Praise for the novels of Heather Graham
âAn incredible storyteller.â
âLos Angeles Daily News
âGraham wields a deftly sexy and convincing pen.â
âPublishers Weekly
âA fast-paced and suspenseful read that will give readers chills while keeping them guessing until the end.â
âRT Book Reviews on Ghost Moon
âIf you like mixing a bit of the creepy with a dash of sinister and spine-chilling reading with your romance, be sure to read Heather Grahamâs latest ⦠Graham does a great job of blending just a bit of paranormal with real, human evil.â
âMiami Herald on Unhallowed Ground
âEerie and atmospheric, this is not late-night reading for the squeamish or sensitive.â
âRT Book Reviews on Unhallowed Ground
âThe paranormal elements are integral to the unrelentingly suspenseful plot, the characters are likable, the romance convincing, and, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Grahamâs atmospheric depiction of a lost city is especially poignant.â
âBooklist on Ghost Walk
âGrahamâs rich, balanced thriller sizzles with equal parts suspense, romance and the paranormalâall of it nail-biting.â
âPublishers Weekly on The Vision
âHeather Graham will keep you in suspense until the very end.â
âLiterary Times
âMystery, sex, paranormal events. Whatâs not to love?â
âKirkus on The Death Dealer
New York Times bestselling author HEATHER GRAHAM has written more than a hundred novels, many of which have been featured by the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild. An avid scuba diver, ballroom dancer and mother of five, she still enjoys her South Florida home, but loves to travel as well, from locations such as Cairo, Egypt, to her own backyard, the Florida Keys. Reading, however, is the pastime she still loves best, and she is a member of many writing groups. Sheâs a winner of the Romance Writers of Americaâs Lifetime Achievement Award, and is currently vice president of the Horror Writersâ Association. Sheâs also an active member of International Thriller Writers and Mystery Writers of America. She is the founder of The Slush Pile, an author band and performing group.
For more information, check out her Web sites:
TheOriginalHeatherGraham.com, eHeatherGraham.com and HeatherGraham.tv. You can also find Heather on MySpace and Facebook.
Dedicated with gratitude
to the beautiful Myrtles plantation, and to Teeta LeBleu Moss, owner, Teresa David, the General Manager, Hester Eby, Director of Tours, Taryn Lowery, Tour Guide and to Scout and Sprout and The Peace River Ghost Trackers
And to Dennis, Jason, Shayne,
and Bryee-Annon Pozzessere; Teresa Davant, Kathy Pickering, Kathy DePalo, Juan Roca, Bridget LeVien, Matthew Green, Phinizy Percy Jr., and Connie Perry.
Blood.
She could see it, smell it.
Hear it.
Drip ⦠drip ⦠drip â¦
The air was heavy with black powder, and the brilliant red color of the blood seemed to form a mist with the powder, and she was surrounded by a haze, a miasma of gray-tinged crimson. The day was dying, becoming red, red like the color of the blood seeping to the ground, making that terrible, distinctive noise. Drip, drip, drip â¦
Ashley Donegal was there. She wasnât even sure where there was, but she knew that she didnât want to be there.
Suddenly, the mist seemed to swirl in a violent gust, and then settle softly, closer to the ground. It parted as she walked through. She could see her surroundings, and, at that moment, she knew. She was in the cemetery. She had played here so often as a childârespectfully, of course. Her grandfather never would have had it any other way. Those elegant tombs, all constructed with such love, and an eye to the priorities of the day. The finest craftsmen had been hired, artists and artisans, and the place was truly beautiful. Angels and archangels graced the various tombs, winged cherubs, saints and crosses. She had never been afraid.
But now â¦
From a distance, she could hear shouts. Soldiers. Ridiculous. Grown men playing as soldiers. But they did it so well. She might almost have been back in time. The powder came from the howitzer and the Enfield rifles. The shouts sounded as the men played out their roles, edging from the river road to the outbuildings and then the stables, to the final confrontation on the lawn and in the cemetery. The blood would come from stage packets within their uniforms, of course, but â¦
This was real blood. She knew because it had a distinctive odor, and because, yes, damn it, she could smell it. Nothing smelled like real blood.
She looked at the ground, and she could see the puddle where the blood was falling, but she was afraid to look up. If she looked up, she would see a dead man.
But she did so anyway. She saw him. There was a hat pulled low over his face, but soon he would lift his head.
He did. And she saw a man in his prime, handsome, with strength of purpose in the sculpture of his face. But there was weariness in his eyes.
Weariness and death. Yet they were just playacting; that past was so, so long ago nowâ¦.