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The Keeper
His predecessor vanished without a trace - and he may be next.
Jeremy takes a job as keeper of a lighthouse reputed to be haunted. In the aftermath of trauma, he's seeking solitude and an escape, and the six-month stint at the lighthouse seems like an answer to prayers. After all, ghosts aren't real.
But his beliefs are put to the test when he begins to suspect he's not alone. The lighthouse loses power. Doors open and slam shut on their own. Objects disappear, only to reappear in different locations. Most eerie are the handprints staining the windows - windows fifty feet up in the air.
Isolated and trapped, he's on his own to survive attacks growing aggressive by the hour. Is Jeremy losing his mind, dealing with a stalker, or was he wrong to dismiss the rumors of a ghost on the premises? And whoever or whatever it is, will it let him live to tell about it?
Jeremy takes a job as keeper of a lighthouse reputed to be haunted. In the aftermath of trauma, he's seeking solitude and an escape, and the six-month stint at the lighthouse seems like an answer to prayers. After all, ghosts aren't real.
But his beliefs are put to the test when he begins to suspect he's not alone. The lighthouse loses power. Doors open and slam shut on their own. Objects disappear, only to reappear in different locations. Most eerie are the handprints staining the windows - windows fifty feet up in the air.
Isolated and trapped, he's on his own to survive attacks growing aggressive by the hour. Is Jeremy losing his mind, dealing with a stalker, or was he wrong to dismiss the rumors of a ghost on the premises? And whoever or whatever it is, will it let him live to tell about it?
210 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 28, 2022
120 people are currently reading
408 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews
August 20, 2022
This was one of the best ghost stories I have read in a very long time. Imagine living a solitary life as a keeper on an isolated light house, miles from civilisation. A reputedly haunted lighthouse to boot! Bumps in the night. Strange voices over the radio. Missing or moved items of equipment. An eerie figure silhouetted in the main light beam. Such happenings would drive anyone to distraction, especially during the night of a wild storm. Then, suddenly, the truth emerges and everything you thought about yourself explodes into unimaginable clarity. This was a brilliant story written by a first class author and I can't recommend it highly enough.
November 4, 2023
I read They Came From the Ocean a few weeks ago and enjoyed it so much that I immediately looked for another Boris Bacic book to buy, and landed on this one. I mean, Lighthouse horror... c'mon you guys, how could I say no?!
Sadly, I wish I had. The writing was subpar. The twist was pretty predictable. And the spooky stuff just wasn't spooky enough.
At least it was cheap.
Sigh.
Sadly, I wish I had. The writing was subpar. The twist was pretty predictable. And the spooky stuff just wasn't spooky enough.
At least it was cheap.
Sigh.
October 23, 2023
I have enjoyed all of Bacic's books I have read but I struggled with this one. The premise seemed like such a perfect book for me. I love a good ghost story and a ghost story set in a lighthouse? Yes! However it was nothing like I expected. It is more of a drama centered around mental illness. It's mostly a conversation over the radio that takes place in the course of a day and night. There were a few creepy moments but I felt it dragged. I listened to the audio book (not listed here on goodreads) and the narration took some getting used to. In the end, it was a clever tale so I did like it. But this is certainly the least favorite of his books in my opinion.
July 28, 2022
Jeremy is a lighthouse keeper running from his past. The lighthouse he works at is supposed to be haunted. After five months a big storm moves in. Jeremy starts to hear things, see muddy footprints. A voice from control tower is his only contact. What is in the lighthouse? Totally unexpected ending. Amazing characters. With a touching heart pounding read.
July 1, 2024
90% trauma, 10% horror. Writing is repetitive, character unbearable.
August 1, 2025
Again… if I ever run into a ghost, let alone in a lighthouse. I hope it’s more fucking entertaining than this. 😅
November 19, 2022
A really good spooky book. It has such a good setting which I think is why I liked it so much
January 5, 2023
I wanted the Haunted Series to end good!
The Haunted Series books just got worse and worse I believe. I read The Keeper and one sitting and it’s not scary at all. There’s hardly any action. I’m disappointed.
The Haunted Series books just got worse and worse I believe. I read The Keeper and one sitting and it’s not scary at all. There’s hardly any action. I’m disappointed.
October 23, 2022
3.5 stars. I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, the author creates a foreboding atmosphere and tension that is masterful. On the other hand, the writing is not always good. Some word choices and descriptions were so odd and high schoolish, they took me out of the story or, worse still, made me laugh. I’m surprised the editors didn’t question these choices. e.g. “His arms shook like branches in the wind” to describe the man’s arms trembling. It probably seemed “literary” but to this reader, it painted a picture of a man waving his arms above his head like a douche.. There were many more descriptions like this. A shame as otherwise, this is one of the best ghost stories I’ve read in ages.
September 13, 2023
WTF?!?!?
August 1, 2022
Jeremy is a lighthouse keeper, mainly because he is trying to get away from his past and craves the solitude. His only contact with the outside world is with the Comm Tower. When a new voice comes over the radio, Jeremy finds himself reluctantly enjoying the conversation with the new person, Dannie.
The lighthouse is reported to be haunted, but Jeremy has never seen any evidence of this. However, when a huge storm comes in, things start to get very creepy very fast.
As with most of the author's books, this book is much more than "just" a horror story. The story slowly builds as Dannie and Jeremy talk and as Jeremy fights to decide if events are real or if he is going insane. The ending is poignant and thought provoking and was very unexpected. The book kept my interest from start to finish and I'm sure that I will be thinking about it for a long time.
If you enjoy your horror books with more than just spooky/creepy events, give this author a try. Very well-written, with sympathetic characters and thought provoking scenes, his books are anything but typical.
The lighthouse is reported to be haunted, but Jeremy has never seen any evidence of this. However, when a huge storm comes in, things start to get very creepy very fast.
As with most of the author's books, this book is much more than "just" a horror story. The story slowly builds as Dannie and Jeremy talk and as Jeremy fights to decide if events are real or if he is going insane. The ending is poignant and thought provoking and was very unexpected. The book kept my interest from start to finish and I'm sure that I will be thinking about it for a long time.
If you enjoy your horror books with more than just spooky/creepy events, give this author a try. Very well-written, with sympathetic characters and thought provoking scenes, his books are anything but typical.
December 27, 2022
Really good book
The Keeper was really good, and I didn't see it coming how it ended. I enjoyed reading this book. Awesome
The Keeper was really good, and I didn't see it coming how it ended. I enjoyed reading this book. Awesome
July 31, 2022
THE KEEPER - 5/5
By Boris Bacic
This book was brilliant! It has easily outshone THE DOOR (which was until now, my favourite book by Boris Bacic). This book was read in one sitting, I just could not put it down!
This book was definitely creepy at times and it definitely made me feel a bit claustrophobic!! This was a gripping novel with a fantastic storyline, which I am not going to say too much about - as the twist literally blew my mind!
If you want to try a book by Boris Bacic, I recommend you read this one!!
By Boris Bacic
This book was brilliant! It has easily outshone THE DOOR (which was until now, my favourite book by Boris Bacic). This book was read in one sitting, I just could not put it down!
This book was definitely creepy at times and it definitely made me feel a bit claustrophobic!! This was a gripping novel with a fantastic storyline, which I am not going to say too much about - as the twist literally blew my mind!
If you want to try a book by Boris Bacic, I recommend you read this one!!
April 18, 2023
Boring!
This was painful to read. I gave up at the 45% mark and that was pushing it. No action, lot of mundane back and forth dialogue between the only 2 characters. I don't recommend. Not a ghost story. Boring.....
This was painful to read. I gave up at the 45% mark and that was pushing it. No action, lot of mundane back and forth dialogue between the only 2 characters. I don't recommend. Not a ghost story. Boring.....
October 4, 2022
Hmmm?
I figured out most of the story well before the end. But even at the end, I'm still not sure who Dannie is??
I figured out most of the story well before the end. But even at the end, I'm still not sure who Dannie is??
June 30, 2024
A lighthouse keeper with a tragic family past spends a full night communicating via radio with a new employee at the control tower nearby while a storm rages outside. The keeper begins seeing a dark and mysterious person inside his quarters who is interfering with his job duties, and the keeper begins fearing for his life.
This book was a bit of a slog to get through. Majority of it was a deep, albeit often times boring, conversation between 2 people over walkie talkies, and very little tension or suspense until the last 10 pages. The ending was mildly impressive, even though all the pieces still didn’t quite fit right, but it wasn’t enough to salvage this one for me beyond its mediocrity.
I did love Bacic’s writing style though, and will definitely give more of his work a try.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 🤷🏻♂️
This book was a bit of a slog to get through. Majority of it was a deep, albeit often times boring, conversation between 2 people over walkie talkies, and very little tension or suspense until the last 10 pages. The ending was mildly impressive, even though all the pieces still didn’t quite fit right, but it wasn’t enough to salvage this one for me beyond its mediocrity.
I did love Bacic’s writing style though, and will definitely give more of his work a try.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 🤷🏻♂️
November 23, 2025
Jeremy Hefner is a lighthouse keeper. (Exact age is never disclosed; piecing together the clues, he’s at least early forties.)
Isolated, on the coast of an ocean. He’s been there for five months. Escaping his life.
Depression and alcoholism.
Heavy on allusions to something that occurred five years ago, with ex-wife Nadine and son Ray.
Dannie (37) is the new girl in Control. She talks to Jeremy a lot, over the radio.
Silhouettes and shadows. Muddy footprints. 👣
Moved objects, like the whiskey and the pills.
The missing fuse. The intruder.
The anti-gun rhetoric is a bizarre and unhelpful narrative choice. Author’s own insertion vs. something that could pass for organic.
As usual with Bacic, plenty of ESL mistakes.
For a short-ish novel, this is not paced well. At all.
The rollout is disappointingly predictable.
The story itself is not the strongest, but the ending is absolutely asinine. 👎🏻👎🏻
Isolated, on the coast of an ocean. He’s been there for five months. Escaping his life.
Depression and alcoholism.
Heavy on allusions to something that occurred five years ago, with ex-wife Nadine and son Ray.
Dannie (37) is the new girl in Control. She talks to Jeremy a lot, over the radio.
Silhouettes and shadows. Muddy footprints. 👣
Moved objects, like the whiskey and the pills.
The missing fuse. The intruder.
The anti-gun rhetoric is a bizarre and unhelpful narrative choice. Author’s own insertion vs. something that could pass for organic.
As usual with Bacic, plenty of ESL mistakes.
For a short-ish novel, this is not paced well. At all.
The rollout is disappointingly predictable.
The story itself is not the strongest, but the ending is absolutely asinine. 👎🏻👎🏻
January 28, 2023
not his best book
Absolutely nothing scary happened before the 60% mark. Nothing. The main character is not at all likable. And the back and forth between him and the only other person in the book was painful to read. I knew the way it would end because a review I read had a spoiler that they did not warn about first. (So rude) (I reported them) So I had to sit back and consider my rating as if I didn’t know how it would end and I must say it was a very good twist at the end. That said IMO it wasn’t worth how much it dragged on and this was a short book so that’s saying something. I would recommend a different book by this same author.
Absolutely nothing scary happened before the 60% mark. Nothing. The main character is not at all likable. And the back and forth between him and the only other person in the book was painful to read. I knew the way it would end because a review I read had a spoiler that they did not warn about first. (So rude) (I reported them) So I had to sit back and consider my rating as if I didn’t know how it would end and I must say it was a very good twist at the end. That said IMO it wasn’t worth how much it dragged on and this was a short book so that’s saying something. I would recommend a different book by this same author.
May 20, 2025
Нещодавно занурилася в тему маяків, чому догляд за ними важкий емоційно та оповитий байками. Про оте все поступовне зсування даху в ізоляції, самогубства, привидів і тому подібне. Тому цей трилер/горор припав до ока. І був він не мурашчатий, кінцевий поворот сам по собі непоганий, але якось ніби стояв окремо від всієї оповіді до того. Ніби все тааааак збовтано і туманно в минулому головного героя, що книга трохи розсипається на деталі та не лягає в атмосферну картинку. Автору б побільше сторінок, тут він явно не вмістив описати поступовість та тиху невпинність сходження з рейок.
Просто собі книга провести обідню перерву.
Просто собі книга провести обідню перерву.
November 27, 2022
The Keeper is probably one of Bacic's subtlest novels to date, which also makes it one of his scariest. If you've played Firewatch, it shares a lot in common, exploring the relationship between two people over a radio in a remote location where - as would be expected - bad things start to happen.
While Bacic expertly sets up his scares in a truly discomforting way, and while both of his heroes are extremely complex, the book does unfortunately stumble with his somewhat left-of-field ending.
While Bacic expertly sets up his scares in a truly discomforting way, and while both of his heroes are extremely complex, the book does unfortunately stumble with his somewhat left-of-field ending.
November 13, 2022
4.5 stars
I enjoy this author so much. I always know I can pick up one of their books and binge read.
This one created such a creepy atmosphere from the beginning. There wasn't a ton of action, but I actually preferred it that way. The mental blocks that the main character was jumping over were enough.
A couple of the things I guessed, but others not at all. Loved this story!
I enjoy this author so much. I always know I can pick up one of their books and binge read.
This one created such a creepy atmosphere from the beginning. There wasn't a ton of action, but I actually preferred it that way. The mental blocks that the main character was jumping over were enough.
A couple of the things I guessed, but others not at all. Loved this story!
January 31, 2023
My first Boris Bacic book and wow what a belter!
I was initially just looking for books that had a lighthouse setting and this popped up a couple of times so thought I'd give it a whirl.
Darkness, salt water, isolation and bad memories.. It's a very decent ghost story with a twist.. I just could not put it down. It's definitely something I'd recommend and an author I'll be exploring.
I was initially just looking for books that had a lighthouse setting and this popped up a couple of times so thought I'd give it a whirl.
Darkness, salt water, isolation and bad memories.. It's a very decent ghost story with a twist.. I just could not put it down. It's definitely something I'd recommend and an author I'll be exploring.
April 4, 2023
Very Suspenseful
As usual, Mr Bacic has written a very good story. I did not catch on until I was 98% through. I enjoyed the story but wouldn't want to be alone in a lighthouse for months at a time. My imagination is too vivid. I hope you'll read this book and like it too. Happy Reading.
As usual, Mr Bacic has written a very good story. I did not catch on until I was 98% through. I enjoyed the story but wouldn't want to be alone in a lighthouse for months at a time. My imagination is too vivid. I hope you'll read this book and like it too. Happy Reading.
May 6, 2023
Great book!
This story really surprised me because of the ending. Whenever something like this happens,we are filled with horror and sympathy for the victims. We don't think about whatever caused this situation to happen. I'm glad that the author (Boris Bacic)wrote this story because it gives you something to think about. Ilipllllnfffpppll
This story really surprised me because of the ending. Whenever something like this happens,we are filled with horror and sympathy for the victims. We don't think about whatever caused this situation to happen. I'm glad that the author (Boris Bacic)wrote this story because it gives you something to think about. Ilipllllnfffpppll
July 3, 2023
I usually like a bit more action in my fiction, which is a tad thin on the ground in this novel, but the atmosphere is so menacing and spine-chilling that I didn't really miss the action. An isolated lighthouse on the edge of woods in the middle of the night in a bad storm is one of the best settings for a haunted horror novel, and I was completely engaged for every minute of the ride.
February 5, 2024
This was awesome. Loved how the backstories of the characters are slowly revealed, at the correct times in the book so we can make sense of why they are the way they are. Masterful building of tension throughout the story, anxiety rises and continues to rise until the very end. Really cool payoff, clever and captivating stuff. Would recommend for sure.
October 24, 2022
I would give this 6 stars if I could! This a riveting story about a haunting of a lighthouse. As the story unfolds you learn who is doing the haunting, and why. This is so well written that, and the plot so riveting that it is next to impossible to put down.
November 2, 2022
A good read
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this book, but was pleasantly surprised. It’s a good read with action, suspense, scary parts and the main character is well developed. Add in the twist at the end of the book and it’s good!
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this book, but was pleasantly surprised. It’s a good read with action, suspense, scary parts and the main character is well developed. Add in the twist at the end of the book and it’s good!
January 15, 2024
Not what I expected because, it took a great big twist within my mind for how I would've thought the ending concluded to this story. It caught me by surprise and I loved it! I really like Jeremy. Highly recommend!
September 1, 2025
Just saying, Boris Bacic never shies away from the gritty things, and there’s always a twist. In this case I actually guessed right. Not because he gave it away, but because ive been conditioned to guess that way. I will always recommend his books.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 50 reviews