Ravenous by H N Pashley BLOG TOUR #Ravenous @hnpashley @RandomTTours #BookExtract

 

It’s 1890, and Ada Phillips, one of the first female medical students in England, fights to stop a masked vigilante from cutting a bloody swathe across London.

In mourning after her mother’s recent suicide, Ada is horrified to discover that the vigilante is somehow connected to her family. Dubbed ‘The Ravener’ by the press, he is exacting brutal vengeance on those who would harm the innocent, excising their hearts and taking a single bite from each.

In both her dreams and waking hours, the Ravener tries to sway Ada to his cause by showing her the suffering inflicted by his victims, but his justifications for murder are at odds with everything she believes in. His reign of terror has to be brought to end, but how, and what if the man behind the mask is much closer to home than Ada realises?

Perfect for fans of Dean Koontz and Graham Masterton, or the Showtime television series ‘Penny Dreadful’, Ravenous is the first novel in The Ravener Trilogy.

Ravenous by H N Pashley was published on 19 May 2022. As part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour, I am delighted to share an extract from the book with you today. 

Extract from Ravenous by H N Pashley 

23 November 1890

Chapter 1

Cover her Face

Ada lifted her mourning veil, the better to examine the body of Elizabeth Fellowes. The young woman lay on her marriage bed, her face screaming silently at the ceiling. Her death had been neither swift, nor painless.

‘What do you see, Ada?’

She took a deep breath and turned to her father. ‘I think it likely she was murdered by the same individual that killed the others.’

‘I would tend to agree. Our observations should align with those of the previous three victims. Are you ready to assist me?’

‘Yes,’ she said, watching as he opened his casebook, the nib of his fountain pen hovering over a fresh page. Despite his outwardly professional demeanour, his hand shook and sweat beaded his forehead.

‘Shall I take notes while you dictate, Papa?’

Henry Phillips hesitated a moment, then handed the book and pen to his daughter. ‘That would be helpful,’ he said, but offered no further acknowledgement of his infirmity. 

Clearing his throat, he set about the grim task of describing the crime scene. 

‘The victim is Elizabeth Fellowes, aged eighteen years and resident at 2 Station Row, Limehouse. She was found by her husband, Reginald Fellowes, at eleven o’clock this morning, Sunday, 23rd of November. He is a signalman on the adjacent London and Blackwall railway. The body is lying...’

Henry was interrupted by a man’s agonised sobbing from outside the cottage. Ada looked at her father. His mouth hung slightly open, as if he wished to say something but was unable to do so. His eyes brimmed with unshed tears and his neat, handsome face grew pale. This is too much, too soon, thought Ada, for both of us.

‘May I suggest that I also make the observations on this occasion?’ she asked. ‘I believe it would be instructive.’ Her father nodded, folding his arms across his chest as he composed himself.

Ada let her gaze range across the bed, noting every detail before she spoke. ‘The body is lying supine with the arms outstretched at right angles to the torso. The index, middle and ring fingers on the left hand appear to be broken. The right arm is fractured just above the wrist, with damage to both radius and ulna. The bones have not pierced the skin. Both sets of injuries are recent and were likely sustained during the attack on her person.’ She raised her eyes to her father for confirmation.

‘Please continue,’ he said softly.
‘Elizabeth is wearing a...’
‘The victim,’ he said. ‘I know it seems unfeeling but you must not personalise matters.

It is for your own good, believe me.’

‘Yes, Papa, my apologies. The victim is wearing a white, linen nightgown. It has been torn open from neck to hem and the torso and pelvic region laid bare. The garment is stained with blood, predominantly at the neck. The legs are splayed, with livid contusions present on the inner thighs. There are no external indications that she has been violated; this can be confirmed during autopsy. There are multiple, shallow lacerations on the torso and abdomen, although none appear to be deep enough to be the cause of death. The edges of the wounds are smooth, indicating they were inflicted by a sharp blade of some kind, probably a knife. Her mouth is open and tightly filled with what appears to be a cotton rag. It is likely her assailant did this to prevent her from crying out.’

H. N. Pashley lives in Norwich, and when not typing furiously can often be found risking life and limb doing partner acrobatics. Ravenous is his first book for adults.

He is also the author of a middle-grade trilogy: Gabriel’s Clock, Sammael’s Wings and Michael’s Spear, under his full name of Hilton Pashley.

Work on ‘Nemesis’, the second book in The Ravener trilogy, is currently underway, and will take the reader to some very dark places indeed.

To find out more about Hilton and his writing, please visit www.hnpashley.com, Twitter @hnpashley, Facebook @hnpashley and Instagram @hnpashley.