Anthology: Wry Out West

by H.E. Bulstrode

Five ghost stories and occult tales from the English West Country with a whiff of brimstone and a distinct dash of dry humour. Old Crotchet There's little that will rile a woman over 300 years of age more than the arrival of some flighty young upstart intent upon displacing her. The year is 1920, and festivities are about to commence as something sinister stirs from its protracted dormancy, awakened, it seems, by the arrival of two young guests. The old ways, they find, should not be treated lightly. Gwydion's Dawn Murder, mystery and magic: a satirical journey into the occult in the company of Gwydion Turner, an inept, portentous, psychedelic demon raiser; a wannabe Crowley in crushed velvet. From Haight-Ashbury to Glastonbury, this eccentric figure has been known by many, but understood by few; just who, or what, is he? Is he a fraudster, or a sage? It's up to you to decide. Agnes of Grimstone Peverell A snobbish theatre critic and his wife seek warmth inside the minster of Grimstone Peverell, only to be accosted by a pious and enthusiastic guide eager to acquaint them with every aspect of its history. So inexplicably keen is she on their company, that they simply cannot get away. 3:05 am Many wish to appear on television, but this tale might give them pause for thought. Mark should be happy, what with a promotion and impending fatherhood in the offing, and yet not all is well. His nerves shredded by a succession of nocturnal images that flicker across the screen of his portable television, his sense of self is beginning to disintegrate. He may be left perplexed and confused, yet that irritant of a colleague of his - Mike Pearce - seems to know something that he doesn't. Could there be a hint of the supernatural in the mix? If so, what, if anything, does Pearce have to do with it, and what does it mean for Mark's future? The Cleft Owl - a tale of occult deception and intrigue in 17th-century Devon.Witness the work of a practitioner of the occult arts, a willing deceiver and interpreter of dreams, schooled in awe by a house of God rendered a charnel house by a fiery, dancing orb of light. Self-tutored in greed, and self-assured in his deceptions, Robert Tooley would have folk think him able to command the dead and do his bidding, but as his demands grow greater, so the villagers' doubts grow deeper; there will be an end to it all, and not a pretty one.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1521280886
• ISBN13: 9781521280881
• Release Date: May 2017
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.79 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.8" x 0.7" x 5.1"