Overview

'A brilliantly eclectic mix of dark, unsettling tales' Joanne Burn, author of The Bone Hunters 'Guaranteed to give you goosebumps' Best Magazine 'Atmospheric collection of spooky stories' Observer 'A lovely present' The Spectator 'Inspired by all the great ghost story writers' BBC Open Book Editor's Pick An unexpected and unwelcome voice on the world's first radio broadcast in 1908. A son who won't stop messaging his family on Facebook, although he's been dead for quite some time now. A frozen forest in a far north land where the sinister elf-kin lurk in the snow. A Scottish island where the locals make very sure their old folk don't go hungry through the long winter. Over the past two decades Adam Macqueen has sent a Haunted Tale to his family in place of a Christmas card. A collection in the grand tradition of ghost stories - to be read by the fire in the depths of winter - it proves that terror lurks in many places, and the dead take on infinite guises . . . READER REVIEWS 'Spine-chilling' 'Dark and twisty' 'Pleasing terrors indeed' 'An awesome collection ... I loved how each story had its unique twist' 'An amazingly spooky collection ... Excellent' 'What a wonderfully weird and unsettling collection of short stories this is!' 'Fabulous ... I can't recommend this book enough'

Full Product Details

9781800754478

Table of Contents

Reviews

'A brilliantly eclectic mix of dark, unsettling tales' - Joanne Burn, author of The Bone Hunters 'A delight from start to finish. Adam MacQueen demonstrates a wonderful variety of voice and tone, and a great affection for the form, lacing these tales with genuine chills. He has created a wonderfully seasonal treat - exactly the kind of book you want to curl up with as the winter nights draw in' - Amanda Mason, author of The Wayward Girls 'A unique and terrifying collection of ghost stories with twists I never saw coming. A book to be read by the fireside in the cold winter nights. Just don't look up at the shadows!' - Carly Reagon, author of The Toll House 'Halloween is the traditional time for spooky stories, and Adam Macqueen’s new collection is a suitably atmospheric addition to the canon ... Gently chilling ... Macqueen has a knack for conveying atmosphere and wry humour' - Alexander Larman, Observer ‘It’s kind of like an introduction to that entire genre, the author Adam Macqueen is inspired by all the great ghost story writers … Each time I read one of his stories and finished it I went straight back to the beginning to re-read it’ - Drummond Moir, BBC Open Book Editor's Pick 'Eerie collection ... The past inveigles its way into the present in these unpredictable, unsettling and occasionally cryptic tales' - Woman and Home ‘Draw the curtains, light the fire, and cosy up with this selection of very creepy tales. Originally written as gifts for the author’s family and friends, they are brilliantly crafted and guaranteed to give you goosebumps’ - Best Magazine 'Completely absorbing ... Christmas ghost stories are part of Britain’s literary culture, so in the tradition of Charles Dickens and M.R. James, curl up with a hot drink and let yourself be drawn into Macqueen’s festive and fascinating worlds' - My Weekly ‘Brilliant book … Excellent stories’ – Adam Dowling, BBC Radio Kent 'Imaginative and bone-chilling' - Anne Cunningham, Sunday Independent ‘Sit hearthside to read this if you wish: it will still chill you … Startling collection’ – Sainsbury Magazine 'Destined to become modern seasonal staples ... Brims with the evocative and the unnerving, drawing you inexorably in. Macqueen has a remarkable knack for capturing the eerie beauty of winter nights, weaving the kind of narratives that linger atmospherically in the mind ... What makes Macqueen’s stories so effective is their ability to balance timeless gothic elements with a modern sensibility, making them accessible yet deeply atmospheric. Perfect for reading by the fire with a steaming cup of mulled wine in hand' - The Guide 'A cracking little book ... The stories read like a labour of love ... With its gorgeous combination of shimmering style and seditious substance, it would be a lovely present' - Julie Burchill, The Spectator

Author Information

Adam Macqueen is the author of books including The Prime Minister's Ironing Board and The Lies of the Land: An Honest History of Political Deceit. The King of Sunlight, his biography of the soap manufacturer William Hesketh Lever, was named by The Economist as one of its books of the year. He has contributed to Private Eye since 1997, and wrote the bestselling history of the magazine which was published for its 50th anniversary in 2011. He has written two Tommy Wildeblood crime novels, published in 2020 and 2022.

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