I never thought I would say this about a book, but there was too much foreshadowing. So many chapters end with "someday she would regret that" or something similar to encourage a sense of foreboding.

Next, I was hoping to end the story with a little bit more left unsaid. For me, the ending was too neat and tidy. Right down to all of the heads being delivered (as a side note, why bury the bodies in the walls if people already know they're dead??).

The premise of The Proctor Hall Horror was interesting, things moved a little too slowly and conveniently.

Book- The Proctor Hall Horror

Genre-ghost/spooky but certainly horror combined with multiple elements

My ratings- 4\5

Suggested reading age according to me- Anyone who can handle haunted mysteries and a writing style that will get you thinking about the antagonist/protagonist at 1 in the night.

A little tip- only go for this if you can handle a writing style that will feel as if the murder is taking place right in front of you. (yes, this book is that good)

Book info- this is the 7th book in the series but it can be read as a stand-alone. The plot was thoroughly spooky, it gave me all the Halloween feels so I say, start with this.

Let me start my review with my favorite part of the book which is the perfect environment, the mood that the author sets for the book.

I was definitely getting the spooky October vibes with the weather description suffice to say the book won my heart at that very moment, the narrative and description is such that is sets the perfect mood for the scenes upcoming. There are hints of brutal, ruthless murder but then, does the living raise the dead? Are there hints of misunderstandings? No dear readers I will not be telling you this, it is for you to pick up the book and treat yourselves. Classic example of students going the extra mile for the top grade, the story starts with an incident to revolving around the professor Julien girard his highly unique interests and his class of students. I got very lost out of the story during the investigation times is the only aspect I didn’t like about the book. I found the character description on the beginning very useful as whenever I lost the reference, I could always refer to the description page. The story is centered around proctor hall where literally everything happens….

No doubt it’s a ghost story but the ending was rather very beautiful, no it isn’t good ghost or bad ghost getting peace, it is even better. It is like the circle of life. It gets completed on the exact note it started, the one small wish aspect is completed which is why I call it a beautiful ending.

Abandoned House, Disappearances, Murders, & Ghosts: Don't Go In There!

Proctor Hall is a scary place, a perfect subject for an enjoyable horror novel with an (un)healthy measure of whodunnit.

The people in charge of investigating this particular haunting are more authoritative, even prestigious, than those I usually associate with TV-connected paranormal investigations. Even so, everything doesn't go well. And some things go a lot better than I expected them to!

I've never spent time in the bayou area, so I'm suspending judgment on whether calling in another genuine psychic to sit in for the first would be as easy as the plot depends on. You may not be able to swing a black cat without hitting a psychic in New Orleans, for all I know. It all worked out believably.

I liked Cate, Landry, and Henri, and felt a lot of sympathy for April and Noah, but would have liked to know more about all of them. This seventh book in the series is the first I've read. I suspect I would have gotten a better feel for the characters through past history if I'd read the other six books first.

Proctor Hall stands alone quite well as a complete story, though. There was plenty of action and suspense to carry me along and there are no cliffhangers. This was a fun book to read. I see that the first six books are collected in an omnibus edition, so I've put it on my wish list.

I received a free Advance Reader's Copy of the book, but I offer this review enthusiastically: I recommend it!

STOP and do not pass this one up! This is one of THE best books I have read in awhile. This one has a wee bit of gore but the mystery and thriller aspect gave me chills and kept me reading. Mr. Thompsom is brilliant how he can segue from one scene to another many years later and keep the narrative flowing at a fast, breath taking pace. This masterful writer has become one of my new faves, I have to read all of his books now!

This novel had a promising premise but the writing was not as well-executed as I would have liked. The dialogue among the characters is often awkward, cheesy, and disjointed. There are too many overly convenient coincidences - like the one girl being a clairvoyant and then just coming out and talking about it. My thought is that her having some inner dialogue before admitting this would have been more believable. There end up being no really likable characters - the professor is arrogant and manipulative and the students are a collection of cliches. I have not finished this one and do not think I plan to; it made me cringe repeatedly. The story moved very slowly, even though the chapters are short. The “scary” parts that I got to were just given away and offer no real build up. The “scariest” moment was at the very beginning of the book, and I never felt nervous at all after that. I wish I had more positive things to say about this one, as I was really excited to read it, but I found it boring, a bit cheesy, and not scary in the least. Considering the length, I didn’t want to continuing to read something that I just was not enjoying and did not foresee myself enjoying, barring a very serious turn in the style of the writing. I gave it two stars for premise and the eerie backstory - I loved those. I just wish it had been executed better. I appreciate having been granted this ARC; it just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Everyone likes getting an A in class, but just how far are you willing to go to get that A? Dr. Julien Girard teaches the Appreciation of Louisiana Culture class at Tulane University. His class is so popular, there is even a waiting list. For the final project of the semester, Dr Girard has assigned his students to groups allowing them to choose what they will do their project on. The best project would receive an A. There was always one group that chose to divulge in one of the most scariest and mysterious stories in Louisiana; the mass murders of Proctor Hall. As the story goes, 14 year old mute Noah Proctor murdered his parents and his sister, beheading them and propping them up on the couch in the living room with their heads displayed on the mantle. Many would go as far as saying that Proctor Hall is haunted by the late family. Just what will the students unearth when on they visit the forbidden property? With murder, paranormal activity, and untold secrets, this just may be the toughest A ever earned.

This is by far one of the best thrillers I've ever read! So many twists and it definitely keeps you on the edge of your seat. It had me sucked in from the very beginning. I'm rating this ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. This is a must read! Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this amazing book!

In 1963 the Proctor family was found murdered in their Louisiana plantation home. They were gruesomely propped on the couch with their heads lined up on the mantle.  Fourteen year-old Noah Proctor is the only one left alive; however, he has been mute all his life.  Everyone assumes Noah was the murderer and he is sent to an institution.  Years later, Noah is released to the caretakers of Proctor Hall and a young woman disappears nearby.  Presently, Proctor Hall is left sitting vacant, owned by a paranormal investigator.  When Julien Landry assigned a group of students to investigate the history of Proctor Hall for a class project, the murders began again.  It seems that the spirits of Proctor Hall are still active and the spirits may not be the only dangerous thing lurking there.  

The Proctor Hall Horror is an exciting supernatural horror that kept me guessing all of the way through.  This is Book 7 in The Bayou Hauntings series, but can definitely be read as a stand alone.  I was hooked from the very beginning with the disappearance of Marguey and very intrigued by the history of the house itself.  There is a great build of suspense as the history of Proctor Hall is released alongside the present happenings.  The supernatural beings and gore are well paced for constant speculation of whether or not the murders were being done by ghostly entities or real people.  There were a lot of characters in here to keep straight, but they were all fully formed even if they were not in many scenes.  I was very intrigued by Noah Proctor and would have loved a few more chapters from his point of view.  Alice's character could have also used more attention, I wanted to know her history with her psychic abilities.  Even after the mystery of who has committed the murders and why is revealed, the Proctor House still has more secrets to uncover that kept me swiftly reading until the end.  The Proctor Hall Horror is a great blend of haunted house mystery and horror and I'd love to continue reading the other books in the series. 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

I think this may be my favourite read of the year so far, it had everything I could have wanted from a ghost story.

From the opening pages I was hooked by the story of a young girl who goes missing in front of the Proctor house and as the first chapter progressed I was drawn deeper into the story.

As we start the main bulk of the story we meet a group of teenagers who are attending a class led by a professor seemingly interested and drawn in by all things ghostly, we later discover this isn't the case and there are far more sinister things going on...

I was drawn in by every character in this story, they all had a role to play and they did so perfectly. They were woven together creating the perfect mix to make this book explode into ghostly goodness.

A personal favourite of mine was Professor Julien Girard who was written so well that I did not see his twist coming at all...

The writing itself was excellent, the chapters were the perfect length to build up shock and suspense and there were several points I had goosebumps and I was scared (it's not that easy to scare me with a book or horror film haha).

Because the book was written in third person we got see the story through multiple sets of eyes, which I loved because we saw so many different angles.

I loved the ending too, it was the perfect way to round off what was a truly excellent ghost story.

And despite being the 7th book in the series everything made perfect sense without having to had read any of the previous books, which I thought was great!

I love a good horror novel and this one was wonderful. I did not want to put this down until I knew everything there was to know about this house. I loved this from beginning to end. I loved all the twists and turns. I hope to read the rest of the books that have Landry Drake in them. This could be very spooky. I received a copy of this book from Smith Publicity for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

The Proctor Hall Horror
The Bayou Hauntings Book 7
by Bill Thompson
This is a book I requested from NetGalley and the review is voluntary.
I love a good supernatural/ghost story! This one fits the bill and adds an extra bit of mystery and twists to the plot! I had not read any of the others in the series but it didn't seem to effect how I enjoyed or understood this story. If all the stories are similar in excitement, then this series would make a great TV show! Loved the build-up, the twists, and surprises! Will certainly read more in the series!

THE PROCTOR HALL HORROR by Bill Thompson

Creepy, creepy story that has more twists and turns than a pretzel. If you are into horror stories this is a good one.
The setting itself is even creepy. It is set along the Bayou Lafourche near Thibodaux Louisiana and tells the story of a murder of the mother, father and younger sister by the 14 year old son. The boy was never convicted of the murders and has disappeared, or not. It seems that, on occasion, he can still be seen, sitting on the stairs in the abandoned house. This naturally scares the heck out of people. When professor Julien Girard asked his students “What’s the most haunted plantation home in Louisiana?” he had no idea of the terror and tragedy that would follow this assignment. When the class looks into the murder, they find out more than they ever wanted to know. As the secrets are exposed, the project becomes more dangerous than anyone ever imagined. Landry and his crew members (professional investigators of the paranormal) are called in to find the truth before the assignment becomes a tragedy. Opps, too late!
If you like haunted houses and tales of terror, this is the book for you.

3.5
I would like to thank NetGalley and Ascendente Books for the chance to read this early. This is the first of The Bayou Haunting books I've read but had no problem enjoying the story. This can be read as a stand alone. The story was good once it actually took off. I had some issues with the first 10 chapters or so, everything would be moving along just fine and then a character would do or say something so incredibly cookie cutter predictable, it would take me out of the book. (Think I Know What You Did Last Summer movie-that level of acting). However, once we got past that (or I got use to it) it got so much better. The story and the mystery is good. The characters are ok, the setting is great. Based on this book, I would read more by this author if the book was shorter. This one went by fast enough (thank goodness for short chapters!) but I did contemplate not finishing it a few times.

Bill Thompson has created a story made of horror in unexpected ways that are scary and make you feel deeply for some of the characters at the same time.

The Proctor Hall horror is the 7th boon in this series and right at the start we are given information on the characters, which is helpful if you have not read any of the other books. This book will be published October 1st 2020 right in time for the month which we associate with Halloween.

The book is set on the Bayou Lafourche in Lousiana. We are told a story about a boy who murdered and decapitated his family in 1963, and just sat on the stairs waiting for the police but has never spoken a word. This is told by a students research assignment and investigation. But a  paranormal documentary maker is also interested and these two groups come together and uncover secrets they could never have imagined.

I really liked how this slowly came together, the students slowly reveling the horrors of proctor hall and the discovery of the paranormal investigation team suddenly being at the house at the same time. It gives off a nice believers vs skeptics vibe. How they willingly come together in the end to not only investigate the history but the existence of ghosts.

The characters were all quite real and stereotypical, but in ways this makes them relatable and you think, oh, I won't like this character and then as you are drawn into the story you begin to change your feelings through seeing their actions and motives.

I think the story could have been longer, really going abit deeper in terms of individual characters and how they felt after events, rather than explaining quickly how they moved on from one event to the next.

I think if you enioy a ghost story that has the ability to scare you, characters who are safe and like some mystery this would be good. I do not believe you have to read the other books first to understand it or enjoy it.

I am rating this 3 stars because the storyline is captivating and pulls you in. The characters have a few surprises up their sleeves and the guessing game as the horrific mysterh evolves is decent.

I received this ARC from Net Galley and Ascendente Books in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much, what a scary read.

Heads are going to roll... oh wait, they already did



Why do they make me stay where it’s always dark? I like the light, but they won’t allow it. I would like to see, but in the darkness there is nothing to see.




I was all over the place with this book. People in this book needed to be smacked for the stupid decisions they made. At one point I had the book rated a 5 star, went down to a 3 and the decided on a solid 4 star review.

I loved the characters and the atmosphere was creepy as hell and there were ghosts and chopped things and nutters!! And the mansion was creepy as all get out. The thing that kept getting to me, as I’ve mentioned, was the stupidity!! I mean it was never ending!! That in itself almost put me over the edge. But I would seriously read it again. Skim through the idiot stuff and it’s on par with a great creepy book! The storyline is crazy train and I loved it!

I’m looking forward to trying out the authors other books. They are on kindle unlimited US at this moment in time!

*Thank you to Netgalley and Ascendente Books for a digital copy of this book.

Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾

I've been enjoying the Bayou Hauntings Series since its inception, admiring the author's flair for twisty plotting and backdrops, including Southern Louisiana history as background. THE PROCTOR HALL HORROR is Book 7. The gore level is high, and only a cold or jaded reader could fail to experience these events as heartwrenching. There is so much deceit, so much evil--both human and supernatural. Of particular interest to me were certain genetic connections, and the riff on Jekyll vs. Hyde. This is really a "Who can you Trust?" adventure. Featured are our favorite series characters, caught up in a vastly puzzling--and tremendously dangerous--paranormal investigation.

248 pages

4 stars

Julien Girard is a professor of Appreciation of Louisiana Culture at Tulane University. For an end-of-the-year class project students were to choose an area of study. Four students chose to research the goings on at Proctor Hall.

They illegally gain entry to the property and are caught by Cate Adams, who is associated with the paranormal society who owns the old house. She reluctantly lets them in.

They team up with a local camera crew and a reporter who is familiar with the paranormal. Very strange things begin to happen. One team member goes mad and another is killed. Those participating in the “hunt” are unsure what has happened. Professor Julien is almost arrested by the state police for he was in the room when the unfortunate was killed, but can't remember anything. The detective is very suspicious.

Inexplicable things are happening and no one seems to have a clue, except April. She is one of the students who is psychic – and terrified. But she keeps being convinced to go back to the house. (?)

Here the story takes a strange and unexpected twist. The focus changes from the house itself and back to the history of the house. In an effort to learn just what is going on, the reporter and the paranormal people begin to look at the facts around the cases, the original murders, the later murder and the occurences in the present.

The pace of the story picks up and the tension increases. The police become more involved.

This story is very well written. I don't read “ghost” stories very often and I wouldn't call this a pure ghost story. It is more of a mystery complete with murders, ghosts and strange goings on. The book is superbly plotted. Once event follows another in a logical progression. The dialogue was well thought out. I liked Landry and Cate. I thought at first that Landry would be the usual hack/fake reporter, but he wasn't. A great addition to the series.

I want to thank NetGalley and Ascendente Books for forwarding to me a copy of this very good book for me to read, enjoy and review.

Thankyou to NetGalley, Ascendente Books and the author, Bill Thompson, for the opportunity to read an advanced readers copy of The Proctor Hall Horror in exchange for an honest and unbiased opinion.

I thought this book provided a good, quick read.
The storyline was well established with intriguing characters and chilling, descriptive settings. Is certainly a great addition to the Bayou Hauntings series.

Well worth a read.

A really enjoyable quick read. It melds together the paranormal and reality seamlessly and believably. I will definitely check out other titles in this series.