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Mad River – A Super Natural Thriller

Paul Reddick returns to Mad River after a long absence. Upon the mysterious demise of his cousin, Duncan McIlwraith, he has inherited the Homestead, settled a century before by his ancestor, a fur trader called Red Jake. Paul’s eccentric Aunt Claire claims the house is haunted. Arthur Brassfield, the art dealer who discovered Duncan’s corpse, is later found dead in a tableau eerily similar to Duncan’s death. Pivotal to the story is a Soul Catcher, or keeper of breath, used by shamans for soul retrieval. Captain Jack, a fearsome warlock known to his people as Walks In Dark Places, corrupted this fetish to enslave lost souls. Daniel Moon steals the tainted talisman from his father’s grave house, setting in motion a curse which plagues the Mad River Country for more than a century. Tasked with ending this curse, Paul becomes immersed in the dark depths of family history and is forced to navigate the perilous shoals of supernatural forces he scarcely comprehends.

A Colorado native, Margaret Sjoden was raised where winters were long, summers beautiful beyond belief. Founded during the gold rush era, her home town preserved its identity as a mining community well into the 21st century. The town was surrounded by remnants of ghost towns and populated with haunted Victorian houses, like her childhood home. Supernatural elements were integral to the local mythos. Spooky stories told around campfires. Eldritch lights drifting among tombstones in the old cemetery.  All of which strongly affected the direction her own storytelling would take.

Paperback, Hardcover & Ebook available for preorder

On sale November 1, 2026

Mad River ISBN's
9781972265000 Paperback
9781972265017 Hardcover
9781972265024 Ebook
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