For a hundred years, the residents of a rural Welsh village have been hiding the truth. Now, a newcomer has started digging around, uncovering more than just buried secrets.

Retired detective, Graham Williams, has moved to Bethgelert for a fresh start, determined to put the horrors of last year behind him. He has seen his fair share of disturbing scenes, but nothing prepares him for what he sees hanging in the gnarly old tree outside his front window.

Only one man can help him uncover the truth …

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Stephen Mallow has come a long way since he helped solve the mystery of Cherry Hollow. When his old nemesis calls and asks for help, he jumps in the car, ignoring the pain in his head and the hole in his heart. He’s ready to take on another weird and creepy small town mystery.

These two unlikely allies, whose main form of communication is bickering, start to work together to dig up the disturbing secrets of ‘The Hanging Tree’, but they soon realise there’s more to the story than they first thought.

A teenage girl is missing. The town butcher isn’t telling them everything. The tree seems to be speaking to Stephen …

And someone is watching their every move …

My Review

A couple of years ago, when I first thought about writing a novel, my husband came up with the idea of a story about an ancient tree and all the myths, legends and curses that surrounded it. I never got anywhere and then I was asked to review The Hanging Tree. I could never have done it as well as Jessica Huntley.

I just loved this book. I read it in two sittings. I almost took my Kindle to the pub so I could hide it under the table and keep reading. Graham Williams and Stephen Mallow are kindred spirits, both alone and drawn to each other through investigating mysterious happenings. They have worked together before, somewhere called Cherry Hollow, but we never really discover what happened there. So when retired police officer Graham finds a creepy scarecrow hanging in the cursed tree known as The Hanging Tree, he calls on writer Stephen for his help. But the truth behind it all is more disturbing than I could ever have envisioned.

Stephen is an interesting character, exhibiting both ADHD and OCD symptoms (a combination of the two is not unusual but I’m not going to go into detail as I don’t know enough about either). The author allows us to see inside his head, a place Stephen believes is wired differently to other people’s.

There will be those who say that the idea of a sinister village committee ruled by four families, and a curse on a tree which causes crops to fail and people to die, is all a bit far-fetched and smacks of another century, but I’m sure there are places where these things still happen. Particularly in the Cotswolds, where I live, like the curse of Rollright Stones, ghostly black dogs on Birdlip Hill, and Littledean Hall, one of England’s most haunted houses, complete with phantom bloodstains and a ghostly manservant. Who doesn’t love a good curse. I know I do.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a creepy mystery with a cast of interesting characters. It’s not horrific or really scary, but it is disturbing, especially when the truth is revealed.

Many thanks to @ZooloosBT  for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.

About the Author

Jessica Huntley is an author of dark and twisty psychological thrillers, which often focus on mental health topics and delve deep into the minds of her characters. 

She has a varied career background, having joined the Army as an Intelligence Analyst, then left to become a Personal Trainer. 

She is now living her life-long dream of writing from the comfort of her home, while looking after her young son and her disabled black Labrador. She enjoys keeping fit and drinking wine (not at the same time).

Where can you find them?
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jessica.reading.writing
Website: http://www.jessicahuntleyauthor.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessica_reading_writing
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/jess_read_write

Book Links
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/241011692-the-hanging-tree
Purchase Link: https://mybook.to/hangingtree-zbt