The Ghostly Screams of Stormhaven - You had me at Ghostly Screams.

The Ghostly Screams of Stormhaven
by Clarawimberly
published by Zebra Gothic
Copyright 1992

"Don't go up there alone!"

Elizabeth Stevens knew she had been lucky to obtain a position with the wealthy Earl of Chesham at Stormhaven. She was awed by the magnificence of the manor house, and even more so by the master himself - the dark and brooking Derek Vanderworth.

But it was his golden haired daughter, Amy, who attracted Elizabeth's attention with her sad, sorrowful eyes. The little girl had not spoken since he mother's death a year ago, and Elizabeth was determined to befriend her and discover more about the tragic past ... even if it meant braving the fierce resistance of the arrogant Earl.

Yet, it was not until she saved Amy's life that Derek began to provide answers and admit to his love for Elizabeth. But by then it was too late. Mysterious crying in the night and strange noises from the fourth floor had aroused Elizabeth's suspicions... and her fear. There was a madness lurking in the shadows of Stormhaven, and Elizabeth wondered if the ghostly screams she heard might soon be her own.

Wow! This books sounds pretty damn good!

Firstly, it looks like we probably have a whole lot of Jane Eyre going on.

Secondly, we have the brooding and arrogant Earl. For brooding and arrogant I'm more than willing to throw aside by love of blondes. For some assuredly unhealthy reason I've always been drawn to men who are arrogant assholes. (That must be why I get along so well with my husband!)

And lastly, and most importantly, we have GHOSTLY SCREAMS! Awesome. I currently sleep with an alarm clock that makes it sound like a thunder storm is in progress all the time and I can't help but wonder if there is a ghostly screams version. And, if there is, would it help me sleep. I'd like to think it would.

Now it's true that I don't actually believe in ghosts (though I really, really want to) but I also don't believe that a human female's neck could hold up that much hair, but I'm certainly not going to let that ruin the story for me.

As so often is the case, I have tried to find an artist credit for this cover but have had no luck. I really find it strange that even as late as 1992 there are rarely ever artist credits inside the book and that signatures are rarely seen whether they are cropped or didn't exist on the piece to begin with. If I had enough artistic talent to have my art of the cover of a Gothic romance (and we all know that sometimes is just doesn't take that much talent to find yourself in that position) I'd freakin' have my heroine sporting a t- shirt with my picture on it.

The Lost Lady of Hathaway Manor, a little bit of Sexy WTF & the best author picture ever! - The return of Women Running from Houses

The Lost Lady of Hathaway Manor

by Anne Knoll
published by Zebra Gothic
Copyright 1992

"You'd best trust me, Katherine.
You may need my help."

Forced to flee America or land in debtors' prison, India
Chantelle found herself on a ship bound for London where
her actor father could put gambling behind him and make a
fresh start. India enjoyed her shipboard friendship with
orphaned heiress Katherine Hathaway, on her way home to
Cornwall to await her eighteenth birthday and her
inheritance. Then Katherine made an impulsive proposal:
that the two young women, who looked much alike,
exchange identities for six months. Katherine craved the
excitement of the London theatre, and wouldn't India just
love a long vaction at a stately British mansion, especially
since Katherine insisted on paying off her father's debts ...

But Katherine had another reason for not wanting to await
her inheritance within the walls of Hathaway Manor. Upon
arriving at the gloomy, fogbound house, India was
immediately aware of a scarely concealed hostility toward
"dear Cousin Katherine" who would soon be chatelaine of the
vast estate. And though handsome, brilliant Jordan Hathaway
always appeared just in time to rescue her from the small
accidents that kept occurring, it wasn't long before India
realized that something shocking had happened to Katherine
as a small child - something they all feared she might
remember and reveal - and that someone was trying to
frighten her away ... or silence her forever.

The
Lost Lady of
Hathaway
Manor

As many of you already know a rather complicated pregnancy has kept me from blogging regularly for sometime but with that four months behind me and finally feeling like myself again, I wanted to kick off the return of WRFH right.

Truth be told The Lost Lady of Hathaway Manor holds no real charm for me. Perhaps it is the insipid look on India's face that awakens the conflicting desires to both not care as well as smack her. Of course it might yet again be the idea of fleeing over impossible terrain in a floor length gown. Does no one ever learn? (Though I must give her credit for getting as far as she has.)

But what really attracted me to this book was the killer book club offer sandwiched between page 128 and 129. Zebra Books really looks to have it all going on in this bizarre illustration where it seems that an amorous couple is well on their way to nakedness in front of one of those church pamphlets given out door-to-door.

And there's a riverboat!

Oh, and they also really, really, really want to give you four free books. At least they really want to give you something.

He has quite the round bottom!

But still the best of all is the awesomeness that is the author photo on the back of "The Love Pirate" by Barbara Cartland. Yes, yes, the title is fantastic, seeming to offer an untold number of inappropriate images, but before you head off to Abebook or Amazon just check out the very posh Barbara herself. This pictures looks to have been taken in one of the bedrooms from 1973's Legend of Hell House. Nice!

If I ever write a romance novel, and I totally should being an expert in the field of all things steamy, I want a picture just like this. Except it would have my dachshund Vincent (Price) and I'd be wearing far more fur!

Hey, want to received updates on Spectergirl's entire family of blogs right to Facebook? Check out my new Facebook page. It's like friending me on Facebook without having to see baby pictures!

Just click on the link above!

Not on Facebook? Well ... aren't you an island.

Running From Prison? & Nurses Need Love Too

Okay, so I am willing to admit that this cover has absolutely nothing what-so-ever to do with Gothic romance. But, the way I see it, there is no better way to say "Sorry for missing Valentine's Day." than with a shirtless cop in a compromising position with young a child.

Yep, "A Place To Call Home" is quite honestly the most wonderfully frightening cover I have seen in a good while, and at the same time it is also the best argument for garage sales EVER.

What makes this piece of garage sale GOLD even better that it is apparently just one book in a "Men In Blue" series. (Makes you want to go out and find the rest doesn't it?!)

Now, I personally have no issue with our men in blue, not even the shirtless variety, but this cover makes we want to call, well, the cops, or at the very least Chris Hansen. I'm not exactly certain who this cover was supposed to appeal to. Perhaps my grandmother as it seems to have taken place in her house circa 1988.

It makes me think of a Curves gym I had been a member of few years back. The manager was in her mid-twenties and had an obsession with firemen. She started taping up pictures from some kind of shirtless firemen calendar all over the gym. It was like a middle school girl's locker room.

The taped up pictures eventually devolved to include magazine images of any man she found remotely attractive. I assure you, there is nothing that makes you want to hurry through your workout more than having to stare at a picture of Will Ferrell taped to the ceiling. Of course I WAS working out 4 and 5 days a week so perhaps I was subconsciously drawn to Will Ferrell and just didn't know it.

Okay, so I want to clue you into a great blog. I have recently spoken Susannah who runs a blog called Vintage Nurse Romance Novels. The site is awesome and features some great cover art. (And hey, what man doesn't like a nurse's uniform?) She is actually dedicated enough to read the book and post her reviews which are great.

Susannah has been kind enough to share a fabulous Nurse Running from a Castle cover, here. And what I like to think is a Nurse Running from a Trailer Park, here.

Make sure to check her out!

The Winds of Night Original Art - Identify that Artist!

Hello everyone. I just received a email from Tom who is the proud owner of the original artwork for The Winds of Night by Anne Buxton, writing as Anne Maybury.

Firstly, I should say that I am quite jealous. Secondly I should say that I don't know the artist. Tom doesn't either. Anyone out there recognize this one?

Tom has been kind enough to have posted a scan of this image, along with some other great stuff on his Flickr page. Click the link to take a look. I really like the fantastic Secrets of Haunted House cover. Sadly, an issue NOT in my collection.

Thanks Tom!

Snow Shadow

Snow Shadow by Andre Norton
published by Fawcett Crest Books
Copyright 1979

Being able to step back into the past

seemed a wonderful stroke of luck for Erica

Jansen. Northanger Abbey was like another

world. And her introduction to the family

there had come from a charming man,

Preston Donner. She felt very fortunate indeed.

PRISONER

OF

SHADOWS

But from the moment she became a guest

at the Abbey, she felt like a prisoner. First

there were the arguments she couldn't

avoid ... then the murders she could not

ignore ... and then the man who stepped out

of her own buried past to entwine her in a

terror from which she saw no escape ...

We have all met them. You know, those girl who, in a desperate attempt to feel better about themselves, cut down on those around them. Well, Andre Norton is one of those women. But don't worry, if I have learned nothing else in my very eventful life thus far, I have learned that what you send out comes back three fold. (Well, technically, I just learned that from 1996's The Craft but you get the picture.)

Snow Shadow is one of those rare Gothic romance books in which I picked up and read a few pages before posting it. And boy and I glad I did.

There is no doubt that Ms. Norton felt a good deal of shame about lowering herself to Gothic romance. It becomes quite obvious by the many comments of her heroine such as, and this isn't technically an EXACT quote, "If I had been a lame Gothic novelist I would have called the house brooding."

Now, that is unfair in a couple of ways. Firstly, it subtly insults the genre in which she is writing, thus giving the illusion of somehow being superior to it. And secondly, it gets away with using the adjective just belittled without even offering up a better one.

You've got to admit, it's pretty ballsy. Especially for someone who has taken the ultimate shortcut of writing about someone who is a writer and who also breaks the cardinal rule of never mentioning a better book (or author) in your book. Of course, we see that all the time. If we all had a dime for every haunted house story that quotes Shirley Jackson, we'd all be eating a chalupa right now. Her author of choice, Jane Austen. Again, pretty ballsy.

I also discovered that the male charactor who I suspect will turn out to be the romantic interests is the first Blackfoot Indiana to graduate from West Point. WOW! Louis L'Amour's got nothing on Andre Norton.

Oh yeah, and I almost forgot, I have a signature here but I am having a bit of a problem reading it. Any guesses?

UPDATE: If my research is to be believed, Andre Norton's three fold karma payback included being the first woman to win the Gandalf Grand Master Award from the World Science Fiction Society in 1977, and the winning of the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award in 1983. Huh, karma doesn't seem to function as I have been lead to believe.