Rowan Prose Publishing’s Sapphire imprint is home to spine-tingling horror and paranormal books from some of the best up and coming authors. Find your next great read!
Title: Straw Girl
Author: Brigid Barry
Genre: Paranormal/Horror
Publisher: Rowan Prose Publishing
Book Blurb
To believe in that other world, she must first learn to believe in herself.
The signs were always there.
The footsteps.
The cries.
The melancholy music from a faraway place.
Though Melissa Roberts lives alone, she chooses not to believe in superstitions. Locked in the rational prison of her closed imagination, she must open her mind and soul to that other place before it’s too late.
For the voices are rising.
The footsteps draw closer.
Until the music is deafening.
She must prepare herself. She must become the Straw Girl. They are coming for her.
Excerpt
In bed with the covers pulled up to my chin, I squeezed my eyes closed. The power had gone out minutes ago. Or had it been hours? I only knew it was out because the air conditioner had died with a loud beep. Despite the late August heat and humidity outside, the temperature in the room had continued to plummet without it. My breath would have been visible if the room wasn’t pitch dark.
The hoarse whisper from an audio recording echoed in my head.
Let me in…
I wouldn’t wish this experience on anyone, but the last thing I wanted was to be alone. Spectral fingers clawed along the vinyl siding inches away from my head. More tapped on the window next to my bed. I kept my back to it, which somehow made it better.
Let me in…
Right then, hiding under a blanket, I didn’t feel like a thirty-four-year-old woman with two college degrees. At that moment, it was like being six years old again on my mother’s couch, terrified because in the dark a hanging plant looked like a witch.
Tap, tap, tap.
Let me in…
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Author Biography
Brigid Barry is a lifelong resident of Maine. A disabled Air Force veteran and blessed parent of twins, she lives on a small hobby farm with her favorite husband and too many animals. "Straw Girl" is her debut book.
Social Media Links: https://brigidbarry.carrd.co
Title: The Monsters Among Us
Author: Kent Priore
Genre: Horror/Fantasy
Publisher: Rowan Prose Publishing
Book Blurb
Seth’s life until now has been a product of a diabolical, evil Truman Show, his entire upbringing a façade orchestrated for malevolent purposes. After his beloved dies, he undergoes a demonic metamorphosis, which causes the world’s fictitious walls to crumble.
As he tries to piece a semblance of his life back together and move on, he meets friends who inspire, but even more harsh truths are revealed, perhaps too difficult to cope with.
The very existence of life and reality is exposed as a machination of grotesque gods. And to defeat them, Seth will have to fill his emptiness, for which there’s only two options…
Bring the world to ruin, or learn to transmute his pain into strength.
Fans of "Jerusalem" by Alan Moore and "American Gods" or "The Sandman" by Neil Gaiman will enjoy "The Monsters Among Us" by Kent Priore.
Excerpt
I awake to find myself floating in an empty space, devoid of anything but a vast whiteness. What is this? Where am I?
You have died. This place is beyond your world, says an unfamiliar voice, of whose location I cannot place.
"Who are you?"
You may have died, but fret not, child. Yours is a story that begins after death. It is being decided just what is to be done with your soul...and so it has been done.
Out from beneath this White Abyss rises many long and boney charred hands. The white space around their eruption cracks and withers away, revealing the scent of sulfur and brimstone beneath. The hands grip my legs, arms, chest, and back, and pull me down from whence they came.
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Author Biography
Kent Priore is the debut author of "The Monsters Among Us." He writes dark literature where romanticism meets modern psychology for a macabre but hopeful depiction of inner struggle, and the human ability to endure. He is a fierce advocate for mental health awareness and for greater acceptance of neurodivergence. For this reason, themes of mental health are pronounced and ever present in his work, both the devastating and the hopeful aspects of it. He graduated with honors from Bard College with a BA in the Written Arts, and is a proud marginalized voice in the neurodivergent community.
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Title: Lovers’ Leap
Author: Rikki Goodwin
Genre: Paranormal/Horror
Publisher: Rowan Prose Publishing
Book Blurb
Running an allegedly haunted bed & breakfast sounds a lot more fun to Hazel than her current dead end job, but a trip to inspect a property with her three best friends has unearthed way more ghosts than she was willing to deal with…and only some of them are hers.
Hazel is surprised but pleased when her high school sweetheart Finn suggests they and their significant others go in together on purchasing a B&B, but their weekend trip to visit a potential property has a rocky start. The current elderly (and bizarre) owners seem to take issue with their presence. Dizzy spells plague her and…was that a person she just saw in the mirror?
Both her boyfriend and Finn’s wife are also having a hard time coping with the creepiness of the place. They’d all assumed "haunted" was only a marketing strategy. Perhaps not. Finn, though, is resolute they’re overreacting, and insists on moving forward with the purchase, despite their misgivings. The expansive property might not be big enough to house both Finn and Hazel’s clashing personalities, or the secrets they’ve been keeping from each other.
They’ll have to put those issues aside though, when both of their partners suddenly start behaving erratically. Are they sick? Are they just tired of Finn and Hazel’s bickering? Or is something more sinister going on?
Fans of "So Thirsty" by Rachel Harrison and "Lucy Undying" by Kiersten White will enjoy "Lovers' Leap" by Rikki Goodwin
Excerpt
He’s suddenly the monster under the bed that I’d never dare to look at. My neck won’t turn to see, but my legs won’t cooperate, either. I’m staring, frozen, towards the door.
What if he tries to stop me from leaving? Would he do that? Do I even know what he’d do? My hands slide down my thighs, searching for the little square lifeline I’ll need if I leave this place, but I only feel cheap material, damp with sweat.
Dimitri’s fork scrapes his plate behind me, and I turn back, scan the kitchen. My phone is plugged in on the kitchen counter, the little battery icon on the screen a cheerful green. I do the quickest calculations I’ve ever done in my life. I’ve never been a math girlie. Should I run back for it and sprint out the door, leave all pretense behind? Could he catch me? Should I just head towards the car and abandon the phone?
My eyes are darting around, imagining escape routes, and they accidentally fall on him. He’s staring right at me, a tiny smirk on his face. A knowing smirk. He’s aware I’m not fooled by whatever is going on here.
That’s not Dimitri.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub)
Author Biography
Rikki Goodwin is a professional body piercer by day and a horror/thriller author by night. She owns a successful piercing and tattoo studio. "Lovers' Leap" is her debut book. She resides in North Carolina.
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Title: Legend Has It
Author: DJ Slater
Genre: Horror
Publisher: Rowan Prose Publishing
Book Blurb
Soon-to-be college graduate Seth McCartney finds his love for his favorite October pastime – visiting haunted house attractions – fading. No matter what he does, he can’t recreate the thrills he felt as a kid and teenager. His best friend and fellow horror enthusiast, Peyton Fischer, has already moved on from this tradition and wants to help Seth do the same, but not without one final hurrah.
Over the years, rumors of an extreme haunted house have repeatedly surfaced, yet Seth has never been able to find it. The fabled place has ten stories of unrelenting horror from trap doors, hidden threats, and “actors” that can not only touch you, but remove you from the house. Each level becomes more challenging the higher you go, and only a select few have made it to the exit on the top floor.
Intrigued, Seth and his friends follow a lead to the elusive haunt’s doorstep. It’s everything Seth could’ve imagined to rekindle his passion. A foreboding atmosphere. High-end set pieces. Realistic effects. But there’s a reason this locale has a frightening reputation, especially when its hallways contain the depths of true terror and survival isn’t guaranteed.
Fans of "Hide" by Kiersten White, "The September House" by Carissa Orlando, and "The Haunting of Hill House" by Shirley Jackson will enjoy "Legend Has It" by DJ Slater.
Excerpt
“Peyton. Peyton.”
“Hello,” he said, his voice rising slightly above a whisper. “Who is it?”
No answer. As he moved closer to the entrance, the white radiance from the masks started to pulsate, going from hot white to dull bone and back again. The pattern continued, slow at first, and then more rapidly as scanned the faces. Behind them was subdued laughter. First one mask, then two, then four.
The volume intensified. Eight, sixteen, thirty-two. Soon, a crescendo of overpowering laughter rushed through the hall, driving Peyton to the floor, his hands over his ears. Through squinted eyes, the faces looked distorted. The smiles and frowns warped into gaping mouths with fangs. In the sockets appeared scorching red circles.
“Stop,” he shouted.
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Author Biography
DJ Slater has a BA in journalism and history from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. He spent eight years with Diesel & Gas Turbine Publications, four years at the Wausau Daily Herald, and stints at The Washington Post, Wisconsin State Journal, and Green Bay Press-Gazette. "Legend Has It" is his first novel.
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Title: Midnight Falls
Author: John Evans
Genre: Horror
Publisher: Rowan Prose Publishing
Book Blurb
"Immersive and masterful, Midnight Falls transports you to a world that's so vivid you'll feel like you're really there. Fans of small town horror stories are going to want to read this." -Author Boris Bacic
After a series of disappointments and mishaps at college, Josh Blevins returns to his small hometown, loyal dog in tow, and begrudgingly settles in. Though he feels like a failure and his life is at a crossroads, he’s made new friends and even found a girl.
But the pleasant façade of Midnight Falls he remembered from childhood hides a sinister evil. One that goes beyond the hate festering within the borders and etched in the streets to something much deeper and chilling. Anyone and everyone could be a monster lurking behind the mask of hospitality. Knowing who to trust is impossible, especially when he’s constantly butting heads with the sheriff, who has a grudge against him, an axe to grind, and no intentions of burying it unless it’s in Josh’s back.
Somehow, he's become an outsider in a place he once called home, and is suddenly forced to choose between facing his problems or to keep running for the rest of his life. And what lingers in the dark may not let him survive long enough to decide.
Excerpt
As the beast launched itself, trying to tear itself free of the narrow stairs, I turned and leapt for the edge of the balcony. I extended my foot, intending to step on the rail and jump clear of the structure when it fell.
But I never found my footing. The rail gave beneath my foot. Behind me, it sounded like the world imploded as the enormous shaggy behemoth smashed through the barrier and onto the open deck of the balcony. The weight of its charge sent it smashing through the weakened structure, bringing the whole thing crashing down as it collapsed in on itself.
Together, we fell as more timbers rained down on us, burying the both of us alive.
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Author Biography
John Evans is the debut author of the pulse-pumping book “Midnight Falls.” He also writes the “Tobias Halson Hunter” series and various short stories. Inspired by greats like Stephen King and Gary Brandner, he loves all things “old school” horror, and often claims his purpose is to give readers a little bit of fun Lovecraftian escapism from the scarier real world.
Social Media Links
Twitter/X and Bluesky: @roninmercllc
Title: Vampire Hunter (Tobias Halson Hunter Series)
Author: John Evans
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Thriller
Publisher: Rowan Prose Publishing
Book Blurb
“Intricate storytelling & well-developed characters.” -Entertainment Monthly
Riding to the rescue with quick wits and snappy one-liners.
Tobias Halson, a young paranormal hunter, is charged with protecting the city of Philadelphia from the undead creatures of the night. A corporate board member is thrown out of an office building showing signs of vampire attack, and Tobias is called in to investigate. But he soon realizes he’s out of his element, lost in a world of white collar politics and water cooler plots. With the innocence of a young woman in danger, it’s a race against time to find the killer, preferably before Tobias ends up the next victim.
Fans of Ilona Andrews, Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs, Nalini Singh, Faith Hunter, and Nalo Hopkinson will enjoy John Evans’s Urban Fantasy books.
Excerpt
“Hey, buddy, ain’t killing a vampire hunter like a big deal for vampires?” The Vampire asked.
The question threw me off. I don’t know if it was the concussion or that I was expecting some cliché bad guy line that new vampires seem to love spouting off, but I wasn’t ready for it.
“Um, no, not really. We’re just run of the mill human beings. No real big to-do about killing us. Sorry.” I leaned back a bit to get away from his killer bad breath and slipped my hands into my pockets.
“Really? Ain’t that a disappointment.” He sighed, shifting his weight from foot to foot. His superpowers seemed to have dissipated now that he had disarmed me. He held my ax in his left hand.
“Sorry about that. Hollywood tends to screw us all over. They never get it right.” I shrugged. “So, are you still going to kill me?”
“Yup.”
“Well, damn.”
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub)
Author Biography
John Evans is a prolific author in the horror and urban fantasy genres, who also delves in thrilling short stories. Inspired by greats like Stephen King and Gary Brandner, he loves all things “old school” horror, and often claims his purpose is to give readers a little bit of fun Lovecraftian escapism from the scarier real world.
Social Media Links
Twitter/X and Bluesky: @roninmercllc