Terry Kennedy is inexplicably and inexorably drawn to the small town of Fiveswood as a place to live and work after university. He is sure he has never visited the town before, but when he arrives there, it seems oddly familiar.
Fiveswood has a rich and intriguing history. Local legends speak of giants, angels, wolves, a local Robin Hood, but most of all, a knight in golden armour. Fiveswood’s history also has a dark side – mysterious deaths blamed on the plague, a ghostly black panther, and a landslide which buried the smugglers’ caves.
Terry buys an apartment in The Heights, a house which has been empty for decades, since the previous owner disappeared. Now he has finally been declared dead, developers have moved in and turned it into six flats. Terry has the odd feeling he has lived in this enigmatic house before. But that is not all. Since childhood, Terry has had recurring, disturbing dreams which have been increasing in frequency so that now, he has them almost every night. To his dismay, the people from his nightmares are his new neighbours.
Except, that is, for Eleanor Millbrook. She is refreshingly unfamiliar. After Terry saves her from a mysterious attacker, they become close. However, Terry’s nightmares encroach more and more on his waking life, until they lead him to a devastating discovery about who he really is.
General information
Pages: 276
Published: 15 October 2019
ISBN: 9781699817698
Themes
- Superheroes
- History
- Legends and myths
- Reincarnation
- Love
- Friendship
- Good vs evil
- Memory/deja vu
First page
Tess hated driving when it was raining so hard she could barely see out of the windscreen, even with the wipers going at full speed. The beams of her headlights were scattered by the driving rain and rendered virtually useless. It was ten years since she’d last driven down this road, in the opposite direction, swearing never to return. Even in good conditions, could she recognise the turning after all this time?
There was a sign on the verge ahead. Tess braked, in order to see it properly, in case it was the one she was looking for. It wasn’t; it was a sign stating that The Black Swan Inn was 100 yards ahead.
Beneath it lay a dead badger. Tess shuddered as she remembered how Fiveswood had always seemed to have more roadkill than anywhere else; not only that, but the roadkill here always looked shrunken, almost mummified. No-one had ever been able to explain why.
‘It’s not far, now,’ Terry said. Tess’s son Terry was ten, a true old soul, everyone said, wise beyond his years. He was right, but Tess didn’t see how he could possibly know. Ten years ago, Terry had been a tiny baby in a carry-cot on the back seat. He’d never been back here, either. She concluded it was probably wishful thinking on his part, hoping this long, stressful drive was almost over.
Reasons not to read it
- There’s deja vu and disturbing dreams.
- It hints at the possibility reincarnation and groups coming together in different lives.
- The heroes are battling an unspeakable evil.
- It’s set in a small town with loads of weird legends.
- The hero’s romance is pretty much doomed from the start.
- You might never feel safe in your local pub or on the high street again.
- A principle female character who wears glasses, loves history and reads a lot.
Book club questions
- Imagine if you and your friends/family had been reincarnated into different periods in history like the characters in the book, to fight evil. What might your powers and abilities be?
- Which period of history would you have enjoyed living in most?
- If you had possessions, such as Gauntlet’s armour, that you’d need to find again in your next life, where would you hide them?
- How do you think remembering (or not) numerous past lives with the same small group of people affect their relationships? Is it healthy?
- How do you think Gauntlet and Angel’s relationship will develop in the future?
- Will the shadow ever be entirely defeated?
- What would happen if the Five ever failed and the shadow won?
- Could any myths or legends from your own locality be explained in a similar way to those of Fiveswood?
Gallery
Julie Howlin Author 