My latest novella has been published, yay!
- Squidstone Hollow: A Historical Investigation Into The Leviathan Of Port Phillip
Here’s the cover:
Here are some links:
It’s also on goodreads and there’s a preview on google books.
Like the last novella, All Our Eyes, it was written for my eldest. The mandate for this one was “less complex”.
Like the last one, it is didactic, although the focus with this story is history of Melbourne/Port Phillip. It blurs the line so that although he’ll get a lot of history while reading, he won’t know what is real history and what is history that I’ve invented.
It’s also epistolary, written as a series of blog posts from 2014. Unlike the last book, there’s no footnotes from editors. No ergodic reconstruction required.
Here’s the blurb from the back cover:
Uncover the secrets lurking beneath the waves in this haunting blend of history, myth, and obsession.
In 2014, Jane Wilson stumbled upon a hidden cave on her family’s coastal property near Port Phillip Bay, Australia, a discovery that would unravel her life and rewrite the history of the land she thought she knew. What began as a curious exploration of an Aboriginal rock carving, etched with the eerie image of a squid-like creature, spiralled into a relentless quest to unearth the truth behind the bay’s mysterious past. From ancient Indigenous myths of a monstrous leviathan to colonial shipwrecks marked by inexplicable damage, Jane’s blog posts reveal a chilling pattern that defies rational explanation.
As Jane digs deeper, the line between fact and delusion blurs. Children’s drawings echo the cave’s ancient art across generations. Fortifications rise from the bay’s waters, hinting at a forgotten struggle. Whales vanish without a trace, and a Prime Minister disappears into the surf. Is there a presence beneath Port Phillip Bay, something vast, ancient, and watchful, or is Jane’s investigation a descent into her own unravelling mind? Edited with care from her raw, unfiltered writings, Squidstone Hollow preserves her brilliant insights while peeling back the layers of a personal crisis that consumed her.
Perfect for fans of The Shadow over Innsmouth and The Secret History, this gripping tale weaves verifiable historical events with unsettling speculation, inviting readers to question what lies beneath the surface of the bay and of reality itself.
It’s not bad. Actually, I like it a lot :)
Intentionally slow in the beginning and a ramping up of the emotion and psychosis.
Lots of “photos” in this one too, as well as “artist impressions” from the main character’s dreams.
This time I included an audible version using an AI voice. It sounds pretty good, with an Australian accent and everything.
If you’re reading this an interested, reach out and I’ll send through a PDF or epub for your kindle.