Waking the Ancients - Nemesis of the Gods #2 by Catherine Cavendish Book Tour and Giveaway :)


Waking the Ancients
Nemesis of the Gods #2
by Catherine Cavendish
Genre: Horror

Egypt, 1908
University student Lizzie Charters accompanies her mentor, Dr. Emeryk Quintillus, on the archeological dig to uncover Cleopatra’s tomb. Her presence is required for a ceremony conducted by the renowned professor to resurrect Cleopatra’s spirit—inside Lizzie’s body. Quintillus’s success is short-lived, as the Queen of the Nile dies soon after inhabiting her host, leaving Lizzie’s soul adrift . . .

Vienna, 2018
Paula Bancroft’s husband just leased Villa Dürnstein, an estate once owned by Dr. Quintillus. Within the mansion are several paintings and numerous volumes dedicated to Cleopatra. But the archeologist’s interest in the Egyptian empress deviated from scholarly into supernatural, infusing the very foundations of his home with his dark fanaticism. And as inexplicable manifestations rattle Paula’s senses, threatening her very sanity, she uncovers the link between the villa, Quintillus, and a woman named Lizzie Charters.

And a ritual of dark magic that will consume her soul . . .



The man looked down at his scattered ashes. “I am growing tired of waiting. When will I be free of this prison?”
“Soon.” The woman moved away in that fluid, ethereal manner of hers. Her scarlet gown flowed around her. An armlet shaped in the goddess Isis’s symbol—a coiled cobra—gleamed. Heavy black kohl rimmed her eyes, emphasizing the deep violet of her irises, while her long, black hair, set in many tight braids, reached her waist. “You must be patient,” the woman said. “I told you I would help you get what you desire.”
“But that isn’t possible. She is back in her body. Back in her tomb.”
“All is possible. I have the power. Haven’t I proved it? Aren’t you the proof of it?”
“I still don’t live.”
“Your spirit lives.”
“My spirit cannot touch her.”
“But it can touch her spirit. Mate with her spirit if you so desire.”
“And why would you do this for me?”
“My revenge is incomplete. My murdering sister rests while I am forced to wander in spirit with no substance of my own.”
“And how will it be done? I am in your hands. This is not comfortable for me. I am always in control.”
The woman threw back her head and laughed, showing black, rotten teeth. Stinking, no doubt, if he could smell anything.
“You have not been in control for a long time. The god I serve is Set, and he is in control. He will come and he will work through me. More powerful this time, for Sekhmet will bring him.”
“And I will have my queen?”
“You will have her.”
“She will be in the one who is here now?”
“That is to be determined.”
“But this one is not of the blood.”
“She will not be possessed, but transformed. We do not need a blood relative.”
“That has been tried before. And failed.”
“The rules were not properly followed. You cannot possess all of her. You have seen that. The gods will not allow it. Her spirit must be divided. Some of it must remain with her body—and lie cold in her tomb. Waiting. Always waiting. In that way, the gods are appeased and my price is also exacted.”
“So part of my queen will still wander, looking for her lover, but enough of her spirit will be released to come to me.”
“Now you understand. You will have all that you desire, and my revenge will not be compromised.”
“And I can be with her. For all time.”
The woman didn’t answer. She gave the merest hint of a smile and passed on.

In his world of shadows, Dr. Emeryk Quintillus waited.

Wrath of the Ancients
Nemesis of the Gods #1

DESTINY IN DEATH


Egypt, 1908

Eminent archeologist Dr. Emeryk Quintillus has unearthed the burial chamber of Cleopatra. But this tomb raider’s obsession with the Queen of the Nile has nothing to do with preserving history. Stealing sacred and priceless relics, he murders his expedition crew, and flees—escaping the quake that swallows the site beneath the desert sands . . .

Vienna, 1913

Young widow Adeline Ogilvy has accepted employment at the mansion of Dr. Quintillus, transcribing the late professor’s memoirs. Within the pages of his journals, she discovers the ravings of a madman convinced he possessed the ability to reincarnate Cleopatra. Within the walls of his home, she is assailed by unexplained phenomena: strange sounds, shadowy figures, and apparitions of hieroglyphics.
Something pursued Dr. Quintillus from Egypt. Something dark, something hungry. Something tied to the fate and future of Adeline Ogilvy . . .






Following a varied career in sales, advertising and career guidance, Catherine Cavendish is now the full-time author of a number of paranormal, ghostly and Gothic horror novels, novellas and short stories. She was the 2013 joint winner of the Samhain Gothic Horror Anthology Competition, with Linden Manor, which was featured in the anthology What Waits in the Shadows. Cat’s novels include The Pendle Curse, Saving Grace Devine, and Dark Avenging Angel. She lives with her long-suffering husband and black (trainee) cat. They divide their time between Liverpool and a 260-year-old haunted apartment in North Wales. 



Red Ivan and the White Lady of Bernstein


Since 1199, Bernstein Castle has stood, dominating its surroundings in the Oberwart district of wine-producing Burgenland in the south-eastern part of Austria.

Only after the Second World War did it become part of Austria when borders were moved and Burgenland became Austria’s newest region. Until then, it had officially lain in Hungary. Its history is one of multiple battles, sieges and increasing fortification. Needless to say with so much conflict and so many centuries of existence, more than a few legends surround it.

Tradition centers on two ghosts in particular; the White Lady of Bernstein and Red Ivan.
Cathalina Frescobaldi, Italian wife of a former owner of the castle, is the main contender for White Lady. The story goes that her husband caught her in flagrante delicto with his secretary. The Count murdered his employee and walled his wife up in one of the castle towers - to die a terrifying death. But Cathalina would not rest in peace. She appeared to her husband after her death and scared him so much he dropped dead. That doesn’t seem to have been enough to send her into peaceful eternal rest as she is still reported being seen in the castle to this day.


Nowadays, the family-owned castle has been part converted into a luxury hotel. Maybe you will feel the ice cold hand of the White Lady yourself.

Red Ivan’s story dates back to the 13th century and his true identity is Johann von Héder, Count of Güssing, a notoriously cruel and vengeful man who terrorised the whole region. He is instantly recognisable as he wears a red vest and has flame-red hair and beard. He isn’t someone you would want to run into, as he delights in scaring the wits out of residents and guests alike. Sometimes he doesn’t materialise physically but contents himself by causing heavy rumblings and thundering steps throughout the hallways.


The castle has been in the Almásy family since 1892 and one of the current owner’s ancestors –Ladislaus Almásy was immortalized in the book and film ‘The English Patient’. A keen Africaphile, he has left his mark all over the castle with symbols in Arabic attesting to his prowess. He was a desert explorer and racing car driver and known in Africa as Abu Ramla (Father of the Sand).

Bernstein Castle is awash with atmosphere and, in addition to the resident ghosts, guests can enjoy an authentic stay in a magnificent family home set in some of the most stunning scenery you could wish to find.


If you go there, give my regards to the White Lady…

Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!


Comments

  1. Congrats on the tour and I appreciate the excerpt and the great giveaway as well. Love the tours, I get to find books and share with my sisters and now my twin daughters who all love to read. We have found some amazing books for everyone. So, thank you!

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