Murder in Torbaydos
Ian James Krender
Old houses hide secrets, sometimes dark ones.
In the 1970’s, London based family, Marjorie, Stanley and their theatrically bent son fall in love with a dilapidated Victorian seaside villa. Dreaming of a better life by the sea, they transform the property into a luxury guesthouse, ignorant of the tragic events that occurred there at the beginning of the century. They discover that their guests are not the only other occupants in the building.
The souls trapped within the house offer the temptation of wealth and power, but all come with a deadly price. Stanley, supported by his ambitious wife, enters political office. Marjorie will stop at nothing to achieve her goals for her husband, no matter who gets in the way.
Thirty years later, an affluent gay couple, Jez and Graham, purchase the hotel, which now unoccupied has once again fallen into disrepair. They are blissfully unaware of the building’s grisly past. Jez falls under the influence of the spirits within the house, rapidly achieving fame, fortune, and a life beyond his wildest imagination, but the price is ultimately the corruption of his very soul.
Bound by a common destiny, both Marjorie and Jez’s fates lie inextricably intertwined across time and connected to the house. Their gruesome realisation is that death is not necessarily a release.
Excerpt
I write this book in my twilight years. Though considerable time has passed since these tragic events occurred, there is no doubt in my mind that it will be controversial. Some people will suspect me of profiteering. However, if I am privileged enough to see this work published, then I will donate any proceeds to the affected surviving family members. The money would be of little use to me now, as I am elderly, and I have no heirs.
Perhaps writing this is a form of therapy, a way to assuage my own guilt. Goodness knows, I have spent much time reflecting on the ‘what ifs.’ Over the years, I have learned to forgive myself the errors of my past. However, I will never forget the pain that I have caused others through my poor decisions.
About Ian
I am a gay man in my early forties. I escaped the London rat race by buying a small hotel in the beautiful coastal town of Torquay, England with my civil partner. My career has been in business but I have written articles on a freelance basis for a gay website that is part of the Gaydar group. I am passionate about reading and writing and try to squeeze both into my busy week. My hobbies include watching films, travelling and I am a keep-fit fanatic. The hotel provides me with a constant source of writing material, given my interactions with the weird and wonderful British public. I served briefly as a police officer in London and considered writing a story about this, but I do not think anyone would believe me. I am an alumnus from the great seat of learning known as Portsmouth University.
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Review
Title: Murder in Torbaydos
Author: Ian James Krender
Genre: Paranormal, Horror, Mystery, Suspense, Historical, Contemporary
Length: Novel (351pgs)
ISBN: 978-1-61040-832-5
Publisher: Torquere Press
Heat Level: Low – Moderate
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 4 ½ Hearts
Reviewer: Pixie
Blurb: Old houses hide secrets, sometimes dark ones.
In the 1970’s, London based family, Marjorie, Stanley and their theatrically bent son fall in love with a dilapidated Victorian seaside villa. Dreaming of a better life by the sea, they transform the property into a luxury guesthouse, ignorant of the tragic events that occurred there at the beginning of the century. They discover that their guests are not the only other occupants in the building.
The souls trapped within the house offer the temptation of wealth and power, but all come with a deadly price. Stanley, supported by his ambitious wife, enters political office. Marjorie will stop at nothing to achieve her goals for her husband, no matter who gets in the way.
Thirty years later, an affluent gay couple, Jez and Graham, purchase the hotel, which now unoccupied has once again fallen into disrepair. They are blissfully unaware of the building’s grisly past. Jez falls under the influence of the spirits within the house, rapidly achieving fame, fortune, and a life beyond his wildest imagination, but the price is ultimately the corruption of his very soul.
Bound by a common destiny, both Marjorie and Jez’s fates lie inextricably intertwined across time and connected to the house. Their gruesome realisation is that death is not necessarily a release.
Purchase Link: http://www.torquerebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=4313
Review: A terrible event in February 1919 resonates down the years first affecting Marjorie Wilson and her family in 1973 and then Jez Matthews and his partner in 2005. The Torquay guesthouse/hotel hides secrets, dark secrets and Jez is about to stumble into something that will leave him risking everything he has. Marjorie has her heart set on her husband reaching the top, and the whispers she hears in the night guide her. Jez has always been happy with Graham but when they buy the hotel and Graham’s job separates them Jez begins to enjoy the freedom he finds, and his sudden rise to fame and wealth has temptation within his reach but the price may be more than he can afford.
Well, when I started reading this story I didn’t know what to expect and I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised to discover that this story was unlike anything I have read before. This story starts out with the first deaths to occur in the large house in Torquay, it then fast forwards to when Marjorie and her family buy the house, from there we switch forwards again to Jez’s time and him and his partner buying the hotel. The story then switches back and forth between Marjorie and Jez, telling each of their stories as they become entranced with the house. Later on there are a few scenes from Stanley’s (Marjorie’s husband) point of view as he begins to despair of the woman his wife has become, but the majority of the story is from both Marjorie’s and Jez’s point of view.
The storyline is fascinating, there is just a touch of paranormal that adds just a touch of creepiness but it is very subtle and you just wonder if Marjorie is beginning to go insane. Jez’s part of the story is of someone who is perfectly happy in his life with his partner, they want to slow down their pace of life and buy the hotel in Torquay but Graham is offered the opportunity to work for more money and it would help them get the hotel up and running. Jez finds himself gaining fame and fortune and he does the unthinkable, before long he finds himself trapped and soon after death follows. Just as Jez begins to think everything is going his way his entire world caves in.
So the first thing I will tell everyone is that if you don’t like cheating then steer clear of this story, oh and if you want a happy ever after or even a happy for now, this book hasn’t got them either. What this story has is a subtle ghost story and it has a lesson for those who want more. You recognize that if Marjorie and Jez had just been happy to settle for what they already had instead of yearning for more then they both would have ended with perfectly happy lives with their loved ones, but they learned all too well that a price has to be paid.
This isn’t an easy book to just squish into a couple of paragraphs because there are two different couple from two different times, Marjorie seems to be more connected to the spirits then Jez does but Jez’s story seems to be more personal than Marjorie’s does. The setting is wonderful, the descriptions of the hotel are incredible, and you can picture each room in your mind perfectly. Jez is a character that you want to take into your heart but then you also want to pummel him for his stupid weakness. Graham you end up pitying, he lost everything because of the man he loved and it broke him.
We end up with a story filled with death and mystery, it has a great hold on the gay scene of Torquay and the knowledge of opening and running a small hotel. The paranormal aspects don’t over run the story but takes a firm backseat, and the ending leaves you wondering what happened when the match was struck. I have to admit that I ended up being enthralled with this story and all the characters involved, Jez doesn’t get his happily ever after, in fact the poor git got a hell of a comeuppance. Now just a little note for the author, Cidre wasn’t being made until 2011 😉
I recommend this to those who like something a little different, who love characters who don’t play be the rules, who love just a touch of sinister spirits, who adore flawed characters, who love some death and mystery and who love stories where happy endings just aren’t meant to be.
Congrats on the new book!