What do you think?
Rate this book
The personal story of Countess Bathory was thought to have been lost forever, walled up in a dark tower to die with her, leaving only the breath of high scandal on the wind. But her secret life was not lost. Her previously unknown daughter, Mara, preserved her mother's memory in the guise of the enigmatic Countess Orzebet, the most beautiful woman in the world, and mistress of the Black Arts.
The tale that Mara tells is legendary, but there is an underground stream. Here are mysteries revealed, secrets told, and masks stripped away as the daughter of the seven-headed dragon, the Bloody Countess, steps through a magical triptych of darkness into the light. 'Out of the windy night came a scream. What is happening in the Countess's chambers?
"I do not wish to remember..." In the mountains of Royal Hungary, in a castle as old as time, Mara records a Danse Macabre weaving through the shadowy realms between good and evil, reality and illusion, love and dark deception...
The tale that Mara tells is legendary, but there is an underground stream. Here are mysteries revealed, secrets told, and masks stripped away as the daughter of the seven-headed dragon, the Bloody Countess, steps through a magical triptych of darkness into the light. 'Out of the windy night came a scream. What is happening in the Countess's chambers?
"I do not wish to remember..." In the mountains of Royal Hungary, in a castle as old as time, Mara records a Danse Macabre weaving through the shadowy realms between good and evil, reality and illusion, love and dark deception...
420 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 18, 2012
4 people are currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
Alyne de Winter
25Ìýbooks34ÌýfollowersScribbler of dark fantasies exploring the ancient folk memories, night religions, psychic transformations, in historical, mostly European settings.
Gothic Faery Tales, Gothic Romance and Occult Thrillers are her preferred genres.
Though she always loved to read Gothic Mysteries and ghost stories, it wasn't until she unwittingly moved into a haunted house in London that Alyne began writing supernatural fiction. Her loves are castles, ruins, cathedrals, forests, Grimm's fairy tales, Shakespeare, folk ballads, ancient cultures, mystery religions, the British ghost story and mystery writers.... All things eerie and spooky.
H
Gothic Faery Tales, Gothic Romance and Occult Thrillers are her preferred genres.
Though she always loved to read Gothic Mysteries and ghost stories, it wasn't until she unwittingly moved into a haunted house in London that Alyne began writing supernatural fiction. Her loves are castles, ruins, cathedrals, forests, Grimm's fairy tales, Shakespeare, folk ballads, ancient cultures, mystery religions, the British ghost story and mystery writers.... All things eerie and spooky.
H
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 31, 2013
The author weaves a spellbinding and utterly be-witching tale of a young girl caught up in a magical yet dangerous world. Alyne de Winter, author of several other gothic tales, The Lady in Yellow and Roses, Briars and Blood: A Gothic Re-telling of Sleeping Beauty: Revised Edition (Gothic Faery Tales) has taken us back in time to a world of a moonlit, rose-covered castle, Turks, lords, ladies, brave warriors, gods, gypsies, spells, superstitions and witchcraft.
As I read and became totally immersed in the story of our heroine, Mara, I also felt acute pain for her and her dismal surroundings. It is hard to imagine how such a young girl could survive the daily frightening experiences here. Mara is sensitive, and only nine years old with terrible, ongoing nightmares brought about by the horrible sounds and cries in the night that echo through the walls of Castle Szeppasszony. At age 16, Mara is moved into the Countess's wing of the castle, only to uncover the source of her nightmares and her mother's terrible secrets. She experiences extreme loneliness, pain and horror. It seems that the weird happenings inside the Castle Szeppasszony and the Trefoil Tower will never come to an end.
This book will take you on a journey of your imagination that you will not soon forget. You will also experience all that this young girl lived through in this dark, dank castle of secrets in the mountains of 17th Century Hungary. Mara also has her own secrets, and we will soon discover right along with her, the truth as she peels back the layers of her past in this wildly engaging tale.
As I read and became totally immersed in the story of our heroine, Mara, I also felt acute pain for her and her dismal surroundings. It is hard to imagine how such a young girl could survive the daily frightening experiences here. Mara is sensitive, and only nine years old with terrible, ongoing nightmares brought about by the horrible sounds and cries in the night that echo through the walls of Castle Szeppasszony. At age 16, Mara is moved into the Countess's wing of the castle, only to uncover the source of her nightmares and her mother's terrible secrets. She experiences extreme loneliness, pain and horror. It seems that the weird happenings inside the Castle Szeppasszony and the Trefoil Tower will never come to an end.
This book will take you on a journey of your imagination that you will not soon forget. You will also experience all that this young girl lived through in this dark, dank castle of secrets in the mountains of 17th Century Hungary. Mara also has her own secrets, and we will soon discover right along with her, the truth as she peels back the layers of her past in this wildly engaging tale.
May 6, 2018
I wrote this so I can't review it. I took 5 years to finish it. I think I pulled it off. Here's the back cover blurb once I have a back cover.
The personal story of Countess Bathory was thought to have been lost forever, walled up in a dark tower to die with her, leaving only the breath of high scandal on the wind. But her secret life was not lost. Her previously unknown daughter, Mara, preserved her mother's memory in the guise of the enigmatic Countess Orzebet, the most beautiful woman in the world, and mistress of the Black Arts.
The tale that Mara tells is legendary, but there is an underground stream. Here are mysteries revealed, secrets told, and masks stripped away as the daughter of the seven-headed dragon, the Bloody Countess, steps through a magical triptych of darkness into the light.
'Out of the windy night came a scream.
What is happening in the Countess’s chambers?
“I do not wish to remember�"
In the mountains of Royal Hungary, in a castle as old as time, Mara records a courtly life, dancing in the shadowy realms between good and evil, reality and illusion, love and dark deception�
The personal story of Countess Bathory was thought to have been lost forever, walled up in a dark tower to die with her, leaving only the breath of high scandal on the wind. But her secret life was not lost. Her previously unknown daughter, Mara, preserved her mother's memory in the guise of the enigmatic Countess Orzebet, the most beautiful woman in the world, and mistress of the Black Arts.
The tale that Mara tells is legendary, but there is an underground stream. Here are mysteries revealed, secrets told, and masks stripped away as the daughter of the seven-headed dragon, the Bloody Countess, steps through a magical triptych of darkness into the light.
'Out of the windy night came a scream.
What is happening in the Countess’s chambers?
“I do not wish to remember�"
In the mountains of Royal Hungary, in a castle as old as time, Mara records a courtly life, dancing in the shadowy realms between good and evil, reality and illusion, love and dark deception�
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.