Lock your doors and light your candles, horror fans. From George Morris De’Ath comes THE HAUNTING OF MORSLEY MANOR, a deliciously unhinged ghost story where nothing stays buried—not even the dead. World-famous paranormal investigator Eric Thompson’s career is on life support after a botched case left most of his crew in body bags and his best friend out the door. But when a mysterious woman hires him to host an investigation at the notorious, long-forbidden Morsley Manor, Eric jumps at the chance for redemption. More than shadows await him, however. Inside the manor’s rotting walls lurk grisly apparitions, blood-soaked secrets and a darkness that blurs the line between the living and the dead.

The Haunting of Hill House meets The Woman in Black in George Morris De’Ath’s THE HAUNTING AT MORSLEY MANOR, a gleefully macabre gothic horror. RUE MORGUE recently had the opportunity to sit down with the author to chat about his new book, coming this September from Rising Action.

THE HAUNTING AT MORSLEY MANOR blends classic gothic atmosphere with modern paranormal investigation. What inspired you to combine those two worlds?

No clue. It’s a weird thing, talking about a book you wrote eight years ago! But here’s what I do remember: I’ve always been obsessed with classic horror—the fog, the candlelit corridors, the doomed inheritances—and I also love the current horror renaissance we’re in across books, TV and film.

To me, every story has been told already—it’s just about how you mix the ingredients. So, I mashed together everything I love: dusty gothic tropes, modern ghost-hunting culture and a few experimental modernisms to see what kind of monster would crawl out. It’s like a horror smoothie, or maybe more like a Frankenstein monster of a book stitched together with old-school scares and new-school madness. Honestly, it was just fun.

Full Q&A at Rue Morgue

I'll just start by saying I read a fair amount of horror; however, this one wasn't for me. I really loved the idea and synopsis of this book, but I felt the execution was lacking. I just didn't care about these characters and their plights. The pacing felt slightly off to me. It started good and then slowed down in the middle. There was also just a lot happening at once, and it made it all seem very chaotic. I get that it's supposed to be chaotic, but the way it was written made it hard to follow in some areas.

I loved this book! It is a horror novel based around a haunted mansion where the main character Eric brings a camera crew to film. I am not going to go more in depth than that about the plot because I think this is a book best read not knowing a lot about the plot. There is a trigger warning regarding clowns, which terrified me at first, however, it was done really well and didn't leave me wanting to hide under the covers while I finished the book. I also loved that this book featured a diverse character growth, which I won't go into further because it will ruin the plot.

Thank you to George Morris De'Ath, Rising Action Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review. It was incredible and I am excited to read more from this author.

I DNF:d this book because of how the author writes about both women and LBTQ+. That did not sit well with me and I could not continue.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this free eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

2.5 rounded up for goodreads and netgalley.
I did not spend a great time reading this book, unfortunately. It felt a bit messy at times and some aspects of the plot did not sit well with me — especially about a certain character. The atmosphere was fine, though. It was still a fast read, but not one that will stay with me for a long time.

Thank you to Netgalley for an e-ARC in exchange for a honest review.

This one kicks off with a terrifying bang and immediately pulls you into the mystery surrounding Morsley Manor. As a fellow ghost hunter, I loved the nods to the equipment and all the drama that comes with it, it added such a fun, authentic touch.

While the story didn’t quite go in the direction I was hoping for, it’s still a solid, spooky read that delivers plenty of chills. It’s also a quick one to fly through, making it a great pick for some Halloween scares.

Releasing September 30th!

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for providing an ARC.

I was excited about this book, but ended up disappointed. It felt like there was too much going on, making the middle of the book feel slow and unsatisfying. IT was difficult to grasp the story and build the suspense.

Also not a fan of the way the author referred to women and LGBTQ+ folks. Those characterizations and comments are just not fun to read, especially in a recent book.

2 stars

This one leans hard into classic haunted-house vibes. A down-on-his-luck paranormal investigator is hired to explore Morsley Manor—a supposedly cursed English estate—only to find the dread runs deeper than creaky floors and shadows. There’s atmosphere, sure, and occasional chills, but it ultimately plays a little too much like a comfort-zone ghost story. It’s an okay time.

This book was fine, but it wasn’t my favorite by a long shot. It seemed to just have too much going on between the flashbacks and backstories, that when it got to the stuff that was happening in real time it seemed rushed. I would be interested to read from this author in the future but this one wasn’t for me.

This could have been a fantastic classic Halloween read, but too many different aspects were thrown into this book and ended up with chaos.
This is a real shame as the first few chapters had me hooked and I was really excited to see where this journey was going and eager to learn more about the paranormal duo.
You didn’t need to cram so much different elements of horror in here to make it interesting. It drowned the development of the characters.

The protagonist, Eric Thompson, is a once famous paranormal investigator, now trying to remain relevant after a grisly tragedy that cost his crew their lives and the disappearance of his partner. One last effort to reclaim his esteemed celebrity - a visit to a decrepit English manor where all manner of happenings have occurred.

I went into this book with high hopes - and for the first few chapters, it absolutely delivered. The author sets the tone beautifully and crafts an immersive and chilling atmosphere that had me hooked immediately. As the book progressed, however, the tension was starting to slip, subplots were introduced but not followed through, and moments that should have been terrifying were too vague to land with impact leading to an overall feeling the story was unfinished.

To be clear: this is not a bad book. The writing style is solid, atmosphere consistent, and the premise had real potential. I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy campy, theatrical, and gory horror.


Thank you NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing for this gifted advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

"A gory, supernatural campy horror set in a haunted English manor, The Haunting at Morsley Manor follows a troubled paranormal investigator uncovering terrifying secrets that blur the line between the living and the dead. Perfect for The Haunting of Hill House fans and The Woman in Black.

World-famous paranormal investigator Eric Thompson's career took a nose-dive after a particularly gruesome case which left most of his camera crew dead. His partner and best friend also abandoned Eric, leaving him floundering.

He is soon approached by a mysterious woman who has purchased the supposedly haunted, but previously off-limits to paranormal sleuths, Morsley Manor. To drum up publicity about the house, she hires Eric to perform and host a paranormal investigation on the premises."

As he ventures over to England to uncover the darkness bleeding through the veins of Morsley, horrors begin to spring from every corner and Eric soon begins to realise that not all is as it seems..."

I'm just saying, if you're into the paranormal and everyone you work with dies gruesomely, wouldn't that just make you more popular?

My reaction to the book was lukewarm. Although the initial chapters were engaging and suggested a rich atmosphere, the story ultimately failed to deliver. In retrospect, the book had unrealized potential.

Thank you NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing

2 Stars

The premise of The Haunting at Morsley Manor had all the makings of a great horror story: a disgraced paranormal investigator, a notoriously haunted English manor, and a promise of blood-soaked secrets. Unfortunately, the execution didn’t live up to the setup.

The opening chapters were strong and hinted at real atmosphere, but the book quickly lost its footing. Instead of leaning into the eerie backstory of the manor, the plot spiraled into a jumble of ghosts, gore, clowns, dolls, and demons that felt more chaotic than chilling. Rather than building tension, it often read like a checklist of horror tropes crammed together.

Character development was also a struggle. Eric, our lead, had potential, but his arc never felt fully fleshed out, and the supporting cast was mostly one-dimensional cannon fodder. This made it difficult to care when characters died—something that undercut the supposed emotional weight of the story. The dialogue, too, was stiff and occasionally unintentional comedy (“spirit friends” being a standout).

I’ll give credit where it’s due: the lore of the manor itself was intriguing, and there were flashes of genuine creepiness. But overall, the book felt underdeveloped, more like a rough draft than a polished gothic horror. If you’re just after gore and camp, there’s some fun to be had, but readers hoping for atmosphere, strong characters, or a coherent haunting may come away disappointed.

Paranormal haunted house stories are my favorite genre. I was intrigued at first by an investigation taking place in an English manor. It would seem to be the perfect setting. Unfortunately the writing was not able to conjure the ambience of such a setting or stir fearful suspense.

It was also difficult to feel empathy for the characters who were developed in a cliched uninteresting way. It’s described as campy, yet I didn’t find it humorous. It is gory if you like that sort of horror.

Thank you NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing for this eARC.

Thank you to Netgalley for my ARC.

I truly wanted to love this story, but unfortunately, it didn't feel well-developed. The plot became difficult to follow when it veered away from the haunting of Morsley Manor, and it seemed like too many different events were happening all at once. A lot of scenes had me confused and I didn’t understand the villain’s motives. I wish we had more character development and background, it felt very rushed.

There was very little development regarding Eric's gift, and the actual haunted house was a minor aspect. It seems the author was unclear about their goals, resulting in a disjointed story overall.

I didn't love it, I didn't hate it. Aside from this, I'm struggling to pinpoint how I feel about it.
It definetly is a different take on a haunted house, and went the complete other direction of where I thought this would go. As other reviewers mentioned, this book is indeed full of plots, but personally I didn't mind it. In fact, I found it quite nice that there's always something happening.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley.

While the premise had potential, I found it difficult to keep up with all the different elements happening in the story. There was a lot going on at once, and I struggled to stay fully engaged with the plot and characters.

A potentially intriguing plot is lumbered with a clunky writing style and bland characterisation, although the sentiment behind Morsley Manor is sentimental enough.

I was intrigued by the premise and wanted to know more about Eric's relationship with the paranormal. The use of secrets and layers nesting in each other was a fun twist and the characters could have been more interesting . That being said, the big plot twist was not my favorite because I felt like there was more there to be explored and I didn't really understand the motivation behind Michelle's character.