Reading the 20th Century discussion

Welcome to our Halloween buddy read of...


The Apparition Phase (2020)

by

Will Maclean


All are welcome

Come one, come all


More about The Apparition Phase...

An atmospheric and stunning literary debut, reminiscent of the gothic suspense of Shirley Jackson and the ghost stories of MR James

Tim and Abi have always been different from their peers. Precociously bright, they spend their evenings in their parents’ attic discussing the macabre and unexplained, zealously rereading books on folklore, hauntings and the supernatural. In particular, they are obsessed with photographs of ghostly apparitions and the mix of terror and delight they provoke in their otherwise boring and safe childhoods.

But when Tim and Abi decide to fake a photo of a ghost to frighten an unpopular school friend, they set in motion a deadly and terrifying chain of events that neither of them could have predicted, and are forced to confront the possibility that what began as a callous prank might well have taken on a malevolent life of its own.

Poised to start this one


Looking forward to it 👻

Love the ghost, Nigeyb. I will also start it by the weekend.

I'm now a few pages in 👻

Looking forward to this. My daughter has also chosen it as her Halloween read, so will be buddy reading it with her too.

I’ve been distracted by other things but have read on a bit more and am really enjoying it. Still early days mind

I’ve read a quarter of this now and, from being interesting and enjoyable, a dramatic plot development has taken this up several notches. Looking forward to seeing how this progresses with keen anticipation 😬

Good to hear, Nigeyb. My daughter is also enjoying it and I have started my re-read. Or rather, this time I am listening on Audible. Not quite sure who the reader is but I'm not overly keen, however will persevere.

Have you met Mr Henshaw yet? We also had an allegro in the 1970's, so I have warmed to him!

No sign of Mr Henshaw yet


I'm just in the aftermath of the dramatic plot development

Oh, OK, I know where you are.

I’ve met Mr Henshaw now


I particularly appreciated his possible past Folk-Rock group. Genius. The guitarist obviously 🎸

I remember many Mr Henshaw's from school!

I’ve just started Part 3 now and am getting definite Hill House vibes from Yarlings 👻

Yarlings is a great setup, isn't it? I've never been involved in a seance, but it does intrigue me. Not that I believe in such things, but just to be part of one would be interesting.

Yarlings is indeed a great set up


I’ve read two thirds now and I’m really enjoying it. Thanks for encouraging me to read it Susan. A splendid October read. Eerie and unpredictable, whilst also playful and endearing.

I’m unsure where it’s going, which is great. I have a few ideas but none are held with any strong conviction

👻👻👻👻👻

SO glad you are enjoying it, Nigeyb. My daughter also likes it and she is planning to try her first Shirley Jackson this month as well.

Susan wrote:


"SO glad you are enjoying it, Nigeyb. My daughter also likes it and she is planning to try her first Shirley Jackson this month as well."

Great news Susan

Thanks again for encouraging me to read it

I loved The Apparition Phase


Here's my spoiler free review....

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

4/5


I can't wait to discover what other readers make of it and discussing it in more detail. There's a to unpick

Great review, Nigeyb. Good to hear you enjoyed it.

I'm still planning on reading this... just very busy at the moment and haven't had much reading time to finish current books before moving on to this.

I eagerly await your reaction RC

Susan, was this the buddy read we agreed on near the end of September? Just can’t remember and need pointing in the right direction. Ta.

Hope not as just looked at the kindle price - gulp!

I really mean to read this but I am so far behind with my reading. Not sure I need any more scares at the moment, but will hopefully catch up.

Was it? I can't quite remember now, Ian, sorry! Too many books, as Jill says. I got it on Audible, but I think it has dropped in price before, as I have it on kindle too.

Phew, just finished, and, although enjoying it it just left me feeling a little cold and ‘unfulfilled’. Think I was searching and expecting definite conclusions as we went along but in the end they didn’t seem to quite come about.

Retro feel back to hippy 1970’s - very good.

Harriet Watts…thought of you Susan…lol.

Janice, the school girl…liked her character and her development (end), but what was she actually about? A mystic, white witch or just a plain old nasty piece of work. What did she actually know, especially about Abi and seeing into the unknown?

Ending - after the rather silly walk into the wilderness, was actually quite good (liked the black ghostly body idea following him tho)…and impressed with the epilogue. Was that supposed to be Abi at the steam you think? Assumed it was.

Felt strange having invested in all the characters, especially the group at Yarlings that they all just seemed to eventually disappear and didn’t really feature in the final picture.

Mum and dad…felt sorry for the mother, but dad was a right old p in the a.

Anyway, a good, slightly different ghost story which I enjoyed.

Very hippy, UK 70’s vibes…which was a nice change to my usual fill of horror crazed blood and gore. Good stuff!

I am pretty sure Tim did find Abi, as there is mention in the final part of the book that someone called in anonymously.

Not sure what to think about being compared to Harriet Watts. I'd be hopeless running a bookshop as I wouldn't want to sell anything!

Lol! - yep, you and your books! 😊…little old village girl you. 😁

Was a good addition having her in the care home at the end - liked it. 👍

The Janice girl - wondered why she fainted at school? - the mystic bit…a little family background to explain her strange powers would have been a good addition.

Anyway, how did Spurs get on today?? 👍😁👍. Walk On!

Just bumping this thread as Will MacLean FINALLY has a new book out next year!

Solace House

Summer, 1993, and Alex Lane finds himself at the end of the University summer term, broke and without any concrete plans. So, when he's offered the chance to join a group of students tasked with clearing out Solace House, a large Victorian residence left to the University by a reclusive hoarder called Flayne, he jumps at it. The other students are a mixed bunch, but Alex quickly falls into a close friendship with the mercurial, red-headed Ella.

At first the house seems to be an ordinary, if grandiose, property. But as the team begin sorting through piles of junk, they stumble upon Flayne's journals in which he details his obsession with his missing mother, his discovery of a strange place called Bewise, and - most mysteriously - his belief in another realm lying parallel to ours, along with coded instructions on how it might be reached.

As the students continue to sort through the detritus, one of Alex's companions becomes increasingly obsessed with the hidden secrets of Solace House, Flayne's missing mother, and the possibility that, if only they can decipher Flayne's increasingly unintelligible writings, they might gain knowledge beyond their wildest dreams. That is, assuming, they are willing to sacrifice everything.

Out 7th May. Yay!

That is good news - thanks Susan