Debra Glass Reviews Dark Shadows - A Rabid Fan’s Perspective

I was ten when WTBS syndicated Dark Shadows, a soap opera actualized by Dan Curtis Series Creator, Executive Producer, Director, who was also behind cult favorite, Night Stalker. As a child, I’d cut my teeth on all things macabre – The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, anything with Vincent Price, and of course, Dark Shadows, a soap opera where the hero just happened to be a vampire.

I’d always wanted the vampire to get the girl in the end but none of the Lugosi or Lee movies ever delivered. Dark Shadows reluctant vampire, Barnabas Collins, was the first of his kind to inspire sympathy for his plight in the audience’s heart.

Dark Shadows blended vampires, witches, ghosts, werewolves, and even time travel to create a world where viewers could suspend belief, to be swept away for thirty minutes a day to the eerie coastal town of Collinsport, Maine.

My best friend, Karen, and I wrote Dark Shadows fan-fiction and I still have several pages of it stored in my coffers. Our fifth grade teacher even allowed us to write, produce, and star in a play based on the Gothic series.

When I heard Tim Burton planned to revive Dark Shadows and cast Johnny Depp as the ill-fated Barnabas Collins, I was ecstatic. Who but the combination of Burton and Depp could infuse the dusty old soap opera with new blood? My favorite Burton / Depp collaboration was Sleepy Hollow – another of my childhood favorites breathtakingly rendered on the big screen. I hoped Burton would infuse Shadows with the same morbid beauty, the evocative Elfman score, and bewitching cinematography he’d brought to Sleepy Hollow, Edward Scissorhands, Corpse Bride, and Nightmare Before Christmas.

I followed the making of Dark Shadows all the way up to the release of the official trailer. The beginning scenes revealed everything for which I’d hoped. Widow’s Hill as only Burton could paint it. Depp channeling the original Barnabas, Jonathan Frid. Big, dark, creepy Collinwood, and everyone’s favorite wicked witch, Angelique depicted in all her ice and fire force by the mesmerizing Eva Green.

Then the trailer took a turn for the comic worse.

I watched it twice. My heart sank. Had Burton turned my favorite childhood memory into a farce?

I resolved to see the movie, even though I feared I’d be terribly disappointed. A friend from those old grammar school days met me at a sold out showing where we were forced to sit on the front row.

The movie opened in typical Burton washes of foggy grays, scenes rich with cinematic creepiness against the backdrop of a haunted music box Elfman score. At any moment, I expected the quirky campiness of the trailer to crank up, ruining the spell Burton cast in the first ten minutes of the movie. I thought I would cringe upon seeing the scenes from the trailer.

I was pleasantly surprised.

Burton’s Dark Shadows is a homage to not only the old soap opera, which ran from 1966 to 1971, but also to the Dark Shadows movies, Night of Dark Shadows and House of Dark Shadows, of the late sixties and seventies.

Toil and trouble, family secrets, unrequited love, hidden passages, and inner demons abound amidst Burton’s gallows humor. Instead of the plot-less free-for-all I’d expected, Burton delivers a fond epithet of gore and glory.

Fans will notice cameos by original cast favorites, Kathryn Leigh Scott - Maggie Evans Haskell, Lara Parker - Angélique Bouchard, David Henesy - David Collins, and Jonathan Frid - Barnabas Collins. Frid passed away a mere two weeks before Dark Shadows’ release.

The ending. Oh, the ending is fabulous, a veritable bird flung in the face of the Twilight Saga, reminding the audience that Dark Shadows is the benchmark of all vampire romance.

I loved it and will definitely see it again.

Dark Shadows

Opens on Friday May 11, 2012 nationwide.

Directed by Tim Burton; written by Seth Grahame-Smith, based on a story by John August and Mr. Grahame-Smith and the television series created by Dan Curtis; director of photography, Bruno Delbonnel; edited by Chris Lebenzon; music by Danny Elfman; production design by Rick Heinrichs; costumes by Colleen Atwood; produced by Richard D. Zanuck, Graham King, Johnny Depp, Christi Dembrowski and David Kennedy; released by Warner Brothers Pictures. Running time: 1 hour 53 minutes.

WITH: Johnny Depp (Barnabas Collins), Michelle Pfeiffer (Elizabeth Collins Stoddard), Helena Bonham Carter (Dr. Julia Hoffman), Eva Green (Angelique Bouchard), Jackie Earle Haley (Willie Loomis), Jonny Lee Miller (Roger Collins), Bella Heathcote (Victoria Winters /Josette DuPres), Chloë Grace Moretz (Carolyn Stoddard), Gully McGrath (David Collins), Ray Shirley (Mrs. Johnson), Christopher Lee (Clarney), Alice Cooper (Alice Cooper) and Charlotte Spencer (Coat-Check Girl).

To see how Dark Shadows inspired my own writing, check out my Phantom Lovers Series – Gatekeeper, Shadowkeeper, and Watchkeeper, and my young adult paranormal romance, Haunted.

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Once Upon a Midnight Dreary–Gatekeeper by Debra Glass

As as youngster, reading tales and poems penned by the incomparable master of murder most foul, madmen, premature burials, and mysterious women who return from the dead, once upon a midnight dreary spoke to me far more deeply than once upon a time.

I adored the old Vincent Price renditions of Poe’s macabre tales, which brought to life such horror classics as The Cask of Amontillado and The Pit and the Pendulum. One reason Poe connects with every reader is that he touches on our darkest fears and carefully hidden inner secrets.

When I began writing Gatekeeper, the first of my Phantom Lovers series, I decided to use Poe’s stories to tie them together. Seeing The Raven, starring John Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe, reminded me of how I’d tortured poor Amy, the sister of Gatekeeper’s heroine, Jillian.

Amy’s childhood nightmares had been haunted by Poe’s Premature Burial. The villain in Gatekeeper knew this and took full advantage of it in order to manipulate Jillian.

Image From The Raven (2012) Starring John Cusack

Here’s the chilling prologue from Gatekeeper:

Prologue

“The boundaries which divide Life from Death are, at best, shadowy and vague. Who shall say where the one ends and the other begins?”

Amy Drew blinked against the bright light shining in her face. Blinding pain throbbed in the back of her head. Where was she? Why couldn’t she move? Was that a flashlight? Consciousness crept slowly back. She’d been at Shy’s Hill. That’s right. At the Civil War site. She’d been helping an earthbound spirit find the Light. Yes. It was coming back now.

“‘It may be asserted, without hesitation’,” a raspy voice droned, “‘that no event is so terribly well adapted to inspire the supremeness of bodily and of mental distress, as is burial before death.’”

Amy struggled. Panic seized her as she fought to remain conscious. Someone had hit her! Someone had hit her on the back of the head. The ghost had tried to warn her.

But who? Why?

She tried to speak but something prevented her mouth from moving. Tape?

Terrified, she writhed furiously against ropes binding her wrists and ankles. Her screams were muffled by the tape.

“Do you remember the story, Amy? Do you remember the nightmares?”

Whose voice was that? She recognized it but couldn’t place it. She squinted against the bright light.

If only she could calm down and use her psychic ability to…to what? Terror surged. She thrashed against her bonds. Her breaths were rapid and shallow, hindered by the gag.

Something landed on the damp grass next to her face. She jolted. A flash lit up the surrounding area. Someone was taking pictures! She blinked furiously and twisted in the bursts of light.

Her gaze riveted to a tattered copy of Edgar Allan Poe’s Premature Burial. Her heart slammed relentlessly against her rib cage. The tape muffled her screams.

A hand reached down and yanked out a lock of her hair. Searing pain burned her scalp. Amy twisted and fought at the bonds until every muscle in her body blazed.

“That’s just in case the photos aren’t enough proof.” And then the gloved hand took up the Poe book once more. “Shall I continue?

“‘The unendurable oppression of the lungs—the stifling fumes from the damp earth—the clinging to the death garments—the rigid embrace of the narrow house—the blackness of the absolute Night—the silence like a sea that overwhelms—the unseen but palpable presence of the Conqueror Worm—these things, with the thoughts of the air and grass above, with memory of dear friends who would fly to save us if but informed of our fate, and with consciousness that of this fate they can never be informed.’” Amy’s captor laughed without mirth. “You’re thinking about your little sister now aren’t you, Amy? You’re hoping—no, praying—she will find you in time. But Jillian doesn’t have your gift, does she? No. Is she still afraid of it? Does she still wake up during the night screaming the boogeyman is going to get her?”

Tears streamed from the corners of Amy’s eyes. This person was insane. Why was this happening? What had she done? What had Jillian done? It didn’t make sense.

The hoarse voice continued. “This is my favorite part… ‘That our hopeless portion is that of the really dead—these considerations, I say, carry into the heart, which still palpitates, a degree of appalling and intolerable horror from which the most daring imagination must recoil.’”

A foot pressed into her side and gave her a cruel shove. She was falling! Then with a solid thud, she landed on her back. The breath rushed out of her lungs from the impact.

Standing above her, just a black silhouette against the midnight blue sky—above the freshly dug grave—was her captor. Amy’s heart thudded explosively. Why was this happening? Why? The nightmare she’d had all her life was coming true. She was being buried alive!

“You should never have tried to release him, Amy.” A bone-chilling laugh erupted from her captor. “We know of nothing so agonizing upon Earth—we can dream of nothing half so hideous in the realms of the nethermost Hell.”

And then, everything went black.

About Gatekeeper:

Book one in the Phantom Lovers series.

Evil shadow ghosts known as soul collectors haunted her childhood nightmares, so Nashville PD criminal profiler Jillian Drew did everything possible to turn her back on her psychic abilities. But now her eccentric sister has been abducted and nothing in her criminology background has prepared Jillian for that tragedy — or for Benton Smith, the powerful and devastatingly attractive ghost of a Civil War officer and the only witness to Amy's abduction.

Fearful of the brazen specter, Jillian nevertheless needs him. Benton is her Gatekeeper, a spirit sworn to protect her from the soul collectors, who attack each time she unleashes her long-dormant psychic senses in an attempt to find her sister.

Yet she must somehow keep the devilishly seductive spirit at arm's length, for Benton's soul is at stake — and succumbing to his desires could have dangerous consequences for them both.

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Praise for Gatekeeper

Top 13 Paranormal Romances

~ Redlines And Deadlines

“If you love ghost love stories, I would rush out and get Gatekeeper to add to your own library today.”

~ Simply Romance Reviews

Book Trailer for Shadowkeeper by Debra Glass

Buy Shadowkeeper Now - E-Book or Paperback

Five Star Reviews for both Shadowkeeper and Gatekeeper by Debra Glass

Praise for Shadowkeeper (the second book in the Phantom Lovers series) NOW IN PRINT!!

"Amy’s physic abilities have disappeared, and now, without a way to support herself, she has agreed to move into her stepbrother’s guesthouse and help him restore an old plantation. From the moment she steps foot in this house, Amy is assaulted with images, and information but her abilities have faltered and she isn’t sure she can trust herself. Her interest peaks when she gets a visit from the spirit of William Red Feather. William doesn’t want Amy anywhere near the plantation. There is evil here and as the reincarnation of his beloved Sarah, he wants to keep her safe. Amy has her own plans, and the sexy Indian is not going to sway her with hot kisses and multiple orgasms.

Shadowkeeper was an amazing story that brings past and present together to tell a very complicated story of love, lust, betrayal, and white verses black magic. Amy’s character is one of a kind and I enjoyed her bravery. Amy’s brother Reed played a huge role in this story, but managed to remain a secondary character all the while. William Red Feather was very sexy and despite being a ghost, I almost forgot he wasn’t real at times. There were other characters who played bit roles, and they kept this story moving forward without any slow moments. The sexual aspect was hot, but it seemed to take a back seat to the actual story. Ms. Glass did a wonderful job of bringing history to the present; yet, she was able to write it so you didn’t feel lost. Overall, this is a great story. I highly recommend Shadowkeeper as a must read!"  ~  Just Erotic Romance Reviews 

Buy Shadowkeeper Now!! Digital Edition  or  Print Edition 

Praise for Gatekeeper (the first book in the Phantom Lovers series)

It isn’t an easy existence when evil spirits follow you all the time. This is why Nashville PD criminal profiler Jillian Drew never really came to terms with her special psychic abilities. Her scientific approach makes her top notch in her field but it isn’t going to help her when her sister Amy Drew is abducted. Helped only by the ghost of a Civil War officer Thomas Benton Smith, Jillian not only has to find her sister but keep herself safe from soul collectors and fight off a growing attraction to Benton. What is the key element that binds them all together in this dangerous situation?

There is so much going on for Jillian that she doesn’t even have the time to stop and breathe. Together with her, I was equally at the edge of my seat trying to figure everything out. I must say she has quite a head on her shoulders as I would certainly had lost mine if put in a similar situation. Benton is lovably dashing with his nineteenth-century appeal and incredible lovemaking. It was amazing how a relationship between a human and a ghost made sense and was totally believable. I could feel the wanting and desire each felt for the other. The love scenes portrayed the same intensity of feelings and were a wonderful break from the suspenseful proceedings. The plot generally moved along at a fast pace with clever twists and turns. The story idea was quite unique and I really enjoyed the concept. Ms. Glass explanation of her lead character’s history was well-researched and added to the enjoyment. You will never guess the ending because the author is that good. Amidst all the spooky chilly chaos, she managed to deliver a romance that will warm the readers’ hearts and hot sex scenes that will keep them coming for more. All the secondary characters settled in well and helped the story to come to its edge-of- the-seat conclusion. With this first book in the Phantom Lovers series, I have high hopes for all the upcoming installments. Ultimately, Phantom Lovers: Gatekeeper is a fiery, exciting, and especially engaging paranormal romance from beginning to end. ~ Just Erotic Romance Reviews

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Now Available in Print - Shadowkeeper by Debra Glass

Shadowkeeper, the second book in my Phantom Lovers series, is now available in print!

"Intense and hot...great description, suspense, and unexpected surprise."  ~ Bitten by Books

"Ms. Glass co-mingled past and present to bring about a lively tale of distrust, anger, passion, deceit, love and selflessness with characters that made you smile, laugh, angry (some you just wanted to smack), combined with some sublime sex that made me want my own spirit lover." ~ Alternative Read

Blurb ~

Amy Drew was once a damn good psychic until past catastrophic events stripped her of her psychic powers. Now, a year later, she has moved to a quaint, quiet southern town to help her brother restore a decaying plantation house.

The house is hauntingly familiar, and when the skeleton of a Native American is discovered in the cellar, Amy senses danger—and much more. From her very first meeting with the ghost of William Red Feather, Amy sizzles with desire for the sexy spirit. But mysterious past-life secrets separate them.

As Amy loses herself in lust-filled nights with her spirit lover, more secrets become known to her, and she soon realizes mysterious deaths at the plantation—both past and present—all point to William. Can she trust this beguiling spirit with her life the way she does with her pleasure? Amy must be certain, because giving him her heart may result in her death—again.

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Watchkeeper by Debra Glass Now Available for Amazon Kindle

Watchkeeper is now available for Amazon Kindle! Click HERE for product information.

Third in the Phantom Lovers series.

When Gwendolyn Wyse booked a room at a bed and breakfast in romantic Charleston, South Carolina, she'd hoped to rekindle the flame in her cold, unresponsive husband. What she didn't expect were divorce papers-or her husband's untimely death.

Shocked and desperate, Gwen relies on her background as a witch and her knowledge of magic, invoking the rite of twilight to bring her husband's soul back from the dead. But nothing prepares her for the swashbuckling spirit who answers her call-Stede Bonnet, the gentleman pirate who died on that very spot three centuries prior and who now possesses her husband's body.

Stede offers Gwen all the passion she never had with her husband. But when the pirate lays claim to her heart, Gwen must choose between the man she loves and the demands of Stede's mortal enemy, a villainous spirit with the power to take away everything Gwen holds most dear-including her pirate lover.

A Ghostly Excerpt From Gatekeeper by Debra Glass

A ghost excerpt from the first book in the Phantom Lovers series, Gatekeeper, by Debra Glass.

Gatekeeper / Trade Paperback
or E book

Her back flattened against the wall and he was against her from head to toe, his hand firmly secured around her fist, one of his knees between hers, his broad shoulders preventing her from escape. Contact with the full length of his body sent shivers down her spine. She thrashed wildly but his other hand caught her chin and held her still. The scent of well-worn wool mingled with the woody redolence of fallen leaves and earth filled her nostrils. Terror rendered her incoherent. All she could do was stand perfectly still and retreat to someplace within.

“Jillian,” he said again. His voice was quiet but commanding, drawing her back out, making her all too aware of his rock-solid proximity.
She dared to look into his eyes. It was a mistake.
Fear of what he might do next engulfed her. His touch was intense but ethereal, more of a firmly concentrated energy than an actual physical contact. Adrenaline set her whole body on fire. She was sweating. Somehow, she had to free herself but his hold on her was too strong, too intense.
“I would never hurt you,” he reiterated.
Some sort of whimper escaped her lips. “Let me go.”

“Promise me you’ll keep the button.”
She merely shook her head. Instinct told her to fight, to flee, but fear rendered her immobile.
“Jillian, promise me. Promise me and I will help you find your sister.”
“You can’t help me. You’re dead.” Even uttering the words caused the panic to rise once again. She knew her horror was obvious to him.
His steely gaze pierced hers, searching. She looked away. He expelled a breath which she actually felt on her cheeks. “I need you, Jillian.”
Her gaze slammed into his once more. She stared.
“Your sister needs you.” He brought the fist that still clasped the button up to his chest. His voice was insistent, almost pleading. “Your sister understood something about this button that I do not. She understood why it has held me here all these years.”
“What does that have to do with me?” Her voice rose with hysteria.
His hand smoothed back the hair at her temple. It was a caress which was incongruously gentle in comparison to the vise grip around her wrist. “You’re more like her than you know.”
Jillian felt sick. Her knees would have buckled if he had not been holding her up.
He went on, his drawl thick and sweet. “You cannot imagine what my existence is like.”
“I don’t want to.” Why wouldn’t he let her go?
A self-deprecating smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “I would never presume to weary you with the details of it but there are things I can see that I could not when I was living. Things I can hear. And there is a…a power…around you, a glow. I’m not certain of its significance but it’s the same as your sister’s.”
“You’re wrong.”
His gaze scanned something above her head. She’d heard her sister discuss auras but she’d never seen one herself. Is that what he saw?
He leaned in even closer, his face only inches from her own. “No, Jillian. It is the same. I see it. And you two are apparently the only ones who can see or hear me.” His fingers trailed down her neck. Her heart skipped a beat. This time, it didn’t have anything to do with the fact that he was the ghost of a man who’d been dead for one hundred and fifty years. She chanced a glance into his eyes.
“I can also see that whoever attacked your sister—intends to kill you too.”
Jillian froze. Her confused mind tried to comprehend what he was saying. “You’re lying.”
“I have no reason to lie to you.” His voice was but a whisper.
Who would want her dead? And he’d used the word too. Did that mean Amy was already dead?
“How can you see that?”
His eyes darkened. He was grim. “I see shadows around you. Dark things with red eyes. Bad things.”
Jillian swallowed. The evil beings from her nightmare surfaced in her mind.
“You’ve seen them too, haven’t you?”
Impatience set her nerves on fire. “Yes. Yes, I’ve seen them.”
He drew in a slow soft breath. “I couldn’t save your sister from harm but I can keep you safe from the soul collectors—if you will allow it.”
Her lips parted to ask him what a soul collector was but he silenced her with a finger to her mouth. “Will you?” His own masculine taste fused with the metallic tang of gunpowder.
She nodded uncertainly.
“Close your eyes.” His drawl was low but Jillian could not mistake the implied command. Her lashes fluttered to her cheeks.
“Do you see your sister?” His lips brushed her ear.
Jillian sucked in a breath. Her whole body tensed. “No.”
“Look harder.”
She squeezed her eyelids tighter and tried to forget the too-intimate proximity of this ghost. Was he telling her she could see her sister? That she could find her this way? She knew it was possible.
And then like a movie playing in her head, she saw her.

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Gatekeeper by Debra Glass To Be Released in Print From Ellora's Cave - Winter 2009

Debra Glass' first paranormal romance in the Phantom Lovers series, Gatekeeper, will be released in PRINT from Ellora's Cave, winter 2009. (Please check back for the exact release date)

Gatekeeper~

When the evil shadow ghosts known as soul collectors haunted her childhood nightmares, Nashville PD criminal profiler Jillian Drew did everything possible to turn her back on her psychic abilities. But now her eccentric sister has been abducted, and nothing in her criminology background has prepared Jillian for that tragedy—or for Benton Smith, the powerful and devastatingly attractive ghost of a Civil War officer and the only witness to Amy’s abduction.

Fearful of the brazen specter, Jillian nevertheless needs him. Benton is her Gatekeeper, a spirit sworn to protect her from the soul collectors, who attack each time she unleashes her long-dormant psychic senses in an attempt to find her sister.

Yet she must somehow keep the devilishly seductive spirit at arm’s length, for Benton’s soul is at stake—and succumbing to his desires could have dangerous consequences for them both.

Praise for Gatekeeper—

Chosen one of the top 13 Favorite Paranormal Romances on the Redlines And Deadlines Blog.

“If you love ghost love stories, I would rush out and get Gatekeeper to add to your own library today,” says Whitney of Simply Romance Reviews.

Roxanne Rhoads of Nightowl Romance says of Gatekeeper, “Glass mixes a captivating plot with an attention getting romance. The author does a great job at combining suspense, mystery and the paranormal into a complex tale of history; deceit, reincarnation and ghosts peppered with hot and steamy sex scenes... Gatekeeper is an absorbing tale you won’t want to stop reading until the book is finished.”

Buy the E-book Gatekeeper

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Watchkeeper by Debra Glass Reviewed by Reader Views

Watchkeeper, the third book in Debra Glass' Phantom Lovers series was reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views. "Tying all of the elements of the story together, including history, erotica, romance, and magic make for one great read. I highly recommend reading "Watchkeeper" by Debra Glass. Click here to read the whole review.

To buy Watchkeeper, to read an excerpt, or to view other books by Debra Glass, click here.

Just In Time For Halloween! A Sexy Pirate Ghost and a Willing Witch Together in Watchkeeper by Debra Glass

Watchkeeper - The third book in the Phantom Lovers series by Debra Glass will be released in October 22, 2008 by Ellora's Cave.

Click HERE to buy!

When Gwendolyn Wyse booked a room at a bed and breakfast in romantic Charleston, South Carolina, she’d hoped to rekindle the flame in her cold, unresponsive husband. What she didn’t expect were divorce papers—or her husband’s untimely death.

Shocked and desperate, Gwen relies on her background as a witch and her knowledge of magic, invoking the rite of twilight to bring her husband’s soul back from the dead. But nothing prepares her for the swashbuckling spirit who answers her call—Stede Bonnet, the gentleman pirate, who died on that very spot three centuries prior and who now possesses her husband’s body.

Stede offers Gwen all the passion she never had with her husband. But when the pirate lays claim to her heart, Gwen must choose between the man she loves and the demands of Stede’s mortal enemy, a villainous spirit with the power to take away everything Gwen holds most dear—including her pirate lover.

Excerpt:

“Bloody damn hell!” A ragged groan tore from his throat as he collapsed and covered her.
Gwen lay on top of the scattered divorce papers underneath the man who’d confronted her with them. She was trembling and sated and flooded with renewed love for him.

She ran her hands over his back, which was misted with perspiration. His hot breath fanned her ear and she turned her head more fully toward him as he brushed his mouth against the sensitive shell. He pressed a kiss there and then propped on one elbow to gaze into her eyes.

Gwen’s stomach tightened at the combination of love and lust in his expression. She cleared her throat. “I don’t suppose you plan to divorce me after this.”

His forehead furrowed. “Divorce?”

Gwen swallowed. “I can change if you can. I want this to work.”

“What to work, luv?”

“Our marriage.”

He burst into laughter. “Marriage?”

Gwen was stunned—and bruised. Her hand slid from his shoulder and she swiped at a lock of sweat-dampened hair that had stolen across her face. “Yes, our marriage.”

“Marriage?” he repeated incredulously.

Gwen’s eyes narrowed. “If you still want a divorce after this, then by all means, you fucking bastard, give me a pen and I’ll sign the papers.”

He cleared his throat. “Luv, how can we possibly divorce when we are not married?”

Anger flared. She slapped at his shoulders. “Get off me and stop with that fake accent.”

He made no move to get off her. Instead, he endured her feeble pushing and slapping until she grew weary and stopped. When she was finally breathless, he said, “Exactly who, my lovely lady witch, do you think I am?”

Panic surged.

Gwen stared.

He was still semi-erect inside her.

But who was he?

Suddenly, a blast of wind rushed through the room, rattling the windows and door violently. Roger’s divorce papers swirled around her while the plantation blinds rattled. The temperature in the room felt as if it had abruptly dropped twenty degrees.

“Major Stede Bonnet!” a voice reverberated in the tiny room. The sound of it had an unearthly, metallic rasp to it.

Gwen gasped. Her gaze riveted to the pale apparition of a pirate. He stood inches from the bed with his legs braced wide and his hands on his hips. She froze.

Wearing a cutlass belted to his hip and twin flintlock pistols jammed into the waistband of his breeches, he was dressed from head to toe in the eighteenth-century garb of a pirate. A greasy black, braided beard jutted from his chin, hanging halfway down his chest. His bottle green coat was so long it nearly concealed his trousers. The coat’s impossibly wide cuffs were turned up and held in place with big brass buttons. Thigh-high black leather boots and a ragged, feathered tricorn hat completed his pirate ensemble.

“Edward Teach,” seethed the man who was still embedded inside her.

Gwen’s gaze flicked back and forth between them. Her heart beat rapidly. Well…she had wanted to meet a ghost. But this one looked downright mean.

The sulfurous odor of brimstone permeated the air.

Chills swept her arms and legs despite the carnal heat of the man on top of her. The voice in her head told her there was no possibility of life ever going to back to normal. Not after this.