Catherine Cavendish

Tuesday, 18 August 2026

Ghosts of Chanterlands Has Arrived!

Ghosts of Chanterlands is out now. Here's what they're saying about it:

‘Insidiously eerie, sinuously unpredictable and compellingly chilling, Ghosts of Chanterlands is a spectacularly spectral saga that leads us deep into a labyrinth of dark myth and mystery. It deserves to win Catherine Cavendish many new readers." Ramsey Campbell, World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement Award Winner

'A classic ghost story in the vein of Susan Hill’ – Priya Sharma, World Fantasy Award Winner

'Unspooling like a lost silent-era Hollywood film, Catherine Cavendish’s lushly gothic Ghosts of Chanterlands is like waltzing with lost spirits as they whisper their secrets and melancholy stories in your ear.' - John Palisano, Bram Stoker Award-Winning author of Requiem and All That Withers

‘Cavendish is a master at immersing us in the story’s time and world, while adding plot twists that keep us on the edge of our chairs. Engaging, haunting, and delightful!’ Carol Gyzander, Bram Stoker Award® recipient and World Fantasy Award finalist

‘A great mix of period drama, family secrets and of course some unquiet guests in the house’ – Runalongtheshelves

I’ll always shout about Catherine’s work from the rooftops. Each one I read, I swear it’s my favorite… but then I revisit a past read or read her latest, and it’s the same case!' - Erica Robyn Reads

'Ghosts of Chanterlands is another winner of a novel, a terrific slice of gothic horror from the reigning queen…Cavendish’s fiction is spooky, entertaining stuff.’ – Daniel Robichaud, Considering Stories

'Ghosts of Chanterlands captures everything I love about classic gothic horror. Reminiscent of The Woman in Black, it weaves an eerie haunted house mystery through generations of family tragedy and loss. Catherine Cavendish creates an atmosphere so vivid and unsettling that I felt as though I were wandering the shadowed corridors of Chanterlands myself. A beautifully crafted ghost story that is both chilling and deeply poignant.' Gaby Triana, Gothic suspense author of Moon Child

‘Fans of creepy, suspenseful gothic ghost tales will absolutely love this book’ – JG Faherty, author of Ragman, The Wakening and Sins of the Father

‘This story has it all: family secrets, ratcheting tension, misplaced trust, history, and stunningly written ghostly encounters. I could read this book ten times and still love every word.’ – Somer Canon – Imadjinn Award-winning author of The Killer Chronicles

Fans of Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw and James Herbert’s The Secret of Crickley Hall will enjoy Cat Cavendish’s intimate and atmospheric period ghost story.’ Frazer Lee, Bram Stoker Award Nominee and Edgar Allan Poe Gothic Filmmaker Award Winner

‘A novel brimming with stories of old Hollywood, family secrets, ghosts both benign and malevolent, and a beautiful English country landscape filled with magical flora and fauna. Immersive and unforgettable!’ Christi Nogle, Bram Stoker Award® winning author of Beulah

“This is my favourite of Catherine’s works so far, and I can happily recommend it to fans of spooks, ghosts, and spectres” – Happy Goat Horror

'Fans of classic haunted house stories, Gothic fiction, and ghostly mysteries will find plenty to love here. Ghosts of Chanterlands is a chilling, beautifully crafted novel that lingers long after the final page. ‘— Melissa Prusi, co-author of the Stoker’s Wilde trilogy

‘A chilling tale of ghosts, revenge, loss, and terror. With a plot that weaves and loops through the pages just like the otters dancing in the lake, the reader is swept away in the story’ – Cat Mowat, author of Fragments

“You don’t belong here. None of you do. None but us….”

1940. Pamela Courtney is evacuated to Chanterlands – the home of her aunts: Jilly, the eccentric one, who dreams of her days as a star of the silver screen, and Bunny, the pragmatic one.

But Chanterlands is home to more than just the living. There’s the spectral lonely boy whose room Pamela sleeps in and, in the long-neglected attic, she discovers a sinister secret of this once-great house.

But greater danger awaits Pamela during that summer long ago when war raged all over Europe and the safety her mother had wished for her took a dark and fatal turn.

Online Buy Links

Flame Tree Press

Simon and Schuster

Images:

Nick Wells/Flame Tree Press

Shutterstock

Friday, 7 August 2026

The Bride Who Lost Her Head

Any search for haunted places inevitably brings a plethora of stories of tragic brides who seem unable – or unwilling – to leave the place of their mortal death.

My quest has led me to all sorts of interesting stories. None more tragic than the frequently retold tale of The Headless Bride of Yellowstone Park.

The story goes that a fifteen-year-old girl from a well-to-do family fell in love with an older man who worked as a servant in her parents’ home. When her parents discovered the illicit romance, they were horrified and tried to stop the couple from seeing each other. But their daughter was wilful and obstinate. She would have her lover, and if her parents wouldn’t sanction their union, the couple would simply elope and cause a terrible scandal.

Realising the girl meant business, her father relented and the two were married in a quiet ceremony before going away to the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone for their honeymoon. The girl’s father gave her a considerable sum of money for them to live on until her new husband could find work.

Almost immediately, things went downhill with a vengeance. After a first day, spent happily together, sightseeing and enjoying each other’s company, the husband fell in with a group of gamblers and lost all their money. He confessed what he had done and insisted the girl telegraph her father for more funds. Understandably her father refused to help and, when his daughter broke the news to her wastrel husband, a furious fight ensued, heard by many of the Inn’s other guests.

At some stage during the night, the husband walked out on his new bride. A ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign placed on the couple’s door kept staff at bay for a couple of days. They assumed the girl was grieving for her lost love. But, when she hadn’t been seen for a couple of days, the housekeeper decided to gain entry.

A terrible sight awaited them. There, in the bath, the housekeeper found the girl’s headless and bloody corpse. Her screams brought help from other staff. The police were summoned and an extensive search was mounted to find the husband. They never caught up with him.

Meanwhile, staff at the hotel mounted a detailed search of the building, trying to find the missing head. Finally, a persistent foul odour led them to its hidden location - in the Crows’ Nest of this unusual building. It was not a pretty sight. Her tangled blonde hair framed a rotting face, with wide eyes and a horrified stare.

Not long after her burial, a member of staff was up late, when he heard a strange noise coming from the lobby. As the clock struck midnight, he investigated and looked far up, towards the Crows’ Nest. There, slowly descending the stairs, floated a headless figure, dressed in white. He stared in disbelief as he realised she had something gruesome under her arm – her severed head, complete with tangled blonde curls and horrified stare. She floated along the corridor until she arrived at the door of the room where she had been murdered. Then, she vanished.

His was the first of many sightings, still reported to this day. So, if you stay at the Old Faithful Inn, please don’t have nightmares…

“You don’t belong here. None of you do. None but us….”

1940. Fourteen-year-old Pamela Courtney is evacuated to Chanterlands where she will live with her two spinster aunts: Jilly, the eccentric one, who dreams of her days as a star of the silver screen, and Bunny, ever practical and down-to-earth.

But Chanterlands is home to more than just the living and some of them do not rest in peace. There’s the long-dead lonely boy whose room she sleeps in - and that’s only the start.

Pamela discovers the long-neglected attic and, as she sorts through the assorted detritus accumulated over generations of her forebears, more ghosts stir, and an ancient feud reveals just one of the sinister secrets of this once-great house.

But, in the grounds, there is much more danger awaiting Pamela during that summer long ago when war waged all over Europe and the safety her mother had wished for her took a dark and fatal turn.

Here is what they are saying about Ghosts of Chanterlands:

'A classic ghost story in the vein of Susan Hill’ – Priya Sharma, World Fantasy Award Winner

‘A great mix of period drama, family secrets and of course some unquiet guests in the house’ – Runalongtheshelves

'I’ll always shout about Catherine’s work from the rooftops. Each one I read, I swear it’s my favorite… but then I revisit a past read or read her latest, and it’s the same case!' - Erica Robyn Reads

‘Fans of creepy, suspenseful gothic ghost tales will absolutely love this book’ – JG Faherty, author of Ragman, The Wakening and Sins of the Father

Fans of Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw and James Herbert’s The Secret of Crickley Hall will enjoy Cat Cavendish’s intimate and atmospheric period ghost story.’ Frazer Lee, Bram Stoker Award Nominee and Edgar Allan Poe Gothic Filmmaker Award Winner

“This is my favourite of Catherine’s works so far, and I can happily recommend it to fans of spooks, ghosts, and spectres” – Happy Goat Horror

‘A novel brimming with stories of old Hollywood, family secrets, ghosts both benign and malevolent, and a beautiful English country landscape filled with magical flora and fauna. Immersive and unforgettable!’ Christi Nogle, Bram Stoker Award® winning author of Beulah

‘A chilling tale of ghosts, revenge, loss, and terror. With a plot that weaves and loops through the pages just like the otters dancing in the lake, the reader is swept away in the story’ – Cat Mowat, author of Fragments

Coming out on August 18th 2026, available for pre-order at:

https://mybook.to/GhostsOfChanterlands

https://mybook.to/GhostsChanterlandsHB

Wednesday, 22 July 2026

Ye Otis Ghost and Dorian Gray - Two Sides of Oscar Wilde

Back when I couldn't have been more than ten years old, I saved up my pocket money and bought a paperback called Mystery and Imagination, containing the stories dramatised in the TV series of the same name. Naturally, I was far too young to be allowed to stay up late and watch that, so I eagerly devoured the wonderful short stories of the likes of Sheridan le Fanu, my soon-to-be-hero M.R. James, Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker and many more. But a little gem stood out from the rest, as much as anything because it made me smile. I had my introduction to Oscar Wilde, and the short story was The Canterville Ghost.

The exploits of the hapless ghost of Sir Simon Canterville - as he attempts to frighten off an American invasion of the Otis family into his ancestral home - are a delight. And when poor old long-dead Sir Simon is faced with modern detergents used to clean up his recurring bloodstains and Tammany Rising Sun Lubricator applied to his rusting chains, it's enough to make any spectre swear. But the ultimate insult occurs when, his best efforts having failed to raise even the slightest squeak of fear from the unwanted residents, they have the gall to taunt him with a 'ghostly' creation of their own:

YE OTIS GHOST
Ye Onlie True and Originale Spooke
Beware of Ye Imitationes
All others are Counterfeite.

Over the years, I have read and re-read that story countless times and it still raises smiles to this day.

I came across The Picture of Dorian Gray some years later. In fact I saw the film (the version made in 1945) before I read the story. In life, Oscar Wilde worshipped youth and beauty. He loved to surround himself with beautiful, young, vibrant people. Even more so the older he grew. This is evident in his liaison with the much younger Lord Alfred ('Bosie') Douglas and in his friendships with the beauties of the day such as Jennie, Lady Randolph Churchill (American-born mother of Winston) and the Jersey Lily herself, Lily Langtry. He is famously quoted as remarking, "Youth is wasted on the young."

In The Picture of Dorian Gray, a talented artist is commissioned to paint a portrait of the wealthy young man of the title. As years go by and Gray leads an increasingly debauched life, he remains young, while in the attic, his picture reflects the ravages of time and sin. The story went through various edits, and in the longer version we now know, Oscar wrote a challenging preface to his readers. He entreated them to judge 'art for art's sake' and stated, 'there is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book.' With typical Wilde immodesty, he also remarked, 'Those who find ugly meanings in beautiful things are corrupt without being charming. This is a fault.'

The Picture of Dorian Gray was released to a storm of protest and outrage from reviewers, bordering on the hysterical. He was even threatened with possible criminal investigation as a result of his writing - a sad portent of what was to come a few years later.

It remained Oscar's only full-length published novel.

Pamela Courtney encounters ghosts whose intents are far from clear, when she is sent to live with her aunts at Chanterlands...

“You don’t belong here. None of you do. None but us….”

1940. Fourteen-year-old Pamela Courtney is evacuated to Chanterlands where she will live with her two spinster aunts: Jilly, the eccentric one, who dreams of her days as a star of the silver screen, and Bunny, ever practical and down-to-earth.

But Chanterlands is home to more than just the living and some of them do not rest in peace. There’s the long-dead lonely boy whose room she sleeps in - and that’s only the start.

Pamela discovers the long-neglected attic and, as she sorts through the assorted detritus accumulated over generations of her forebears, more ghosts stir, and an ancient feud reveals just one of the sinister secrets of this once-great house.

But, in the grounds, there is much more danger awaiting Pamela during that summer long ago when war waged all over Europe and the safety her mother had wished for her took a dark and fatal turn.

Here is what they are saying about Ghosts of Chanterlands:

'A classic ghost story in the vein of Susan Hill’ – Priya Sharma, World Fantasy Award Winner

‘Fans of creepy, suspenseful gothic ghost tales will absolutely love this book’ – JG Faherty, author of Ragman, The Wakening and Sins of the Father

Coming out on August 18th 2026, available for pre-order at:

https://mybook.to/GhostsOfChanterlands

https://mybook.to/GhostsChanterlandsHB

Images:

Shutterstock

Nick Wells/Flame Tree Press Studio

Wednesday, 1 July 2026

Detecting the Ghosts of Baker Street

Say the name ‘’Baker Street’ to most people and their immediate thoughts will turn to Sherlock Holmes, the seemingly infallible detective of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s extraordinary (if occasionally flawed) imagination. Ask them to name anything else connected with this street and many (including me) will mention the haunting and poignant autobiographical song by Gerry Rafferty.

Baker Street is in Marylebone in the heart of the bustling city. It has an underground station (on the Bakerloo line) and right around the corner stands Madame Tussaud’s and the London Planetarium, but Baker Street itself is an unprepossessing thoroughfare, with seemingly little but legend to recommend it.

Named after the builder, William Baker, who laid out the street in the eighteenth century, it started life as a high-class residential area but is now comprised mainly of commercial premises; oh, and the Sherlock Holmes Museum, situated at – you guessed it – 221B (which isn’t even a real address!). Confusingly, the museum is actually located between numbers 237 and 241.

A number of famous real people have lived in Baker Street –and some appear not to want to leave it. The eighteenth century actress, Sarah Siddons, is one of them. Her house was where number 228 stands today. She is seen walking through walls on the first floor.

Meanwhile, nearby, the (now closed) two-hundred-year-old Kenwood House Hotel, not only had sightings of an apparition dressed as a Cavalier gentleman, it also possessed that most fascinating of supernatural entities - haunted furniture. Specifically, the drawers opened and closed by themselves and the mirror…poltergeist activity has been reported. With no guests to tease or terrify, it is not known if the ghosts still haunt.

At 245-247, the Volunteer Gastropub not only feeds and refreshes its visitors, but guests can also look out for the ghost of Rupert Nevill, whose family owned a large manor house on that site which burned down in 1654. He is said to appear in the cellar – indeed, the cellars are the originals so would be familiar to him.

Deep underground isn’t free of apparitions either. Travellers on the Bakerloo line have reported seeing the reflection of a ghostly figure in the window, sitting next to them. But there is no one there…

Pamela Courtney is surrounded by ghosts when she is evacuated to Chanterlands. And they're not shy in coming forward...

“You don’t belong here. None of you do. None but us….”

1940. Fourteen-year-old Pamela Courtney is evacuated to Chanterlands where she will live with her two spinster aunts: Jilly, the eccentric one, who dreams of her days as a star of the silver screen, and Bunny, ever practical and down-to-earth.

But Chanterlands is home to more than just the living and some of them do not rest in peace. There’s the long-dead lonely boy whose room she sleeps in - and that’s only the start.

Pamela discovers the long-neglected attic and, as she sorts through the assorted detritus accumulated over generations of her forebears, more ghosts stir, and an ancient feud reveals just one of the sinister secrets of this once-great house.

But, in the grounds, there is much more danger awaiting Pamela during that summer long ago when war waged all over Europe and the safety her mother had wished for her took a dark and fatal turn.

Here is what they are saying about Ghosts of Chanterlands:

'A classic ghost story in the vein of Susan Hill’ – Priya Sharma, World Fantasy Award Winner

‘Fans of creepy, suspenseful gothic ghost tales will absolutely love this book’ – JG Faherty, author of Ragman, The Wakening and Sins of the Father

Coming out on August 18th 2026, available for pre-order at:

https://mybook.to/GhostsOfChanterlands

https://mybook.to/GhostsChanterlandsHB

Images:

Shutterstock

Nick Wells/Flame Tree Press Studio

Pages

Tuesday, 18 August 2026

Ghosts of Chanterlands Has Arrived!

Friday, 7 August 2026

The Bride Who Lost Her Head

Wednesday, 22 July 2026

Ye Otis Ghost and Dorian Gray - Two Sides of Oscar Wilde

YE OTIS GHOSTYe Onlie True and Originale SpookeBeware of Ye ImitationesAll others are Counterfeite.

Over the years, I have read and re-read that story countless times and it still raises smiles to this day.

The Picture of Dorian Gray was released to a storm of protest and outrage from reviewers, bordering on the hysterical. He was even threatened with possible criminal investigation as a result of his writing - a sad portent of what was to come a few years later.

It remained Oscar's only full-length published novel.

Pamela Courtney encounters ghosts whose intents are far from clear, when she is sent to live with her aunts at Chanterlands...

Wednesday, 1 July 2026

Detecting the Ghosts of Baker Street

YE OTIS GHOST
Ye Onlie True and Originale Spooke
Beware of Ye Imitationes
All others are Counterfeite.