The Boy from the Sea

A Dark Gothic Romance

By: H. L. Macfarlane

Narrated by: Broghanne Jessamine

A troubled mind, a creeping obsession and a sea that’s full of secrets.

When lonely Grace Ferguson meets fellow student Lir Murphy in her marine biology lab the last thing she expects is to fall into a deep, startling obsession with the young man. Lir is strange, quiet and filled with a love for the sea that nobody else understands. When he surprises Grace by reciprocating her feelings she’s convinced she’s found her oddball happily ever after.

But when a series of grisly attacks plague the west coast of Scotland Grace is forced to consider that her marine-loving paramour is more than simply ‘strange’. As Lir’s behaviour grows more erratic, and his relationship with Grace evolves into something dark and dangerous, Grace must figure out who or what Lir is…or risk losing herself in the process.

From the best-selling author of Prince of Foxes comes a brand new Gothic romance for lovers of all things monstrous, tragic and villainous. Pick up your copy of The Boy from the Sea today!

©2023 Macfarlane Lantern Publishing (P)2023 Macfarlane Lantern Publishing

Lir

Audio version
Lir did not have an easy or traditional start in life. Lir’s parents load their pockets with rocks, then walk into the sea, leaving 4 year old Lir alone on the beach. His first aunt told him all kinds of fantastical stories, leaving the child confusing reality and fantasy, she accidentally dies by Lir’s hand at that same beach. He is raided then by a second aunt. You would think he would not want to go to that beach, instead he is the fastest swimmer and spends a lot of time in the sea. Grace is a marine biologist lab teacher. She is a bit of a loner, she is social but does not have many strong friendships. She ends up falling for one of her students, Lir. Quickly Lr becomes the center of her world. I loved the psychology behind Lir, and his actions. It left me wondering if he is a budding sociopath or if mermaids really exist. At times I thought I knew what was happening, then a twist, and I find I was wrong. Excellent story, kept me intrigued start to finish. The author did a good job world building, I could see and smell the sea. The narrator was excellent, the narration enhanced the story. I received a free copy of the audiobook and am voluntarily leaving my review.

A book that stays with you

This was an interesting read and stayed with me in ways I did not expect. The book starts off as we meet Lir, and hear about his traumatic past. We then meet Grace and watch as her interest is piqued by the aloof Lir. In the background mysterious things are happening and people are getting hurt. What really happened to Lir’s parents? Who is hurting people? What’s real and what isn’t? We follow Grace as she tries to find the answers to these questions and sort out her feelings for Lir.

Note: a copy of this audiobook was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Tragic Romance

This book is so hard to describe. I suppose the description of Gothic Romance fits. It centers around the h who has a crush on the H. They eventually get together and the H's tragic history unfolds. The end isn't a HEA, but the story is such a way that the listener is quite OK with that. The narrator did a great job and her accent really brings color to the story while still being pretty easy for an American listener to understand. There were a few words that kept throwing me off, like "parents," but it was easy to figure it out based on the context.

Soooo Gooood!

What a great suspenseful story! I loved it. I listened to the audio version of the book and it was fantastic, I couldn't put it down. The narrator, Broghanne Jessamine was so good. She drew me into the story. I felt like I was going through everything Grace Ferguson was going through. It was a beautiful love story, until it wasn't. Two shy, awkward and quiet people find each other and fall in love. The romance between Lir and Grace turns dark quickly when Lir's behavior grows inconsistent and unpredictable. I was at the edge of my seat. So many twists and turns and the ending was so good. It was very sad and there were so many shocking moments, but the suspense made the book. H.L. Macfarlane has a way of making your heart beat so fast and feeling like you are part of the story. I will be searching out more books by this author.