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The Old Castle Series
The Squatter: An Old Castle Novel
The house is free, but it comes with a price...
Single mom, Molly Greene, is forced to close her Michelin star restaurant due to the Covid 19 pandemic. To escape the ghosts of her past and the high cost of city living, Molly moves the Greene family to the isolated town of Old Castle where they move into a free-of-charge 200-year-old stately farmhouse...which isn’t quite vacant.
The Greene family realise they've become unwitting participants in a macabre contest where the farmhouse is the first prize...or is it? Little do they know they're sharing their house with a sinister squatter that lingers in the fireplace and likes to come out and play when the sun goes down.
Financially broke, Molly decides to go public about the ominous presence in the farmhouse, hoping to cash in on the phenomena, never considering the repercussions of her actions.
Single mom, Molly Greene, is forced to close her Michelin star restaurant due to the Covid 19 pandemic. To escape the ghosts of her past and the high cost of city living, Molly moves the Greene family to the isolated town of Old Castle where they move into a free-of-charge 200-year-old stately farmhouse...which isn’t quite vacant.
The Greene family realise they've become unwitting participants in a macabre contest where the farmhouse is the first prize...or is it? Little do they know they're sharing their house with a sinister squatter that lingers in the fireplace and likes to come out and play when the sun goes down.
Financially broke, Molly decides to go public about the ominous presence in the farmhouse, hoping to cash in on the phenomena, never considering the repercussions of her actions.
449 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 30, 2021
183 people are currently reading
3352 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan Dunne
25 books1,303 followersJonathan narrates his own work as well as classic horror and gothic tales from the public domain. 👉 Listen on my YouTube channel
Jonathan's next novel will be psychological gothic horror Mummy: An Old Castle Novel coming 2026!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Jonathan's supernatural horror The Reek: An Old Castle Novel is slated for release late 2026!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Supernatural horror Halfway House: An Old Castle Novel coming early 2027!
https://tinyurl.com/338zumv8
OUT NOW! Dead Air Vol 2 of The Dead Series in Kindle, paperback, and hardback! Audiobook read by the author.
https://a.co/d/76KU54N
OUT NOW! The Boneyard: Short Fictions of the Morbid and Macabre Vol 2 of short horror collection The Boneyard Series.
https://a.co/d/gnGHpMP
OUT NOW! The Boneyard: Short Fictions of the Morbid and Macabre Vol 1 of short horror collection The Boneyard Series. Keep an eye out for Vol 2 in the coming weeks!
https://a.co/d/2i8iwB9
OUT NOW! Fireman in Kindle, paperback, and hardback! Audiobook read by the author.
https://a.co/d/9PJLr30
Jonathan has an exciting lineup of new horror titles in progress. To stay updated on his latest horror offerings, be sure to follow him on his Amazon author page and Goodreads. Jonathan writes dark fiction and hangs around the local cemetery more often than is healthy, whether in his homeland of Limerick, Ireland or his second home in Toledo, Spain. He will be in the mountains if he isn't at the cemetery. Jonathan holds a BA in Literature.
Jonathan's audiobooks YouTube page (work in progress):
https://www.youtube.com/@JonathanDunn...
Jonathan's Amazon Page:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jonatha...
Jonathan's Bookbub Page:
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jonat....
Jonathan's next novel will be psychological gothic horror Mummy: An Old Castle Novel coming 2026!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Jonathan's supernatural horror The Reek: An Old Castle Novel is slated for release late 2026!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
Supernatural horror Halfway House: An Old Castle Novel coming early 2027!
https://tinyurl.com/338zumv8
OUT NOW! Dead Air Vol 2 of The Dead Series in Kindle, paperback, and hardback! Audiobook read by the author.
https://a.co/d/76KU54N
OUT NOW! The Boneyard: Short Fictions of the Morbid and Macabre Vol 2 of short horror collection The Boneyard Series.
https://a.co/d/gnGHpMP
OUT NOW! The Boneyard: Short Fictions of the Morbid and Macabre Vol 1 of short horror collection The Boneyard Series. Keep an eye out for Vol 2 in the coming weeks!
https://a.co/d/2i8iwB9
OUT NOW! Fireman in Kindle, paperback, and hardback! Audiobook read by the author.
https://a.co/d/9PJLr30
Jonathan has an exciting lineup of new horror titles in progress. To stay updated on his latest horror offerings, be sure to follow him on his Amazon author page and Goodreads. Jonathan writes dark fiction and hangs around the local cemetery more often than is healthy, whether in his homeland of Limerick, Ireland or his second home in Toledo, Spain. He will be in the mountains if he isn't at the cemetery. Jonathan holds a BA in Literature.
Jonathan's audiobooks YouTube page (work in progress):
https://www.youtube.com/@JonathanDunn...
Jonathan's Amazon Page:
https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jonatha...
Jonathan's Bookbub Page:
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jonat....
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 121 reviews
February 25, 2025
This was a harrowing thrill ride! Haunted house and/or ghost stories take quite a bit to win me over, but this did in a supreme way. It was a labor of love, as the book was fairly long, but it was paced and executed so perfectly that I couldn’t stop myself from taking my sweet time with it. And by the time you get to the big finale, you’re just dying to see what ends up happening, and boy is it worth the efforts. Molly goes through such a dramatic shift throughout, and you sit in the passenger seat, as she descends into madness. And her poor daughters are just treated as collateral damage. The psychological aspect was spot on and really compelling, as it’s intermingled with The Squatter and farmhouse in such a unique way. Prendergast was utterly creepy and served his purpose as an emotion-lacking antagonist. It was just all done so well. I would’ve liked maybe a bit more on her failed restaurant venture, even as a cherished memory with her family as a whole, but that just may be my preference. But I loved this book and highly recommend it to all horror fans!
April 21, 2022
Wow, what a story! From beginning to end Jonathan Dunne had me gripped, and living within this book. I usually run away from a book which takes around 9 hours to read, but this was written so beautifully with intelligence, and had me bang, right in the middle of all the action. This was so much more than a haunted house story, and gave me the heebiejeebies, throughout. I’m not one to scare easily but this was HELLA scary!! This was my first outing with JD, but it definitely won’t be the last. A very creepy 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and I thoroughly recommend to any horror fan!!
Also reviewed on Amazon!
Also reviewed on Amazon!
September 1, 2022
You know the saying, "if it seems too good to be true..."
Molly Greene is having a rough go of it. She had to close her Michelin star restaurant due to the COVID pandemic. She is a single mother of three daughters, so not having another income has crippled her financially. She is still grieving the loss of her husband and son and is doing the best that she can.
When she is offered a home to live in for free for a year, she jumps at it. She makes plans to move and gets a new job. Living for free...hmmm. What's the catch? Well.... there is a squatter living there as well...…..
This was a creepy and fun book for me. I didn't mind the length and enjoyed watching as things get interesting.
Creepy, tense, and unsettling.
I received a copy of this book from the Author and goodreads in a goodreads giveaway. The thoughts and opinions are my own.
Molly Greene is having a rough go of it. She had to close her Michelin star restaurant due to the COVID pandemic. She is a single mother of three daughters, so not having another income has crippled her financially. She is still grieving the loss of her husband and son and is doing the best that she can.
When she is offered a home to live in for free for a year, she jumps at it. She makes plans to move and gets a new job. Living for free...hmmm. What's the catch? Well.... there is a squatter living there as well...…..
This was a creepy and fun book for me. I didn't mind the length and enjoyed watching as things get interesting.
Creepy, tense, and unsettling.
I received a copy of this book from the Author and goodreads in a goodreads giveaway. The thoughts and opinions are my own.
August 25, 2022
This is one of those books I saw mentioned in a few different places and I just had to read it too. Usually I'm just the opposite. If I see too many people talking about a book, I'll put it on the back burner for a while. I'm always afraid it will be over-hyped.
With that said, I started reading The Squatter braced to be disappointed, but that didn't last for long. I fell instantly in love with the Greene family! A hard working mom to three girls loses her Dublin restaurant because of Covid restrictions. She lost her husband and young son in a car accident a couple of years earlier. With few options and even less money, she decides to take a chance on a new job and a too-good-to-be-true offer to move her family into a free farm house in a rural town. But there's a catch! Isn't there always?
.
A squatter has been living in the farm house long before the Greene family rolls in. It's not long before the Greenes realize his presence and really spooky things begin to happen. The man living in the gatehouse on the property is just slightly less spooky than the squatter. The townsfolk are strongly opinionated and don't like the Greenes' presence in the small town. Did they make the right decision to make the move?
I got so wrapped up in the story I had a couple of long nights, not wanting to put the book down. It also had me checking dark corners in the bedroom before I fell asleep. It's been a while since a book has left me feeling that spooked!
I debated whether I'd let the lack of proofreading in this book lower my rating. Ultimately I decided my rating is how much I enjoyed my experience reading the book. If there weren't so many glaring errors throughout the book, I honestly would have given it five stars. I enjoyed the story that much! But the errors kept jerking my poor brain right out of the story. That is the only reason I'm giving four stars instead of five.
With that said, I started reading The Squatter braced to be disappointed, but that didn't last for long. I fell instantly in love with the Greene family! A hard working mom to three girls loses her Dublin restaurant because of Covid restrictions. She lost her husband and young son in a car accident a couple of years earlier. With few options and even less money, she decides to take a chance on a new job and a too-good-to-be-true offer to move her family into a free farm house in a rural town. But there's a catch! Isn't there always?
.
A squatter has been living in the farm house long before the Greene family rolls in. It's not long before the Greenes realize his presence and really spooky things begin to happen. The man living in the gatehouse on the property is just slightly less spooky than the squatter. The townsfolk are strongly opinionated and don't like the Greenes' presence in the small town. Did they make the right decision to make the move?
I got so wrapped up in the story I had a couple of long nights, not wanting to put the book down. It also had me checking dark corners in the bedroom before I fell asleep. It's been a while since a book has left me feeling that spooked!
I debated whether I'd let the lack of proofreading in this book lower my rating. Ultimately I decided my rating is how much I enjoyed my experience reading the book. If there weren't so many glaring errors throughout the book, I honestly would have given it five stars. I enjoyed the story that much! But the errors kept jerking my poor brain right out of the story. That is the only reason I'm giving four stars instead of five.
September 2, 2022
I knew when I read the line "The house was free" that our single mom, Molly should remember that there is no such thing as a free lunch, much less an entire free house. Something wasn't right. Of course, she didn't listen to me.... or to anyone else for that matter. I began to feel Molly utter frustration with her financial situation, her new business that wasn't doing so well, and how everyone began telling her that "bad things had happened there", but she wanted to provide for her girls, and she was the grand prize winner of this 200-year-old farmhouse. I wondered if she was the ONLY entry in that contest. She heard the warnings but was reluctant to believe there was any such thing as a real haunted house. Ghosts are just Halloween things...right?? I began to suspect that things were going to go wrong fast when a stipulation was put on her winnings of a probationary period to determine if she is the right person for the house. Exactly what was the qualifications for being the right person? She and the girls and their cockatoo Louis, move in and almost immediately things start to go bump in the night. I've read this author before and he always gives a ghost story an extra set of goosebumps and a truckload of chills. This one is no exception. The "ghost-story junkie" loved it. The ghost wasn't especially malevolent. However, the fact it was a ghost, and it was "in your face there"...was enough. "The Squatter" was eventually identified and Molly wanted to help...but could she? Could anyone? I'm not telling. You'll just have to read the story to find out.
August 30, 2023
3,0 ✨✨✨
(Audiobook)
(Audiobook)
January 14, 2022
As a fan of both horror and Jonathan Dunne’s previous novels The Squatter ended up being quite the experience. As much as I love Dunne’s almost lyrical style writing the power and strength of his work will always be defined by his characters. He can flesh out a complex, quirky, sometimes distasteful character in just a few chapters.
I loved the atmosphere of the house. I loved the family dynamic. I loved every creepy moment (undulating black masses every time) that sent those little electric chills I find so addicting.
I loved the atmosphere of the house. I loved the family dynamic. I loved every creepy moment (undulating black masses every time) that sent those little electric chills I find so addicting.
August 10, 2022
This was my first book to read by this Author. I thought it was well written and a thrilling novel. Kept me on the edge of my seat - I really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters! I will definitely be checking to see what else he has written.
April 23, 2024
4.5 stars ...
This was superfun! I went in with low expectations after buying a 5-audiobook 'Old Castle' set for 99 cents ... never heard of the author before. However, I thoroughly enjoyed this (the first book in the set) very much ... quite original and entertaining! Now I'm really lookin' forward to the other four books. 👍😁👍
This was superfun! I went in with low expectations after buying a 5-audiobook 'Old Castle' set for 99 cents ... never heard of the author before. However, I thoroughly enjoyed this (the first book in the set) very much ... quite original and entertaining! Now I'm really lookin' forward to the other four books. 👍😁👍
September 29, 2023
Great book!
The book was really good, it started out good from the beginning until the end. I enjoyed reading this book, and it was amazing.
The book was really good, it started out good from the beginning until the end. I enjoyed reading this book, and it was amazing.
January 6, 2025
My first read of #2025 and it's a five star! 🤗
This was also my first Jonathan Dunne, but it won't be my last. I already added Fireman to my library and I have my eye on couple more. His writing is impeccable. 👌
In The Squatter he masterfully weaved the dread throughout the book from start to finish. I tried reading it at night, but I gave up once I started freaking out over literally everything, from the hum of the dehumidifier to shadows "looming" in the corners.
The Squatter is one part grief horror and one part a haunted house story. There's a bit of everything in it. The characters are well developed with thorough, but not overly explained back stories. The horror is immediate and it is on right until the very end. The ending is also in-yo-face kind of satisfying.
This was also my first Jonathan Dunne, but it won't be my last. I already added Fireman to my library and I have my eye on couple more. His writing is impeccable. 👌
In The Squatter he masterfully weaved the dread throughout the book from start to finish. I tried reading it at night, but I gave up once I started freaking out over literally everything, from the hum of the dehumidifier to shadows "looming" in the corners.
The Squatter is one part grief horror and one part a haunted house story. There's a bit of everything in it. The characters are well developed with thorough, but not overly explained back stories. The horror is immediate and it is on right until the very end. The ending is also in-yo-face kind of satisfying.
October 18, 2022
Scary Read
Truly enjoyed the fright. I will be looking for other reads from this author as his writing evokes fear similar to Stephen King's works
Truly enjoyed the fright. I will be looking for other reads from this author as his writing evokes fear similar to Stephen King's works
August 26, 2022
Very basic premise that offered something it couldn’t live up to. Excellent title and creepy cover, could it be like the 80s horror/ thriller Creep? Or Penpal? I had horror fomo when I saw one little review on this book. Yet from the minute I opened up the cover and saw the large print, I knew it was a dud. I could feel it in my heart. However, I strode onwards pretending to myself it would get better but I knew. I knew.
One thing I have learnt is that I have absolutely no desire to read anything about the damn pandemic. I want to open a book and escape to a different time and place. Not be affronted with the suffocating feeling of lockdown and read about the effects of government measures on the restaurant industry and talk of people wearing medical masks. I’ve had enough of that! It’s the last thing I want to see on the pages of a horror book! And I’m all for modern horror but this felt… basic and unimaginative. There was no literary quality or a creeping sense of dread. I could not get into the characters at all. A failing business, a weird old man and an offer they couldn’t refuse on a creepy house in the middle of nowhere…. Really? Not nearly enough to convince hardened horror lovers. I want my money back!
One thing I have learnt is that I have absolutely no desire to read anything about the damn pandemic. I want to open a book and escape to a different time and place. Not be affronted with the suffocating feeling of lockdown and read about the effects of government measures on the restaurant industry and talk of people wearing medical masks. I’ve had enough of that! It’s the last thing I want to see on the pages of a horror book! And I’m all for modern horror but this felt… basic and unimaginative. There was no literary quality or a creeping sense of dread. I could not get into the characters at all. A failing business, a weird old man and an offer they couldn’t refuse on a creepy house in the middle of nowhere…. Really? Not nearly enough to convince hardened horror lovers. I want my money back!
August 3, 2022
Great story until the end
I truly was captivated by this story. I kept wondering why the mom was being so stupid. I was not a fan of the end which is why I only gave it four stars.
I won this book through a goodreads.com giveaway.
I truly was captivated by this story. I kept wondering why the mom was being so stupid. I was not a fan of the end which is why I only gave it four stars.
I won this book through a goodreads.com giveaway.
March 12, 2022
3.5 rounded up
December 30, 2021
Left the light on after reading this! OMG, creepy as f***k. Compulsive reading, finished the 350-pg book in 1 day!
April 9, 2022
Did this book have an editor?
June 20, 2022
A new master of suspense! Loved this from start to finish. I get why why it could be a love or hate book. I loved the slowly building tension to the grand finale which came as a shock!
December 31, 2021
I felt like giving this four stars only because of the sudden shock of how it ended. But that was only because I wanted more and I suddenly felt adrift. It's a book that will stay with me funny to think Dunne used to write humorous fiction!
April 14, 2022
Wow, scary! Shocking ending. I don't know why I found it shocking because I knew where it was heading but I thought the author might have thrown in one last twist but this was an unforgiving and uncompromising an accurate account of psychological descent into madness and chaos.
February 12, 2022
GoodReads Give-away - Thank you very much!
very scary and FAST read! i did not know this author before, but will definitely read more of his!
very scary and FAST read! i did not know this author before, but will definitely read more of his!
July 17, 2022
Disturbing and creepy!
Excellent haunted house story! Well-written with relatable characters, the story unfolds with increasing tension on every page. Chilling and tragically sad.
Excellent haunted house story! Well-written with relatable characters, the story unfolds with increasing tension on every page. Chilling and tragically sad.
March 10, 2025
3.5, rounding up (half star off was for editing errors throughout)
THE SQUATTER, by Jonathan Dunne, was as unique a "haunted house" story, as I could have asked for. While I wasn't thrilled with the mother, Molly's, alcoholism and the way she pushed her daughters' feelings aside for whatever she wanted to do, overall, the book held my attention. I couldn't stop wanting to read further, as the events unfolded at such a pace that you don't have everything revealed all at once. Rather, you get little pieces of information from various sources--including Molly's impression--and have to put the overall picture together yourself.
Molly needs to move after the shut-down of her restaurant, and finds an "intriguing" offer--a free farm house, to the right family... While everyone would be screaming that there has got to be a catch (in fact, it crosses Molly's mind quite often), she decides she can handle this particular "issue"--against the wishes of her 3 daughters, and everyone else who knows the history of the house.
The haunting was truly creepy, and the aspect of not knowing what exactly happened prior to bring about this situation, made it even more so. Can Molly win over the Squatter, or will she go running away in the night, as many before her??
Overall, a solid story with genuinely creepy scenes. The editing errors/mixed up names, did bother me while reading, but I still wanted to know the rest. It would be interesting to read a "Prequel" of this story in the future.
Recommended.
THE SQUATTER, by Jonathan Dunne, was as unique a "haunted house" story, as I could have asked for. While I wasn't thrilled with the mother, Molly's, alcoholism and the way she pushed her daughters' feelings aside for whatever she wanted to do, overall, the book held my attention. I couldn't stop wanting to read further, as the events unfolded at such a pace that you don't have everything revealed all at once. Rather, you get little pieces of information from various sources--including Molly's impression--and have to put the overall picture together yourself.
Molly needs to move after the shut-down of her restaurant, and finds an "intriguing" offer--a free farm house, to the right family... While everyone would be screaming that there has got to be a catch (in fact, it crosses Molly's mind quite often), she decides she can handle this particular "issue"--against the wishes of her 3 daughters, and everyone else who knows the history of the house.
The haunting was truly creepy, and the aspect of not knowing what exactly happened prior to bring about this situation, made it even more so. Can Molly win over the Squatter, or will she go running away in the night, as many before her??
Overall, a solid story with genuinely creepy scenes. The editing errors/mixed up names, did bother me while reading, but I still wanted to know the rest. It would be interesting to read a "Prequel" of this story in the future.
Recommended.
May 11, 2022
Love the slow-burning suspense. Love the family dynamic. Just as I read 'the end' I felt as if the carpet had been pulled out from beneath my feet. I get why some readers don't like the finale and others do. I'm in the 'do' camp :) I'm going to be thinking about this one!
December 5, 2022
squatter
It took me a little while to get into this book but then I met the squatter and the book became very interesting. It could do well with a sequel.
Can’t stop thinking about this story …
It took me a little while to get into this book but then I met the squatter and the book became very interesting. It could do well with a sequel.
Can’t stop thinking about this story …
January 16, 2025
Read this one with the lights ON!!
August 16, 2024
Creepy and eerie. 🫶🏻
January 28, 2022
Most of the story is very frightening, is ok to me, cannot give a real opinion not to spoil anyone
August 5, 2024
The first supernatural horror that has genuinely scared me in a long time.
November 14, 2022
What’s up with that ending?
I had high hopes for The Squatter. The sense of loss from COVID alone made it interesting enough, but the free house was the clencher and begin of this ghostly tale. What hurt this story most was the actual story.
Molly was a tortured soul, broken was the familiar term, but to have her family endure such calamity was horrific. What’s worse than horrific was how this tale was written with so much repetitiveness. And then the repeating of the repetitiveness. And then even more on repeat- it Drove ME INSANE! And don’t even get me started on the irrational thinking of Molly. That’s a whole ‘nother review section.
The Squatter disappointed me because Molly, the mother, never had her children’s concerns first. It was all about her. For a responsible, yet grieving parent, this made absolutely no sense. And even before she lost her flipping mind, her actions baffled me. It only got good when it was time for the incredible interview, allowing Molly to share with the world what she had been living with. Unfortunately, it all cam to the world’s most abrupt end. Just like this re-
I had high hopes for The Squatter. The sense of loss from COVID alone made it interesting enough, but the free house was the clencher and begin of this ghostly tale. What hurt this story most was the actual story.
Molly was a tortured soul, broken was the familiar term, but to have her family endure such calamity was horrific. What’s worse than horrific was how this tale was written with so much repetitiveness. And then the repeating of the repetitiveness. And then even more on repeat- it Drove ME INSANE! And don’t even get me started on the irrational thinking of Molly. That’s a whole ‘nother review section.
The Squatter disappointed me because Molly, the mother, never had her children’s concerns first. It was all about her. For a responsible, yet grieving parent, this made absolutely no sense. And even before she lost her flipping mind, her actions baffled me. It only got good when it was time for the incredible interview, allowing Molly to share with the world what she had been living with. Unfortunately, it all cam to the world’s most abrupt end. Just like this re-
Displaying 1 - 30 of 121 reviews