Tour Stop, Guest Post & Giveaway: Wight Mischief by JL Merrow

Hi, I’m JL Merrow, and I’m delighted to be here today as part of the blog tour to celebrate the release of Wight Mischief, a romantic suspense novel set on the island I grew up on, the Isle of Wight.

In Wight Mischief, journalist Baz is researching for a planned book on ghost stories of the Isle of Wight.

The Isle of Wight claims to be the most haunted island in the world, and various explanations are suggested for that. The most popular one is that the island is at the conjunction of a number of ley lines, or lines of spiritual energy. Ghosts feed on energy, and places where ley lines cross are known as spiritual vortices, or all-you-can-eat-buffets for the ectoplasmically inclined and/or differently alive among us.

Another reason might be that the island has simply got a lot of history. It’s been inhabited since the Stone Age, with a standing stone at Mottistone a Neolithic relic. The Bronze Age left more burial sites than you can shake a stick at. It was occupied by the Romans for centuries, and conquered by the Jutes in the sixth century before being snatched by the King of Wessex in the seventh. Vikings raided it, and the Normans conquered it. In 1545 the French invaded—or rather tried to. Intending to use the island as a base for an attack on the mainland, they were repulsed in the Battle of Bonchurch. With such a bloody history, it’s not surprising there might be one or two unquiet spirits around.

One of the most haunted island locations is Ventnor Botanic Garden. It seems strange that such an idyllic spot, home to palm trees and tropical plants, should be known for its many ghost sightings—until you learn that the garden stands on the site of an old tuberculosis hospital. Over a hundred thousand patients passed through its doors during the 19^th and early 20^th centuries—many of them, alas, feet first. Some seem to have been reluctant to leave the place: workers demolishing the hospital in the sixties reported a noticeable cold spot around the old operating theatre, and there were repeated sightings of the pale, misty figure of a young girl. Victorian nurses have also been spotted walking through the site, doing the rounds of long-gone wards.

Another haunted spot—and the location of a dramatic scene in Wight Mischief—is Carisbrooke Castle. Its most famous guest, King Charles the First, isn’t thought to walk the site—probably because he was beheaded in London—but his daughter Elizabeth does. She died there aged only fourteen, the year after her father’s execution. She haunts the castle along with another Elizabeth, this one a commoner who drowned in the well. And English Heritage, who run the castle, say their staff have also seen a mysterious lady in grey, with four dogs, wandering the site.

Whether you believe in ghosts or not, it’s undeniable that a great number of people throughout history have witnessed things they can’t explain.

Question: Have you ever seen a ghost? If not, would you like to?

Title: Wight Mischief by JL Merrow
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Genre: Contemporary, Gay, Romance, Mystery, Suspense
Length: 216 pages/Word Count: 76,389

Summary:

A ghost of a chance at love.

Personal trainer Will Golding has been looking forward to a getaway with his best friend, Baz, a journalist researching a book on ghosts. But on the first day of their camping trip on the Isle of Wight, Will takes a walk on a secluded beach and spies a beautiful young man skinny-dipping by moonlight. Ethereally pale, he’s too perfect to be real—or is he?

Lonely author Marcus Devereux is just as entranced by the tall athlete he encounters on the beach, but he’s spent the years since his parents’ violent death building a wall around his heart, and the thought of letting Will scale it is terrifying. Marcus’s albinism gives him his otherworldly appearance and leaves him reluctant to go out in daylight, his reclusiveness encouraged by his guardian—who warns him to stay away from Will and Baz.

The attraction between Will and Marcus can’t be denied—but neither can the danger of the secrets haunting Marcus’s past, as one “accident” after another strikes Will and Baz. If they don’t watch their step, they could end up added to the island’s ghostly population.

Second Edition

Wight Mischief was previously published by Samhain, but has been completely re-edited and given a lovely new cover for this second edition by Dreamspinner Press.

Add to Goodreads.

Purchase Link: Dreampinner Press

Author Bio

JL Merrow is that rare beast, an English person who refuses to drink tea. She read Natural Sciences at Cambridge, where she learned many things, chief amongst which was that she never wanted to see the inside of a lab ever again. Her one regret is that she never mastered the ability of punting one-handed whilst holding a glass of champagne.

She writes across genres, with a preference for contemporary gay romance and the paranormal, and is frequently accused of humour. Her novella Muscling Through is a 2013 EPIC ebook Award finalist. She is a member of the UK GLBTQ Fiction Meet organising team.

Author Links: Website * Facebook * Twitter * Goodreads

Giveaway

JL Merrow offering a prize of a $10 Dreamspinner Press gift certificate to one lucky commenter on the tour, who will be randomly chosen on Friday 15th June. Good luck and don’t forget to leave your contact info!