Nora Roberts sent a short revelation hinting to readers where her interest in the subject of ghosts and haunted houses came from. This is also one of the main storylines, along which he leads us in his new novel “The Inheritance” (translator Valentina Arnaudova). The author’s words are provided to “I am reading” by Hermes publishing house.
dear reader,
When I think of ghosts, the first thing that comes to mind is my maternal grandmother. I’m guessing because that’s the earliest experience with spirits I can remember. The treasure, as we called her, lived with us for several years. I will say she was cute because I adored her, although that is NOT the first word that comes to mind when I think of her.
Stubborn, self-confident, funny, quirky, snarky, with a hot Irish temper – all these definitions overtake “cute”. She had flaming red hair and was an eye-catcher when she was young. She was married five times (before I was born). That’s right, five times, and she hasn’t kept a single husband.
He had his own rooms in our house – a bedroom, a bathroom, a living room with a fireplace, a kitchenette. He watched and followed the roller skating competitions.
In the house I grew up in, we had a huge backyard with lots of fruit trees and a vegetable garden that we worked on every summer. A decent sized front yard and a willow tree that was sort of halfway between the center and side alleys.
My father hated that tree. I have no idea why. My grandmother loved it. I have no idea why either. He periodically threatened to cut him down, and she carried his ax. The tree remained.
One evening, a week or two after the Treasure died, my father thought of this tree. I remember him saying, “Well, Epps is gone (that’s what he called her – something out of a comic book or cartoon) and tomorrow morning I’m going to cut that damn tree down.”
During the night the willow tree was struck by lightning, split in two and fell to the ground.
She just didn’t want to give him that pleasure.
For a while, Grandma stayed in the house, winding her cuckoo clock, closing the doors, probably watching roller skating races or hovering around the dining room table for the Friday card game. I know my mother felt it often and it brought her comfort. And it cheered her up.
After this first experience, I have had others. And I live on a Civil War battlefield, so it would be weird if I didn’t experience it. I have heard war drums in the middle of the night while cooing a bawling baby, as well as the odd knock when no one was home. A child’s voice calling for his mother – I admit it scared the crap out of me – from downstairs while I was working upstairs, alone in the house. Then I ventured to go down and look for the little girl, but I was not her mother, so she did not show herself to me.
And I happen to own a haunted hotel. Now some of you will say: Please Nora, you are imagining things here. But I’m sure. As do the staff at the Boonesborough Hotel, who often have to turn off showers in locked, empty rooms or return an item from where it has been mysteriously moved. Opening doors, closing doors, steps on stairs. Many guests have had such encounters during their stay. Fortunately, our spirits are benevolent. Playful but friendly. We even have a ghost cat that often visits guests in their rooms. Her name is Johnson.
Once a year a few girlfriends and I spend a week at the Greenbrier complex in West Virginia. We are booking a separate house. As soon as I crossed the threshold, I thought: Oh, well, we’re not alone here. All my friends, including my grandson Griffin, who is coming with us, have had similar encounters. Oh, I could tell you so many stories. That’s why I decided to do it.
When I thought about the subject of my next trilogy, old houses with ghostly inhabitants came to mind. Personally, I love haunted houses (and I’ve made peace with the ones who walk around them), so why not write about that?
My imaginary house (or straight mansion, as they call it) rises on the coast of Maine, and the main character inherits it from an uncle she never knew she had. I do not want to go into details and spoil the pleasure of reading, I will only say that the reasons for this ignorance are important.
Not only is this mansion haunted, it also carries a two-hundred-year curse. Since it’s already included in the prologue, I don’t think I’m giving much away if I say that a woman is murdered on her wedding day by an evil, jealous, crazy witch who curses the house and subsequent brides in the line.
Haunted house, curse, doomed brides through the ages. Well, I’m definitely happy with the result. Add in a mystery that the main character must solve to break the curse, some romance, the not-so-benevolent witch that inhabits the place, and a bunch of other spirits, and you’ll understand my satisfaction.
I loved the idea of my rational-minded heroine finding herself in a completely irrational situation and discovering her heritage, her family history, while building a career as a freelance graphic designer. And on top of that, she has to learn to trust her heart.
I had so much fun writing The Legacy, the first book in the Cursed Brides trilogy.
I hope you, reader, will enjoy it as well as all the things the heroine will encounter in the beautiful, haunted mansion on the coast of Maine.
Nora
Order the book “Naseldstvo” from the website of IC “Hermes” or from Ozone.bg.
