The House of Shadows and Light

By Ronel Holtz

At the end of a winding driveway, hidden beneath the sprawling oaks of the Blackthorn estate, stands an ancient mansion—Teach na Scáth agus na Solas, the House of Shadows and Light. Built on ley lines that hum with forgotten magick, it has watched over generations of Blackthorns, guarding their secrets, power, and tragedies.

Eleanor Blackthorn, the unshakable matriarch, rules the family with quiet authority, her piercing grey eyes hiding truths too dangerous to speak. Her father, Alaric, a relic of a wilder age, rides his ancient motorcycle through the village, his mind drifting between past and present. Her children—Seraphina, the ambitious banker; Drusilla, the eccentric scientist; Lucien, the wayward musician; and Elowen, the ethereal dreamer—each carry a piece of their family's legacy, whether they wish to or not.

But the past refuses to remain buried.

When Alaric falls mysteriously ill, his lips dusted with an untraceable white powder, Eleanor suspects a poison not of this world. The clues lead back to Lady Cordelia Eldermaze, a woman haunted by whispers of a husband's death that are too similar to Alaric's fate. Meanwhile, Seraphina stumbles upon financial records signed by a man long dead—Victor Douglas, their abusive father, whose body was found torn apart outside the estate gates years ago.

As graves crack open and forgotten names are whispered in the wind, the Blackthorns must confront a terrifying truth: someone—or something—wants to unearth what was meant to stay lost. Ancient magick stirs in the shadows, wolves prowl the estate's edges, and the Book of Shadows and Light trembles in its tower room, ink shifting across its pages with warnings of what's to come.

Bound by blood, magick, and history darker than they ever imagined, the Blackthorn family must uncover the forces working against them before the House of Shadows and Light falls to a fate it cannot escape.

A gothic tale of legacy, mystery, and supernatural intrigue, The House of Shadows and Light is a gripping family saga where the dead do not rest, and the past is never truly past.