Ghostly Castles and Tales
by Madeline Martin
Europe has no shortage of ancient castles and dwellings, and
where there are ancient settings, there are ghosts.
I think one of the things that fascinates me so much about
ghost stories is the full on romanticism behind them. Most are driven by and
explosion of passion, propelled by love or hate or sheer envy. The stories
behind them are rife with drama and intrigue and desire.
In researching ghost stories for this book to decide where
to set it, I found a couple of interesting facts to share with people.
First of all, is that Queen Mary of Scots has several ghost
stories. She’s reported to haunt Borthwick Castle dressed as a page boy (the
way she’d managed her escape in life once before). She’s also reported to haunt
Stirling Castle as the pink lady. A hotel in Oundlel in Northhamptonshire,
England also claims she haunts their halls where the staircase from Forthinghay
Castle had been transported and incorporated into the building. Have you heard
of other stories where Queen Mary of Scots has done some haunting?
Secondly, are all the ladies dressed in green. There are
seriously a lot of ghostly women in green. And there’s a reason for this. Green
is thought to be a color of ill luck in the Celtic legends as it was considered
the favorite color of the fae people – and everyone knew they were deviously
mischievous. And, of course, ghosts have a tendency to also be deviously
mischievous.
I decided to go with Castle of Park for my castle with A
Ghostly Tale of Forbidden Love because the story involved had not one, but two
ghosts. The first was a green lady who had apparently been the lover of the
laird, however, when she found herself with child, she was terminated from her
position there. Unable to take the despair of her circumstances, she threw
herself from one of the upper story windows to her death. The second ghost was
a monk who had been walled up within the castle.
I loved the idea of the green lady getting her own form of
vengeance, but felt the ghost story still needed to be made whole. This was
what inspired my twist in A Ghostly Tale of Forbidden Love. But I can’t tell
you what it is, or I’ll ruin all the fun. I hope you enjoy what I’ve done with
the story. I truly had so much fun writing a little paranormal spookiness into
this novella.
Senara becomes a lady's maid at Castle of Park to help ease
the financial burden of her beloved family. She does not expect to have such a
wicked mistress any more than she expects to find a handsome laird...or a ghost
with a burning need for retribution.
Gavin vowed on his father’s death bed to watch over his
aunt, and regrets it every day. Especially when her new maid arrives. The woman
is extraordinarily fascinating, which not only stirs his interest, but also his
cruel aunt’s ire.
Can he protect Senara from his aunt? Even more important,
can he keep himself from giving in to his longing for the country lass?
Theirs is a journey of treacherous pasts, painful loss,
hidden longing and vengeance.
Sweet Excerpt:
He plucked a bit of hay from her hair. The slender stalk
shook between his fingers. “We canna see one another anymore.” His voice was
deep with desire.
Senara nodded in agreement and her hands gripped the
banister of the stairs, as if she were holding on for dear life.
They had the same conversation every day. And yet every day
at noon, they both arrived.
If he were a lesser man, he'd have had her long ago. But he
couldn't in good conscience, not with knowing he would have to marry another someday.
He would marry another, one befitting his station.
Until then, he dreaded the day she would finally not show at
noon.
Spooky Excerpt:
A cry sounded in the distance, a wisp of an anguished scream
as if carried on a hearty wind. Though far off, the sound scrabbled over her
nerves.
No, not so far away. Below.
Senara looked to where the stairs disappeared into a dark
nothing. Anything could be in that nothing.
Her courage flagged for but a moment. Da would not be
frightened of a noise. She may have left his sword upstairs, but she was never
without his bravery. Or her dirk for that matter.
With the power of being her father's daughter, she crept
down the stairs with her dirk locked in her grip. On the first floor, the air
was cold enough to nip at her nose and leave the bottoms of her feet chilled
through the thick-soled slippers she wore.
The wailing cry came once more, louder though still distant,
muffled almost. She followed the sound down the hall to where she'd been before
where the cold stone had hummed against her palm.
The candle flame sputtered and set the narrow hallway
bouncing wildly around her, but it did not go out.
Her breath fogged in front of her and hovered in a hazy
white cloud. She stared at the frozen breath in wonder. While summer was not
always warm, it seldom was ever so cool as to cause such a chill - especially
indoors.
A grinding sound filled the quiet and mortar sifted down
from the strange stone. Senara's breath came faster and filled the air with
white puffs.
Something was in there.
Want to read more?
Available in ebook and print
Amazon: http://amzn.to/2fzpy5Q
Nook: http://bit.ly/2xkTzzl
iBooks: http://hyperurl.co/gtflib
Kobo:
http://hyperurl.co/gtflkobo
Google Play:
http://hyperurl.co/gtflgp
Madeline Martin is a USA TODAY Bestselling author of
Scottish set historical romance novels. She lives a glitter-filled life in
Jacksonville, Florida with her two daughters (known collectively as the
minions) and a man so wonderful he's been dubbed Mr. Awesome. All shenanigans
are detailed regularly on Twitter and on Facebook.
Madeline loves animals in sweaters, cat videos, wine and
Nutella. Check out her FB page on any given Friday to see what great new book
she's giving away by one of her fellow authors.
She also loves connecting with her readers, so feel free to
follow her on any one of her social media platforms, or send her a message :)
FB page: https://www.facebook.com/MadelineMartinAuthor/
Twitter: @MadelineMMartin
Sign up for her newsletter: http://eepurl.com/biji1j
