The Haunting of Thores-Cross

Publisher's Summary

A haunting historical thriller set in Britain's North Yorkshire Moors about isolation, superstition, and persecution, The Haunting of Thores-Cross explores 18th century life in a picturesque but isolated village in the North Yorkshire Moors. But when a vulnerable young girl is ostracized within her community and accused of witchcraft, the descendants of her neighbors will suffer for centuries to come.

Emma Moorcroft is still grieving after a late miscarriage and moves to her dream house at Thruscross Reservoir with her husband, Dave. Both Emma and Dave hope that moving into their new home signifies a fresh start, but life is not that simple. Emma has nightmares about the reservoir and the drowned village that lies beneath the water, and is further disturbed by the sound of church bells - from a church that no longer exists.

Jennet is 15 and lives in the isolated community of Thores-Cross, where life revolves about the sheep on which they depend. Following the sudden loss of both her parents, she is seduced by the local wool merchant, Richard Ramsgill. She becomes pregnant and is shunned not only by Ramsgill, but by the entire village. Lonely and embittered, Jennet's problems escalate, leading to tragic consequences which continue to have an effect through the centuries.

Emma becomes fixated on Jennet, neglecting herself, her beloved dogs, and her husband to the point where her marriage may not survive. As Jennet and Emma's lives become further entwined, Emma's obsession deepens and she realizes that the curse Jennet inflicted on the Ramsgill family over 200 years ago is still claiming lives.

Emma is the only one who can stop Jennet killing again, but will her efforts be enough?

©2014 Karen Perkins (P)2017 Karen Perkins

wonderful.

I loved this book is and couldn't put it down. a must read . the reader is exceptional and pulls you even more into the story.

A Scary Enough Ghost Story

A present day Ghost Story bouncing to the historical desolate Yorkshire Moors tying together an entertaining fun read

Loved this book

I absolutely loved this book. It had me gripped right from the start. I loved how the 2 time lines run alongside each other. The history the story and the characters had me hooked. This is definitely worth a listen.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

WOW Truly haunting I was gripped by every syllable

I love this book!!! The Haunting of Thores-Cross is a superb listen that is both creepy and gripping in equal parts!

Karen Perkins' writing is excellent. Her plot cleverly follows two separate time periods and stories, each chapter subtly revealing more and more of both, which become increasingly interwoven, leaving you desperate and terrified to hear the next.... I think I'll I'll be hearing 'The Bells' in the dark of the night for a while!!!

The characters are both engaging and realistic, and I was swept away by their respective struggles and journeys. With a strong connection to Yorkshire I found the descriptions of the both the locations and actions of the characters to be very believable.
Without revealing the plot the plight of Jennet leaves you empathising for this complex protagonist, you cannot help rooting for her, as well as being frightened at the same time.

The narrator Fleur Edwards is excellent, providing a perfectly delivered read. It is expertly paced, knowing when to pull you along with action or leave enough space to heighten the tension and chills.

Her portrayal of the array of characters with their variety of accents, characteristics, and nuanced emotions, are all spot on, and are really well differentiated (even those with very similar Yorkshire accents) so that the individual is recognisable clearly from the voice, with their personality nicely dramatised.

Even though I'm a regular listener to audiobooks I'm not normally one for scary stories. However I would thoroughly recommend The Haunting of Thores-Cross, I was completely hooked by it and I will be looking out for more books by Karen Perkins and narrations by Fleur Edwards. A big 5STARS from me!

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

good story but performance could be better

I enjoyed the story and how it went between the past and the present. I enjoyed the fact that there was no 'ghost' or anything that 'appeared' (that sometimes spoils some stories )and the premise of the story was good. found the narrator to be a bit wooden and without much expression at times but ended up listening to the last 4 hours solidly as I wanted to see what happened.
the historical element was good to give an idea of how things were during the time period so thumbs up

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Gripping

I stayed awake after the witchlng hour to finish the story! A cleverly written tale which is sad but makes a lasting impression of those cruel times.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

a feast of pictures for the imagination

It grabs the imagination and let's one get lost in both the past and present. A well written book that allows a good few hours escapism.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

great ghost story

loved this couldn't put it down, lots of description, well narrated even with the acents

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Brilliant!!!

Enjoyably creepy and very atmospheric!

A very well told story with excellent characters and engaging storyline, with lovely writing and a beautiful read by the narrator, I really felt for both Jennet and Emma and their connected journeys.

Would highly reccomemd

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

Unusual ghost story

I listened to the story, with no preconceived ideas, and let the story unwind and take me to a wild Yorkshire moor and the story of Jennet and her traumatic life. I found it , a tad difficult to believe that a solitary woman, would have had such a troublesome life,troubled and shunned by people, and eventually her death. The date swopping , of day, month, and year, due to the two time lines, was a bit off-putting, the ending seemed a bit rushed compared to the slowness of the unravelling of the story.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Please, no more! I’ll be good I promise.

This book is awful. it is poorly read and an exercise in over the top writing and info dumping of the worst kind. it’s childishly or patronisingly read and it reads more like a soap opera. Emma is whiney and pathetic. Are we supposed to be sympathetic with all her tribulations or what? Just awful. Don’t waste your time. I skipped some of it and barely made chapter 6 before I could read no more. I hope I’m in time to return it that’s all.