Ghost Music

by Graham Masterton

The dead cant seek justice can they? - Gideon Lake, a successful composer, is immediately smitten by Kate Solway, who lives below him. They begin a passionate affair, and Kate invites him to Europe so that they can be together without her husband finding out. But when Gideon witnesses all kinds of strange and terrifying events, he soon realizes that nothing in Kates world is what it seems. Gideon must work out who, and what, Kate really is, and what she wants from him . . .

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Paranormal, Mystery, Adult, Thriller, Crime

246 pages, Hardcover

Published March 1, 2009

About the author

Graham Masterton was born in Edinburgh in 1946. His grandfather was Thomas Thorne Baker, the eminent scientist who invented DayGlo and was the first man to transmit news photographs by wireless. After training as a newspaper reporter, Graham went on to edit the new British men's magazine Mayfair, where he encouraged William Burroughs to develop a series of scientific and philosophical articles which eventually became Burroughs' novel The Wild Boys.

At the age of 24, Graham was appointed executive editor of both Penthouse and Penthouse Forum magazines. At this time he started to write a bestselling series of sex 'how-to' books including How To Drive Your Man Wild In Bed which has sold over 3 million copies worldwide. His latest, Wild Sex For New Lovers is published by Penguin Putnam in January, 2001. He is a regular contributor to Cosmopolitan, Men's Health, Woman, Woman's Own and other mass-market self-improvement magazines.

Graham Masterton's debut as a horror author began with The Manitou in 1976, a chilling tale of a Native American medicine man reborn in the present day to exact his revenge on the white man. It became an instant bestseller and was filmed with Tony Curtis, Susan Strasberg, Burgess Meredith, Michael Ansara, Stella Stevens and Ann Sothern.

Altogether Graham has written more than a hundred novels ranging from thrillers (The Sweetman Curve, Ikon) to disaster novels (Plague, Famine) to historical sagas (Rich and Maiden Voyage - both appeared in the New York Times bestseller list). He has published four collections of short stories, Fortnight of Fear, Flights of Fear, Faces of Fear and Feelings of Fear.

He has also written horror novels for children (House of Bones, Hair-Raiser) and has just finished the fifth volume in a very popular series for young adults, Rook, based on the adventures of an idiosyncratic remedial English teacher in a Los Angeles community college who has the facility to see ghosts.

Since then Graham has published more than 35 horror novels, including Charnel House, which was awarded a Special Edgar by Mystery Writers of America; Mirror, which was awarded a Silver Medal by West Coast Review of Books; and Family Portrait, an update of Oscar Wilde's tale, The Picture of Dorian Gray, which was the only non-French winner of the prestigious Prix Julia Verlanger in France.

He and his wife Wiescka live in a Gothic Victorian mansion high above the River Lee in Cork, Ireland.

Reviews

[John Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compulsive page-turner!

A successful composer, Gideon Lake, buys a high-end New York apartment and then sees his life spiral out of control. A neighbour, the beautiful, mysterious and secretive, Kate Soloway, enters his life and they quickly embark upon a passionate affair. He soon witnesses all kinds of strange and terrifying events following his dalliance with Ms. Soloway. She introduces him to a number of strange families, all of whom are hiding some terrible secrets. Just what is he experiencing, past of future events? I found this an engaging story, with fully believable characters and a compulsive plotline. A real page-turner of a book!

[Bandit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great story by Masterton, this one is much more of a whodunit, sorta like a haunted ghostly romantic whodunit. The always fleshed out characters and realistic detailed settings really make this work and though at times the mystery aspect of it felt a bit frustrating, it all made perfect sense in the end. I highly recommend this one.

[Margaret · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess nothing annoys me more than when a reasonably intelligent and observant character behaves like an incurious, oblivious idiot just because the author needs him to in order to sustain the suspense of the narrative. I got so far ahead of the narrator of GHOST MUSIC that I lost all respect for –and subsequently interest in – him. Among other things, he seems to be unaware of the existence of computers or the internet until the last 15 pages of the story, when he finally does some Googling and needless to say makes all the connections straightaway. (Seriously, if you arrived at an address you’d been given in a strange city, and there was no name on the bell and no answer when you rang it, and the taxi driver said to you, “if you knew what had happened in that house you wouldn’t want to stay there, I can recommend a good hotel” – how fast would you get to a computer and start digging?) Masterton is an accomplished horror novelist in a kind of ripping-yarn style, the premise of this story was engaging enough to keep me reading (if not wholly original), and it does have what I have to acknowledge is a satisfyingly high-octane fifth act – after the googling, things really take off. Unfortunately, the copy edit on the edition I read was really shocking: the text is riddled with typos, continuity problems, and fact-check failures - Academy Award winning composer John Williams would I’m sure be startled to find his famously memorable soundtrack for JAWS credited to Lalo Schifrin!

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

One word describes my overall reaction to this book: frustration. The story was interesting, even intense and involving at times, but the overuse of foreshadowing, the refusal of one of the main characters to answer any questions for nearly 200 pages of a 247-page book, and the almost stubborn denseness of the other main character all detracted from this novel.

[Jawairia · Rating 4 out of 5]

kind of slow in the beginning and the middle but the ending saved it.

the main character was kinda dumb but I think if I were fucking a ghost id be in denial too and would also insist that their mirror-shattering orgasms were just opera singer skills.

[Lance Kirby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really found it difficult to put this book down the storyline was a bit like something Dean Koontz would write and I really enjoyed it and definitely recommend reading 📖 it

[Marnie Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

I agree with others with regards to this book being frustrating and annoying at times. Gideon falls for Kate and I don't even understand why as he hardly knows her or spends any time with her before he is flying all over the place to meet people he doesn't know, having terrible experiences and then she won't explain or answer any questions..? I also found it kind of lame/cheesy that there were these "ghost rules" like the ghost can show you what happened but not tell you or the ghost has only 3 years to set things right, etc.. I think we were meant to know the twist about Kate as it certainly wasn't a surprise but overall I did enjoy this book. :)

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 I think it is extremely hard to write a ghost story that doesn't seem completely inane especially since by its very nature you are asking the reader to expend a measure of disbelief. Masterson has managed to do just that, once the reader manages to get over the fact that Gideon would have an affair with someone who he believes is his neighbors wife and than after only 2 meetings decide to fly to Switzerland with her, the rest of the book is scary and entertaining. Loved the premise, the characters and the search by the dead for justice, the scenery and the spooky screams.

[Lulukins · Rating 2 out of 5]

Perhaps because I figured out the premise and ending of this book within the first couple chapters, but I just generally wasn't all that excited about this book. It wasn't particularly thrilling or suspenseful.

[AnarchyReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ghost Music was the very first Graham Masterton book I'd ever read.. Ive read so many of his books now that I've lost count but every time I hear his name, above all the books of his I've read, my first thought is Ghost Music... beautiful story.

[Rachel Maybee]

Okay, so I only got this book because I ordered another book called Ghost Music by An Yu (which I like a lot better, see review for that) on Thriftbooks, but I got this instead. (And, yes, they did refund me the three (3) dollars I paid for it. I didn’t ask them to.) And then I thought: well, I guess fate has brought me this book, so I guess I’ll read it. And then I did.

Things to look out for:

Graphic descriptions of torture, including child torture resulting in child death. Murder, on-screen sex, organ harvesting.

Overall Impressions:

This novel was paced well, the prose was clear, the main character had personality, and the plot was twisty enough to be engaging. While this novel isn’t breaking any new ground, a revenge thriller featuring supernatural elements, it was entertaining enough to read with very minimal boredom. I probably wouldn’t recommend it, but I also wouldn’t recommend against it.

There are some pretty insane descriptions of torture in this novel for it otherwise being a pretty tame plot. Even though it is labelled as a horror thriller, there really aren’t many “horror” elements apart from the people he’s staying with continuously vanishing in strange ways, and so the tonal shift when it comes to descriptions of child torture feels lie whiplash. For example, a girl gets sewn to a mattress and drowned, and another child has his eyes superglued shut. Masterton is certainly creative.

So the twist that Kate is actually a ghost feels a little unearned given that they did have physical, actual sex. However, I’ll give this a pass because the protagonist’s reaction to that exact thing is so believable. He’s as confused as you are. In fact, the protagonist is always confused. And while what’s happening to him certainly would be confusing, he’s so slow to reach the punchline of this twist that he comes across as being willfully ignorant or in denial. That’s the part of the novel that’s probably the hardest to get past as a reader. The rest of it, the international crime ring, felt pretty standard for a thriller. Almost grounded compared to my tenure with Riley Sager.

The author is, tonally, very clearly a middle aged white dude, which is fine since he’s writing another middle aged white dude, but it does put the character at times wildly out of touch with what feels like normal human interaction in a very “what the kids are doing these days” sense.

What's this book good for?:

If you’re a horror-curious thriller reader that wants to pick up something for a plane ride, this book is suited to that. If you like standard thrillers at all, this one will probably appeal to your tastes. It’s not at all difficult to read, and you’ll see the twists coming, but it’s still a decent ride and at least mostly thought-out.

Things I loved:

I do like that he had sex with the ghost, I don’t care about the twist, I lied. It’s so funny to me. And her screams of unnatural ecstasy shatter glass; good for her.

Feelings as a Queer Woman:

I have absolutely no feelings about the writing of the women, I thought it was pretty standard fare. There’s a variety of types of characters. And while Kate veers towards being a damsel in distress/fantasy for the main characters, she has enough else going on due to the plot, and being a ghost looking for revenge, that I think it more or less balances out. As far as the (lack of) gay people in this book: at one point a character named Margot says "that guy you met" to the protagonist so. Bisexual canon.

Pairings:

Pour a glass of wine and then try to find a woman (or ghost or both) to prepare fish for you.
If you like ghost reveals, watch The Others.

[Monica Ryttersson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Efter att Gideon flyttar in i sin nya lägenhet blir han förälskad i sin granne Kate. Hon tar med honom till tre olika platser i Europa; Stockholm, London och Venedig för att träffa hennes vänner. Men allt är så underligt; de ska flyga seperat, vännerna beter sig konstigt och Gideon själv börjar se saker och tror att han har tappat förståndet. Kate säger till honom att hon kan inte förklara, men att han kommer att förstå såsmåningom och som läsare blir man också förvirrad och man blir nästan lite irriterad för att man fattar ingenting, men svaret kommer och allt faller på plats. En övernaturlig kriminalhistora om mord och kärlek och det bästa av allt så har katten Malik en liten roll i det hela. Masterton är en av mina favoritförfattare och även om han har skrivit bättre historier så gillar jag hans sätt att skriva och jag fastnar alltid för karaktärerna.

[Adrian Chamberlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

"One door opens and another closes. But don't forget that doors never open and close by themselves. There are people walking through them, even if there aren't always people to be seen."

A refreshing take on the age-old theme of revenge and justice extracted from beyond the grave, GHOST MUSIC ticks all the right boxes for me. The protagonist, Gideon Lake, is a musician - a composer who works mainly in the commercial sector, creating jingles for advertising. However, his musical sensitivity has given him a gift he is unaware of, until Kate, a woman he believes to be married to the unpleasant neighbour in the apartment below, takes him on a journey of horror and self-discovery.

From New York to Sweden, to London and then Venice, before back to the USA, Gideon is subject to disturbing events that are as baffling as they are terrifying. It is not clear what type of hauntings he is witnessing - even if they are hauntings at all. The families he visits are secretive and wary, seeming to hide some terrible secret; later he sees them in the process of dying.

Future events? Precognition? Dopplegangers, even? His mysterious companion is of no help - she cannot tell him, she can only show him, and he must draw his own conclusions.

This "resonance" that the mysterious Kate is benefiting from is a double-edged sword, as the elderly Pearl who lives above him warns. "They covet every breath you take. They even covet the sunlight that shines into your eyes. They wants it, like Gollum wanted the ring."

The book is a compulsive read, a real page-turner which keeps its secrets right until the last few pages. This doesn't mean atmosphere is in short supply; far from it. The European locations are brilliantly evoked and are superb backdrops to the chilling visions Gideon endures, particularly the events in Sweden and Venice. There is little violence and gore, although two scenes in particular are extremely disturbing: what Gideon sees happen/about to happen/already happened to the children in Venice. Footballs and sewing - I'll say no more.

As always with a Graham Masterton book, the characters are believable, likeable (in some cases, anyway!) and well-drawn with Masterton's trademark realistic dialogue, right down to the minor characters and walk-ons.

My only gripe is that there's a bit too much exposition in the last twenty pages, but to be fair there is a lot to be resolved; it's the mystery which drives the story forward and fuels the plot, so it's only to be expected that there's a lot of information to be imparted at the end. When the secrets are revealed, you will not feel cheated, and will be glad you went along for the ride.

Highly recommended.

[Faery · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've read a few of Graham Mastertons' books so was excited to read this one and had such high hopes, but I was a little disappointed. I liked the premise of the book, but it just didn't really work for me as it seems implausible that Gideon would agree to go off to various countries so easily at Kate's request, given that he had only recently met her, and that she's married to someone else. She gave him no explanation as to where he was going and why, and they didn't even travel together. That's a lot of trust to put in someone you don't really know.

I had also guessed Kate's secret early on in the book too, which is rare for me to do. Despite this, Masterton's great at creating and sustaining atmosphere in this book and I really like his writing style.

Although this particular book wasn't a winner for me, I will still certainly look out for more of the authors titles.

[Melissa 1887 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Od intrygującego rozpoczęcia po najbardziej banalne i nie zaskakujące zakończenie. Historia zaczyna się od masy tajemnic, a w połączeniu z niepokojącymi wydarzeniami daje pozory wielkiej zagadki, której zakończenia nie możemy się doczekać. Jednak z każdym, kolejnym rozdziałem jest coraz więcej wtórności oraz monotonii. Główny bohater ciągle napotyka te same przeszkody i ciągle z tą samą naiwnością na nie reaguje. Ostatnią nadzieją jest zakończenie. Niestety mylną, ponieważ od samego początku można było wszystkiego się domyśleć. Mimo, że pióro Mastertona jest genialne, to jednak tym razem się zawiodłam, sięgając po tą książkę oczekiwałam czegoś więcej

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gideon Lake is a musician who writes commercial jingles. He has just moved into a new apartment and looking forward to starting his life when he meets Kate Solway. It’s love at first sight, with the only problem being Kate’s husband. Kate invites Gideon on a European vacation where things start to go slightly off kilter. Gideon is slowly drawn in to Kate’s life and her plans for revenge on her husband. I have a soft spot for a chilling ghost story and this was one of the best I’ve read since HEART SHAPED BOX by Joe Hill.

[Jason McGathey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first thing I've read from him, but thought it was really good. Well written yet moving along with a brisk, unpredictable plot. After about 20 years of plowing through highly acclaimed, critically pedigreed modern "literature," I've had an epiphany of late and realized that most of it sucks. Instead, during a recent trip to the library, I grabbed this from the horror section at random, and would consider it the best thing I've read in months.

[M. · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise was interesting, but I found the main character to be too shallow for my tastes and it was hard to understand why he would allow events to happen as they did with so little emotional reaction. I do like Masterton's work, but this one, for me, felt like a miss.

[Chip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Guy falls in love with girl. Ordinary, happens everyday.
Woman speaks in riddles, man does not understand. Happens every freaking day.
Throw in some ghosts and a mystery. This book was really slow, but the payoff was there.

[Margie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe it's about my mood rather than the author or book :(

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Ang]

DNF

[Jordan Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually enjoy Graham Masterton’s particular brand of “let’s take two wildly unrelated ideas, smash them together, and see what eldritch monstrosity crawls out.” And to his credit, Ghost Music fits that bill nicely. Haunted melodies + underground secrets + the usual Masterton flavor of “wait, that’s where this plot is going?”… it all starts with that familiar spark of weird originality he’s so good at.

The story follows a musician whose life takes a sharp left turn into the paranormal after discovering his incredibly sexy but mysterious neighbor might not be everything he thinks and leads to horrors, missing people, and a supernatural convergence that only someone with the right ear can unravel. There’s globe-trotting, mystery unraveling, and enough ominous clues to fill an entire season of a mid-budget Netflix thriller.

But here’s the thing: while Ghost Music isn’t outright terrible, it’s definitely one of Masterton’s weaker efforts. The ideas do eventually come together in a satisfying enough way, but getting there feels like slogging through a concept album where every track is an intro. The pacing is exceptionally slow, the foreshadowing is laid on with a trowel, and the constant hopping from place to place starts to feel like narrative whiplash rather than momentum.

It’s not that the book doesn’t work, it just takes its sweet time deciding that it wants to work.

On the upside, this is easily one of Masterton’s most tame and accessible books, especially compared to his early “let’s traumatize the reader for sport” era. If someone wanted a gentle introduction to his brand of supernatural fiction without the usual bodily harm and nightmare fuel, this would be it.

So yes: Ghost Music is a decent idea wrapped in an overlong, under-energized package. A solid three stars. It’s enjoyable enough, but you won’t exactly be humming it afterward

[Vance Knox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Graham Masterton’s Ghost Music is a testament to why he remains one of the most reliable voices in horror fiction. As expected, his ability to weave a gripping, atmospheric tale is on full display here. The story is richly layered, filled with suspense, and punctuated with chilling moments that only a master of the genre could deliver.

However, while the book is undeniably enjoyable, I found myself a little out of sync with some of its cultural references. Published in 2009, the novel contains nods to 1970s horror—a decade that undoubtedly shaped much of the genre, but which feels somewhat distant for readers who aren’t deeply familiar with its particular landmarks. While these references might resonate deeply with longtime horror enthusiasts, they are occasionally overused.

That said, Masterton’s storytelling more than makes up for it. His sharp prose and ability to craft compelling, multidimensional characters make Ghost Music a delight for anyone who appreciates atmospheric horror. Even if some of the 1970s allusions escape you, the novel’s core—a haunting, suspenseful tale—stands strong.

For fans of Masterton or those simply in search of a solid horror read, Ghost Music is well worth picking up. Just be prepared for a few nods to the past that might slip by unnoticed if you’re not steeped in the era’s horror lore.

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this one - on one hand, I found the premise very interesting and I think the book started off really promising. It did also have a number of genuinely creepy moments in it and I thought the ending, while somewhat predictable, did come together quite well. However, something that I just found SO frustrating while reading this book is how unbelievable the main characters reactions were to pretty much everything. He just seemed so weirdly calm in response to all the strange and downright terrifying things that were happening, just constantly took Kate’s word at face value for everything and never even bothered to question it or dig deeper - and then, if that wasn’t bad enough, he makes several really stupid decisions at the end that anyone with basic common sense would know to avoid. And then, when things do inevitably go wrong for him because of said decisions - yet again, I feel like we barely get a believable reaction to really sell any of it. I feel like if those elements had just been tidied up a bit, this could have been a really solid novel.

[Barbra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Graham Masterton is on par with Stephen King as far as I’m concerned. I love his books and have read so many of his novels and enjoyed each one. His genre is mostly horror/paranormal and he knows how to make you keep looking over your shoulder while you read……

The dead can’t seek justice can they? Gideon Lake, a successful composer, is immediately smitten by Kate Solway, who lives below him. They begin a passionate affair, and Kate invites him to Europe so that they can be together without her husband finding out. But when Gideon witnesses all kinds of strange and terrifying events, he soon realises that nothing in Kate’s world is what it seems. Gideon must work out who, and what, Kate really is, and what she wants from him……

[Sharon Leung · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creepy but good

This was a great read, nothing that I wouldn't expect from this author though. I haven't read one of his books in a few years and am glad that I found some more of his work. This book has you questioning your own thoughts as it progresses. Just as you think it is going one way, it goes another. Gideon aka lalo is a young song writer for ads and theme tunes. He moves to a new property and he makes friends with his neighbours. But they all talk in riddles and then he sees a woman whom can't stop thinking about. Slowly things progress from there. But not everything is as it seems. An enthralling read with some great characters.Recommended!

[Hélène Mathis · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've always loved Masterton. But this one??? How can the hero be so oblivious? So stupid?
And, from a editorial stand point, is there a law against having all the languages you used in a novel checked by a speaker of the said language? The French is not French, the Swedish is not Swedish. Can't say for the Italian, though, but it really infuriated me.
I'll go back to classic Masterton and try to forget this one.

[Elisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cried. Such a good book. Lots of mystery in the beginning and riddles but omg does it all tie together in the end! Not your typical ghost story! Themes of ‘how far would you go for love’ but also ‘how disturbingly far a parent’s love for their baby would take them’! I enjoyed this immensely!

[John Gebbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book kept me guessing