The Secret of Cold Hill

Product Information

I felt a tad cynical about her response – but at the same time, I was now feeling deeply uncomfortable in what should have been the sanctuary of my own home. But there was a vicar I knew who I thought would be able to help, and with whom I had become good friends.

I think it also made me reconsider my rating of the first book, and makes me want to put that down from a 5* to a 3.5*. This book was far stronger. The characters were much better (the snobby, horrible neighbours were awful people but so funny, I kind of warmed to them!) and in terms of the haunting, it was less of a movie-cliche, and far more realistic of true hauntings.

The terrifying sequel to the bestselling The House on Cold Hill, from a master of spine-chilling horror. This is the second book in the series, but I didn't feel I was missing anything by not having read the first book before I read this one. And so what else is there to say? It was just a satisfying read, a decent little ghost story that hit the sweet spot and left me longing for more, although I don’t know if James can continue the series. It’s not that he didn’t leave himself any leeway, it’s just that it would stretch the suspension of disbelief to have more people moving into a place that’s quite clearly haunted. From the number one bestselling author, Peter James, comes T he Secret of Cold Hill.*****T*he spine-chilling follow-up to The House on Cold Hill. Now a smash-hit stage play.** All up this really didn’t do anything for me and could see so many ways a lot could have been in the book to really lift it. Would I have enjoyed it more if I’d read the book? I pondered this but realised the pace and plot would not of held me tight anyway.

Jason is an up and coming artist looking forward to the studio and quiet surroundings of the new home. Emily, with her friend Louise, is a caterer, and will manage the business out of the adapted garage. Everything looks wonderful as they work at settling in shortly before Christmas. They meet their across-the-street neighbors, Maurice and Claudette Penze-Weedell soon and learn they have little in common. The Penze-Weedells, especially Claudette, do seem close to caricature. But it’s not long before both couples begin to realize they are not alone in their new homes. For Cold Hill House may be gone, but none of the previous inhabitants have ever really left . . .

I did like the fact that it seemed very similar at first, because I was expecting it to go off in a different direction, like these guys would do something to break the chain. Again, it was a bit different because there are different ghosts featured than were in the first book, but that really didn't change things much. Nothing amazing happens that didn't happen already in the first book. Perhaps the worst thing is that the whole plot just seemed to be lifted from The House on Cold Hill, with exactly the same sort of thing happening throughout, right down to the plot "twists". From the number one bestselling author, Peter James, comes T he Secret of Cold Hill. T he spine-chilling follow-up to The House on Cold Hill . Now a smash-hit stage play. There is a strong strand of unpredictability that follows The Secret of Cold Hill from the start. The short and highly engrossing chapters are populated by events that follow a tight time frame. The novel opens on 20th October and then wraps up on the 27th December. There is an additional closing chapter based in April 2020, which served to answer a few questions I had about the book, but it also posed a few more! I do hope Peter James is able to extend upon these questions in a possible future issue, or issues of this engrossing series.

But it’s not fair to compare James to Herbert, because while there are passing similarities, they both hold up on their own. It’s pretty exciting to see James taking on more traditional horror like this because he’s mostly thought of as a crime author because of his Roy Grace books. The Secret of Cold Hill shows that he’s far more versatile than that. By my own admission I am not a prolific reader of this genre and feel far more at home with the psychological thriller but such is Peter James writing that I always entertained by his novels. As the novel progresses, many things begin to become confusing. We see events through Jason’s perspective throughout and when he or Emily is confused or disagree, what are we to think? Does it matter? At one point late in the book, Jason thinks to himself How much, since they had moved here, was real? I think this is an important question as the confusion of the last third of the book actually decreased my feelings of dread. I had been feeling a build up but then I lost where the plot was going along with Jason. But I did enjoy the setting, the varied characters (except Claudette), and the build up . I was stunned – and very spooked. Later, after her parents had left, I decided I had to tell my wife. She took it in the pragmatic way she had of dealing with most difficult issues in life. ‘You’ve met several mediums in your research – why don’t you ask one of them to come in and see what they find?’

Summary

Things start smoothly but both couples sense a feeling of others in their new homes. This only gets worse when one of the locals points out that nobody has ever survived beyond forty in Cold Hill House and no one has ever truly left. Now to the story. Slowly odd things begin to happen. Footsteps heard where no one should be walking. Voices talking out of empty space. Disturbing. But not yet scary. Then there are shadows. What is in this house? Jason and Emily learn a little about the area from locals, enough to increase their curiosity. Meanwhile he is working on important art work due before Christmas.