping for. The lack of closure on his fate felt like a missed opportunity for a more impactful ending. Nonetheless, the eerie moments and disturbing atmosphere make The House on the Moor worth experiencing for those who appreciate a slow-burn horror story, emphasis on the slow part, though.
The House on the Moor by William Keikle offers a chilling exploration of isolation and the supernatural. One of the standout moments in the story is when Joseph listens to the audio recordings of a strange ritual, and the voices that emerge from the tape are so eerie and unsettling that they crawl under your skin. Keikle’s writing in this scene is superb, capturing the terror and mounting dread with incredible precision, making it a truly haunting experience.
However, while the atmosphere and tension build beautifully, the novel suffers from a slow pace that occasionally hinders the momentum. The ending, unfortunately, feels anticlimactic. Joseph’s disappearance, with no clear resolution or follow-up, left me frustrated—an unresolved thread that doesn’t offer the catharsis I had been hoping for. The lack of closure on his fate felt like a missed opportunity for a more impactful ending. Nonetheless, the eerie moments and disturbing atmosphere make The House on the Moor worth experiencing for those who appreciate a slow-burn horror story, emphasis on the slow part, though.
February 1, 2025
I chose this book because it sounded like a gothic mystery but when I bought it on Kindle it was described as a horror book. As it turned out it became a little of both. This book takes us into Northern Scotland for the husband of a couple to meet with the best friend of his grandfather who had died many years before. There are many questions regarding these friends and the death of the first one to die. Is there a ghost in the home, many other questions arise as well.
November 2, 2016
Excellent atmospheric ghost story!
November 8, 2016
Just ok, I skipped the pages.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews