It Took the Children First
Description
IT TOOK THE CHILDREN FIRST
Book One in The Maplewood Horrors Series
A Supernatural Horror Thriller. No one leaves Maplewood unchanged. Some don't leave at all. When the Rickman family flee England for a fresh start in Maplewood, Maine, Fifteen-year-old twins Jenny and Nicholas know one thing for certain: their parents are lying.
They call it a new beginning. Jenny calls it what it is. Another escape. Then they arrive at Thorne House. Abandoned for thirty years, the old mansion waits at the edge of town behind dead trees, broken streetlights, and windows that seem to watch. Its rooms breathe with cold. Its shadows move when nothing else does. Voices whisper the twins' names from behind the walls.
And from the moment Jenny steps inside, something in the house begins to change her. Grey threads appear in her hair. Reflections hesitate before following. Nightmares bleed into waking life. Nicholas finds warnings written in condensation and feels the house turning its attention towards them with patient, hungry intent.
But Thorne House is only the beginning. Across Maplewood, old secrets are waking. A missing girl. A murdered teacher. A massacre the town buried decades ago. Beneath the lake, something remains chained in the dark, waiting for blood, souls, and the return of a coven that should have stayed dead.
As Jenny and Nicholas uncover the truth, they realise Maplewood has not been hiding from evil. It has been feeding it. And now the house wants the children first.
Dark, atmospheric, and relentlessly chilling, IT TOOK THE CHILDREN FIRST is the first book in The Maplewood Horrors series ? a supernatural horror thriller about a haunted house, buried witchcraft, family secrets, and a town where the dead are not the only things waiting in the dark.
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Person
My journey as a writer began years ago, kindled by an early fascination with English literature and language, a passion ignited during my GCSE studies. It was the timeless narrative of 'Of Mice and Men' that first captured my imagination, leading me down a path forever intertwined with storytelling.
As life unfolded, I explored various passions and embraced the responsibilities of adulthood. I navigated through life's complexities, finding joy and fulfilment in raising two wonderful sons. Now, as they step into their journeys, I've been graced with the opportunity to revisit my first love: writing.
My ambition is to craft immersive worlds that readers can lose themselves in, worlds where the lines between the supernatural, crime thrillers, and horror blur into an irresistible tapestry of intrigue and character-driven narratives. "Secrets in the Bones," my fourth novel, marks a significant milestone in my writing career. It represents not just another story but a venture outside my comfort zone, being the first work I've presented to agents and publishers.
With a treasure trove of stories waiting to be told, my journey as an author is far from over. I am currently immersed in writing "The Cursed Knights - the Book of the Dead," a foray deeper into the horror genre. Each new story is an adventure, an opportunity to explore the uncharted realms of imagination, and a chance to connect with readers who share my love for the mysterious and the macabre.
