Title:Ultimate Sacrifice (Merryweather Lodge Book #3) Author: Pauline Holyoak Source: Author request Genre: Paranormal, Thriller, Horror and Romance Length: Novel Reviewed by Laurie
Four years have passed since that dreadful event in the cellar. Belinda gave birth to a baby girl nine months after Emily witnessed the creature raping Jonathan. The child appeared normal, but looks can be deceiving. For four years, there has been no paranormal activity at the cottage or reports of suicides or murders in the area. Merryweather Lodge is the fairytale kingdom Emily always dreamt it would be—or so it seems. In just one week, Emily is going to marry the man of her dreams, her literal soul mate. Will her unearthly adversary allow the wedding to take place? Come to the West Country in England and experience the final act at Merryweather Lodge.
Merryweather Lodge is a trilogy that borders a lot of different genres, from thriller to romance. From the first book we have followed Emily down a scary road of battling her evil ancestor the Druid priestess Merhia, we thought it was over with in the second book but nope, Merhia is still demanding on getting her revenge.
Ultimate Sacrifice is another edge of your seat read. My only downside was the use of the child Abby, I just can’t hack a child being used by any evil spirit. Other than that the story was great, it held my attention in many ways. I loved the characters and I loved that I got to follow Emily from teen to adult. I also have to give kudos to the author because Emily is very young when this series started out so the author had to write this character as she grew. I think she did an awesome job because you can really tell the changes in her character in each book.
This time around Emily finds out a lot more about the past of her Auntie when Skye offers to put Auntie Em under hypnosis. I’ll just say this hypnosis gives a lot of insight and it really ties everything together. As things unravel from the past things are starting to heat up as Marhia, is yet again preparing to stake claim to Jonathan. I recommend this series to anyone who loves a good edge of your seat thriller with the addition of paranormal.
A good ending for a great trilogy. Reading suggestion- trilogy should be read in order.
Four years has passed since that dreadful event in the cellar. Belinda gave birth to a baby girl, none months after Emily witnessed the creature raping Jonathan. The child appeared to be normal but looks can be deceiving. Was Emily's attempt to bury the pentagram and trap the evil entity successful? For four years, there had been no paranormal activity at the cottage or reports of suicides or murders in the area. Merryweather Lodge was the fairytale kingdom Emily always dreamt it would be. Or so it seemed. In just one week Emily was going to marry the man of her dreams, her literal soul mate. Will her unearthly adversary allow the wedding to take place? Come to the West Country in England and experience the final act at Merryweather Lodge.
Excerpt from Ultimate Sacrifice:
I glanced at Jonathan to see his reaction. His
cleft chin was raised and his lips wore a soft smile. He looked content, happy
and oblivious to it all. I tried to
speak to him but my mouth would not move. I was frozen in another dimension,
devoid of my reality, as if someone had cast a malicious spell on me.The unsightly woman’s cracked lips formed a
stiff smile; her strange eyes glared into mine. I recognized those eyes, but
from where? Something was moving toward me from behind. I could feel it. My
skin began to crawl. I was consumed with utter panic and the need to escape. I
tried to tear my arm away from Jonathan’s and run, but I could not move. I was
shrouded in a dark magnetic force that kept me glued to the ground.
If you want to learn more about Pauline Holyoak or follow what she's up to, check her out on the web at:
Award – Winning, Canadian Author: Pauline Holyoak…Merryweather
Lodge – Malevolent Spirit, Book 2. A
great read for the Halloween season!
I am a dreamer and lover of
fiction. I grew up in a coal mining village in Southeast
England, lovingly nicknamed “The place that time forgot.” I
immigrated to Canada
when I was twenty one, in search of adventure and a new life. I live in Alberta, with my sports
crazy husband, adorable Sheltie dog and cantankerous ginger cat. I am the proud
mother of two grown children and one grandchild, on the way. I have spent the
past 25 years writing articles, editorials, sort stories and books. My trilogy,
although a work of fiction, was inspired by my own experiences at a remote
little cottage near Stonehenge.
Interviewer: Good day reader. My name is Barbra Banister. I
am a staff writer at the Salisbury
Sun. I am here at Merryweather Lodge to interview Emily Fletcher, a young
Canadian woman who has come here to visit her aunt.
Barbra: Ms. Fletcher, could you tell us a little bit about
yourself and what brings you here?
It’s Christmastime at Merryweather Lodge. Emily has returned to the cottage from her home in Canada; after the untimely death of someone she loved. Will she be able to celebrate a traditional English Christmas in her aunts enchanting little cottage or will she be tormented by the hideous creature, again? Was Emily’s attempt to banish her unearthly adversary successful? Will her aunt disclose the secrets she has been concealing for so many years? What will happen when Emily’s best friend comes to visit her? What secrets will she reveal? Will Emily ever get to make love to the man of her dreams? A chilling tale of love, passion, sorcery and sacrifice; laced with mystery and tied with humor. Inspired by the authors own experiences in a remote little cottage near Stonehenge
Pauline Holyoak delivers another bone chilling story. This is the second book in the Malevolent Sprit trilogy and it takes you deeper into the myth around Merhia and the lodge then the first book. You get a better look into how Merthia the creature came about. Pauline still keeps the same pace where you understand all the elements going on and the way she explains it you feel like your right there and that’s where the creepiness really gets you.
Emily gets even more grief this time around from the spirit of Merhia. She and Jonathan’s love life gets very spicy as their love continues to grow spite the fact Merhia is trying to sabotage their every step together. Emily also find out her best friend kinda of has a thing for her. Yep, this one get's very interesting.
My downside this time was I wished Emily would have believed in her powers and used them more in getting rid of Merthia.
If you want a good storytelling paranormal romance with a touch of horror that will leave you a bit creep out as your reading, then you have to try both books. This can be a standalone but I would highly recommend you to read the first in the series.
Merryweathger Lodge – Ancient Revenge.. The first of a trilogy.. ”A supernatural thriller that keeps you on the edge.” A perfect Christmas gift for those with a sense of adventure!
About me…
I grew in Southeast England, in a coal mining village my husband calls, “The place that time forgot.” It is nested between the notorious city of Canterbury and the medieval town of Dover. I came to Canada as a nanny, when I was 21. This vast and majestic country has served me well, but England will always be home. I live in Alberta (western Canada) with my sports crazy husband, adorable Sheltie dog and cantankerous ginger cat. We have two grown children. They are the gems in my treasure chest. I love this part of the world, except for the winters. It can be a chilly minus -30 for days on end. Burr…..
I love horror movies and being scared…Not the… “Hey I think I smell smoke” scared, but the creepy, spine-chilling, spooky stuff scared. When I was a young girl my friend and I would wander through the local graveyard just before dark, read the tombstones and make up stories about the people that were buried there. Good grief….I was weird.
I ran away from home when I was 17 years old, to join a band of hippies and live on the streets of London. I went to challenge the establishment, proclaim peace, escape from the hum-drum village life and find myself. I lived in la…la…land with the flower children for a year but I never did find myself. I have now. Thank God!
I don’t eat mammal and would like to be a vegetarian but I like my fish and chips too much.
Every summer, when I was a child, we would visit my aunt and uncle at their quaint little cottage on Salisbury Plain. It was called Scotland Lodge and was situated not far from the historical Stonehenge. My uncle worked as a farm hand for the local squire. My aunt tended the manor house. It was there as I roamed free, deep within the English countryside, that I experienced joy, enchantment and some very strange and frightening occurrences. It was like a fairytale kingdom with a sinister twist. The memories of my summers at Scotland Lodge have stayed with me as a sort of nagging unsolved mystery all my life. A few years ago I revisited my childhood wonderland (the old place still emanates a strange and eerie essence) and was lead by some mysterious force into concocting this story and writing this book. It is from my mystifying experiences at Scotland Lodge that this book has emerged.
My life has been a fascinating journey so far but nothing compares to my mystifying summer holidays at Scotland Lodge.
Book blurb…..
When Emily Fletcher meets the gorgeous Jonathan McArthur she is infatuated and consumed with passion. Will he go with her to the dreaded wood-lot, to remove the bloody ancient curse, before it’s too late? In the first half of my story Emily is fourteen years old. In the second half she is forced to return to the cottage, at the age of twenty. My novel contains elements of horror, humor, fantasy, romance and sex. I have created a world into which my readers can escape and an atmosphere that will evoke their imagination, stir their emotions and engage their senses.
Excerpt.…”Let’s go somewhere privet.” She said, grabbing my arm. She guided me to the passage and plunked me down on the bottom step of the attic stairs. My back straightened. Panic rose within me as an icy shiver ran down my spine. It was as if I had been lead to an old cemetery, sat on a grave and left among the tomb stones.
“That was her room you know.” She said as she pointed up the stairs.
“Who’s?”
“Mary Eliss.”
I turned my head ever so slowly and drew eyes up to the portal at the top of the stairs. I shivered and quickly looked way. “I know it was.”
In a low voice she whispered. “Do you suppose she’s still up there?” Then she grinned mischievously.
I looked into her strange glassy eyes. “She was, the last time I was here and I have a feeling she hasn’t left.”
My advice for would-be authors…..Learn to live with rejections, don’t let them bother you. Believe in yourself and your work. Never, ever give up on your dreams. Faith, perseverance and steely determination are what all successful authors have in common.
I am now working on the second book of my trilogy… Merryweather Lodge – The Malevolent Spirit…Find out if Emily gets to make mad, passionate love to Jonathan , just like she does in her dreams….?
Merryweather Lodge – A quaint little cottage, steeped in history, shrouded in secrets, its aura a paradoxical essence of heaven and hell. Go into this book if you dare and experience my protagonist’s strange and eerie journey there…. . Available at http://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/
The next big book craze…...Stonehenge!
Thank you Laurie, for letting me share this with you and your friends. Please come visit me at http://www.paulineholyoak.com/
