The Ghost Woods

In 1965, Pearl Gorham arrives at Lichen Hall, a remote and decaying manor deep within the Scottish countryside, a place shrouded in local folklore and whispered tales of ghosts and witches. She is one of several young, unwed women sent there to give birth, a common practice in a time when societal judgment could ruin a woman's life. Yet, the isolation of Lichen Hall and the unsettling nature of its proprietors, the Whitlock family, quickly lead Pearl to suspect that deeper, darker secrets lie beneath the surface.

As Pearl navigates the eerie atmosphere and the unsettling presence of the surrounding "ghost woods," her investigation into the manor's mysteries begins to intertwine with the past. The narrative also follows Mabel in 1959, another young woman sent to Lichen Hall under similarly mysterious circumstances, claiming she is pregnant despite never having been with a man. Both women confront themes of motherhood, trauma, and the oppressive treatment of women, amidst a gothic setting where the natural world, particularly fungi, plays a role in the unfolding horror. The Ghost Woods delivers a chilling and atmospheric tale that explores the lengths one will go to uncover truth and protect what is most precious in a place where the woods creep ever closer and something sinister has been unleashed.