The House of War and Witness
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In 1740, an Austrian infantry company more than two hundred strong arrives at the Prussian border. Their orders: to defend the town of Narutsin when war—inevitably—breaks out. But they don’t get the warm welcome they’re expecting. If anything, the locals seem strangely secretive, and the soldiers who previously garrisoned in the village have disappeared. Fearing the villagers may be consorting with the enemy, the commander orders his prim young lieutenant Klaes to investigate . . .
On the outskirts of town, in a dilapidated manor known as Pokoj, the road-weary soldiers make their home for the winter. Accompanying them is Drozde, a camp follower and entertainer who possesses a very special talent: she can see and communicate with the dead. She’s the only one who knows that the crumbling mansion is far from empty. It’s teeming with ghosts—and they know her.
Each spirit tells Drozde how they became a part of Pokoj’s sprawling history, hinting at its future as well as its past. As she listens to their tales, it becomes apparent that the story of the manor hasn’t yet ended—and that she and Klaes have their own parts to play in the horror that is to come . . .
“All of the characters come alive on the pages—even the ghosts. . . . A compelling, accomplished novel.” —Strange Horizons
“Delightfully odd . . . Subtle horror and extra special creepiness . . . A fine example of what the Careys are capable of.” —Starburst
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Mike Carey has written extensively in the comics field, where his credits include Lucifer, Hellblazer, X-Men,and The Unwritten, which was nominated for both the Eisner and Hugo Awards. He is also the author of the Felix Castor series, and has coauthored two fantasy novels, The Steel Seraglio and The House of War and Witness,with his wife, Linda, and daughter, Louise. Carey is also the author of the novel The Girl with All the Gifts under the name M. R. Carey. He is currently writing a screenplay, Silent War,for Slingshot Studios and Intrepid Pictures.
Linda Carey is a teacher, writer, and fantasy enthusiast. She taught in schools for twenty years and is currently the head of education at Keats House in Hampstead. She has coauthored two fantasy novels, The Steel Seraglio and The House of War and Witness,with her husband, Mike, and daughter, Louise. She has also written a young adult trilogy, Darkest Age, under the pseudonym A. J. Lake.
Louise Carey read English at University College, Oxford, and holds a master’s degree in psychology from Oxford Brookes. She has been writing since the age of fifteen, when she coauthored the graphic novel Confessions of a Blabbermouth with her father, Mike. She has since cowritten two fantasy novels with her parents, The Steel Seraglio and The House of War and Witness. She currently works as a writer and editor, dividing her time between freelance projects and the Dungeons & Dragons blog Tabletop Tales, which she runs with her partner. Her debut trilogy of novels has just been commissioned by Gollancz, with the first installment, Inscape, due out in January 2021.
