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Shop nowThe Voices
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Learn moreFrom Edgar nominee F. R. Tallis comes a new novel of psychological suspense that reinvents the classic haunted-house tale.
In the scorching summer of 1976—the hottest since records began—Christopher Norton, his wife Laura, and their young daughter Faye settle into their new home in north London.
The faded glory of the Victorian house is the perfect place for Norton, a composer of film soundtracks, to build a recording studio of his own. But soon in the long, oppressively hot nights, Laura begins to hear something through the crackle of the baby monitor. First, a knocking sound. Then come the voices.
For Norton, the voices mark an exciting opportunity. Putting his work to one side, he begins the project of a lifetime—a grand symphony incorporating the voices—and becomes increasingly obsessed with one voice in particular … someone who is determined to make themselves heard.
F. R . Tallis is a writer and clinical psychologist. He has received or been nominated for numerous awards, including the New London Writers’ Award and two Edgar Awards.
With acting credits that span stage and screen, Gildart Jackson is most often recognized for his role as Gideon on Charmed. Other notable TV roles include Jackson Palmer on Providence and Simon Prentiss on General Hospital, as well as guest appearances on Stargate: Atlantis, Las Vegas, and CSI. Theater roles include Trigorin in The Seagull, Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady, and Adrian in Private Eyes at the Old Globe.
Reviews
“Clever and spooky. For Tallis, the darker recesses of the mind hold monsters enough. The novel is an elegantly constructed psychiatric Gothic, all spires and gargoyles and ghostly echoes—the sort of vast, dread edifice we sometimes build around ourselves when the lights go out.”
“Set in the ‘70s, this is sophisticated, creepy, spellbinding, and sinister, but it’s also about a marriage in decay and a house that’s encouraging it.”
“Engrossing. Immensely satisfying.”
“A chilling tale of supernatural snooping. On its surface, The Voices is a ghost story set in a haunted house. But its historical setting adds complexity. This horror story is undeniably hair-raising.”
“Tallis sets his stand-alone psychological thriller during a time when traditional gender roles were being challenged and cleverly uses the supernatural to underscore the claustrophobia of an increasingly fractious marriage. The eerie voices, the heat, and the oppression that Laura feels, as well as Chris’ frustration with his career and a wife who is no longer his ideal, all come together to create an insidious, creeping dread in this subtle yet ultimately terrifying yarn.”
“Well-rounded characters and evocative prose distinguish this supernatural thriller…Fans of subtle horror will find a lot to like.”
“Tallis…is a master of psychological suspense, and this novel, which reaches its climax during the London heat wave of 1976, is utterly gripping.”
“Incisive and beautifully observed storytelling…A genuine page-turner.”
“Narrator Gildart Jackson knows his way around an old-fashioned ghost story, and this audiobook is all the better for it. The creepy story of a haunted house, a young family, and an ambitious composer sets the groundwork; Jackson adds even more eerie atmosphere. His subtly disturbing vocalizations for the story’s ethereal beings produce physical chills as well as psychological suspense. He also does a commendable job of portraying the conflicted wife’s desperate efforts to keep her infant daughter safe while maintaining her own sanity. With just enough dramatic restraint, Jackson keeps the paranormal frightening and believable.”
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