Here’s a modern gothic horror story that will go down as one of the greats of this generation. The Silent Companionswas published in 2017 and, while it is a gothic horror, it delves deeper than that. When Elise marries Rupert Bainbridge, she knows her factory days are behind her. She is going to live a life of wealth and privilege. But he dies unexpectedly a few weeks into their marriage. She travels to the Bridge, her husband's crumbling estate to carry out her pregnancy and is met with servants who are less than happy to work with/for her, her husband's lonely cousin, Sarah, a cat, and strange hissing sounds coming from the Garrett. Cheyne, J.A. & Girard, P. (2007) Paranoid delusions and threatening hallucinations: A prospective study of sleep paralysis experiences. Consciousness and Cognition, 16, 959–974.

Writing in the tradition of country house ghost stories, Laura Purcell has created a book that is unnerving and compelling in equal measure. The Silent Companions is an atmospheric gothic tale that chills the blood.” A completely creeptastic tale that had me jumping at the slightest sounds - warning: read with all the lights on! Dummy boards relate to the tradition of trompe l’oeil, a French phrase meaning deceives the eye, where three-dimensional visual illusions are created on a flat surface.

A creepy, unsettlingtale that I had to finish reading in broad daylight― Stylist, 'Must-Read Books'

Were you always a fan of ghost stories when you were growing up? And who are your favourite spooky writers? Take Ben's new survey via http://hearingthevoice.org/2016/03/22/feelings-of-presence-new-article-and-survey/ One of the most well-written horror stories I’ve read this year, The Silent Companions is proper Gothic fare. . . . What is commendable is how Purcell is able to weave all these [classic] elements in a story that is layered and psychologically complex till the very end.”When newly widowed Elsie is sent to see out her pregnancy at her late husband's crumbling country estate, The Bridge, what greets her is far from the life of wealth and privilege she was expecting . . . I liked the sense of vagueness left at the end of the novel. The story was left open to the readers interpretation which suited the novel completely. Fans of Gothic, atmospheric Victorian books should look no further - The Silent Companions should be right up your alley! This is Gothic done right! Have you ever read a book where the Author is going for Gothic and just fails to hit the mark? The Author not only hits the mark -she nails it. The crumbling estate is creepy and dreary. The countryside is dripping with atmosphere and dread. The villagers are hostile and refuse to help anyone at the country estate known as the Bridge. This story creeps along as does the feelings of dread and apprehension in this book. This story does jump around a little bit from the present day, to the past, to the not so distant past but it is never confusing. During the book, the reader sees the main character of Elise in a psychiatric hospital being evaluated by a psychiatrist. There has been a fire and Elise is believed to have started it and she is considered to be responsible for deaths which occurred before and during the fire. The reader also gets a glimpse into the year 1635, when a family lives at the country estate. The reader learns what occurred during the time and finally we see Elise moving into the estate and her time spent living in the home.

But what makes it one of the best books like Downton Abbey is its portrayal of protagonist Elsie, a working woman who rose through the British class system, marrying into the wealthy estate of her now-late husband.

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Similarly benevolent experiences are also reported by people in extreme survival situations. Known collectively as ‘Third Man’ experiences (see box, over), accounts of guiding or accompanying presences in polar treks, mountaineering expeditions, sea accidents and natural disasters are numerous. The presences described are usually human-like, close by and feel like they share an affinity with the person experiencing them. Occasionally they are associated with sounds or words (Geiger, 2010, p126), or vague visions, such as a shadow or outline, but more commonly such presences are described without any sensory correlates. Like other presence experiences, though, the Third Man usually takes up a distinct spatial location, in some cases appearing to lead those in peril to safety.