The Woods of Hitchcock (The Henrietta Series) by Ann W. Jarvie
GENRE: Thriller, Psychological Suspense
BLURB: The Woods of Hitchcock by award-winning author Ann W. Jarvie is a thriller about a psychically gifted Chicago copywriter and victim of violence who returns to South Carolina's equestrian country to solve a riddle involving murder, the metaphysical and the secrets of her eccentric family.
Suzanne Clayborn is a psychically gifted southerner working in her dream job in Chicago, which also conveniently takes her away from the ghosts of her past. But when she's nearly killed, she realizes all she wants is to return home to her eccentric family, her horse and the one place she feels safe: Hitchcock Woods, an enchanting equestrian forest in South Carolina.
But instead of finding solace, Suzanne becomes entangled in a murder spree, while stumbling upon an old manuscript, written by her sage grandmother. As she explores it, Suzanne uncovers a tome of long-buried family haunts and ancient metaphysical secrets offering healing and inspiration. She also begins to understand her unwanted psychic abilities, especially after meeting a mysterious stranger in the Woods whose ominous riddle suggests others close to her will die within the week...
Brimming with raw emotion and a trail of psychological twists, a story of hope and transformation begins to unfold. Yet with the riddle's deadline looming, Suzanne's present must ultimately collide with a violent past. Will she be able to solve her life's riddle and fulfill her destiny? Or will she die along with those she loves?
Excerpt: Suzanne Clayborn woke up in darkness, mouth taped shut.
Jerking only made the ties around her wrists and ankles tighter, but it wasn’t just the bindings holding her down. Her muscles weren’t working right, like her whole body had fallen asleep. All she could do was lie there on a floor, heart pounding in terror, listening to the eerie bangs of pipes hidden somewhere behind the shadowed walls.
Her body trembled, despite an overwhelming heat, heavy and putrid, falling on her face and neck like the terrible breath of a monster. She had no memory of what had happened to her or where she was now. She only knew she was immobilized, maybe paralyzed, and every inch of her head ached. She might’ve welcomed another blackout, but the fumes were acting like smelling salts, forcing her to remain awake.
Yet she preferred consciousness—she didn’t want to die. It wasn’t that she feared the afterlife. That was actually the only good thing about the tragic accident years ago, when she was thirteen, when she’d felt her soul float away in bliss. It was the coming back that was the scary part. What she’d seen and felt when she’d woken up, and almost every day since then, could not be unseen or unfelt. It was a secret horror, her life irreversibly altered with strange, new abilities she didn’t need or want. Still, she didn’t want to die—not now, not like this—because she was struck in this dark moment with an awful knowing, a bothersome niggling in the deepest part of her soul about something important she had to finish in this life.
Guest Post: by Ann W. Jarvie Topic: – What questions are you most asked by readers?
Thank you, Gimme the Scoop Reviews, for the opportunity to answer the questions I’m most asked about my new thriller, The Woods of Hitchcock, and to give you “the scoop” about my upcoming in-store book signing event at Barnes & Noble in Phoenix.
In a nutshell, what is your new novel about?
The Woods of Hitchcock is a thriller about a psychically gifted Chicago copywriter and victim of violence who returns to South Carolina’s equestrian country to solve a riddle involving murder, the metaphysical and the secrets of her eccentric family.
Did you have a literary theme in mind as you wrote it?
Yes, thematically, I wanted The Woods of Hitchcock to be a Hero’s Journey—of a woman running away from the literal ghosts of her past until she discovers the secret gifts of spirit within herself.
Where are your books sold? What about signed books?
My books are available through Barnes & Noble, Amazon and most online retail booksellers. I’ve had a number of book signing events in coordination with Barnes & Noble, but I’m excited to announce on Gimme the Scoop Reviews… “the scoop” that I’m having my first IN-STORE Book Signing event this upcoming Saturday—on Feb. 12, 2020—at the Barnes & Noble/Desert Ridge store in Phoenix, Arizona. This is one of the first such events in the country! So if you’re in the Phoenix area next Saturday, come in to see me!
Is The Woods of Hitchcock the sequel to your first novel, The Soul Retrieval?
Yes, although it’s not a direct sequel, the styles are much different and each story stands completely on its own. The heroine of The Soul Retrieval, Henrietta Clayborn, was a thirtysomething in the 1950s in an epic novel, but she plays a mentoring role as an eightysomething in this contemporary thriller. The Woods of Hitchcock centers on Henrietta’s granddaughter, Suzanne Clayborn, but as I mentioned, Suzanne’s story stands on its own.
What was the inspiration for this novel?
When I was growing up in Aiken County, South Carolina, and first heard the name “Hitchcock Woods,” which is a real place, even as a young teen, I honestly thought it sounded more like a suspense novel than the enchanting equestrian forest preserve that it is. Perhaps I was seeing into my own future. While I was living in Chicago and started writing novels, I kept coming back “home” and to Hitchcock Woods, walking and riding horses in it with family and friends, eventually realizing it, as well as Chicago, would be the ideal settings for my fictional character, Suzanne Clayborn, and her suspenseful Hero’s Journey.
Does Hitchcock Woods have anything to do with the filmmaker, Alfred Hitchcock?
Not at all. But I’ve intentionally included a few subtle Hitchcockian film themes and plot devices in The Woods of Hitchcock—for fun, surprise and added suspense. I’ve even included something that might be likened to one of Alfred’s famous “cameo” appearances, and I challenge readers to find it!
Hitchcock Woods was in fact named after its founder, Thomas Hitchcock, who was one of the leading American polo players in the latter part of the nineteenth century and a hall-of-fame horse trainer known as the father of American steeplechase horse racing. In 1939, the Thomas Hitchcock family donated 1,120 acres of its land for public use, while establishing a foundation to protect and preserve the land in perpetuity. Later, the Foundation added other lands for a total of 2,100 acres today, making it the largest privately owned urban forest preserves in the country.
Why did you include ghosts in this novel?
I’ve always loved a good ghost story and also tales with forbidden secrets and metaphysical elements. But rather than writing about them in the horror genre, I wanted to create a contemporary thriller. So, I started to imagine what it was truly like to see, feel and hear ghosts as well as higher spiritual beings. Consequently, these psychic abilities kept creeping into my main character’s profile. I decided to go with them in a big way to satisfy my own interests and to enhance overall suspense.
Are the horse trails you describe in Hitchcock Woods real or imaginary? Does the Americos Building in Chicago exist?
With the exception of the fictional Clayborn, Davidson and Vaughn homes and the Clayborn Cut, I have tried to present Hitchcock Woods, its trails, features and urban surroundings as true to life as possible. If there is an error, I respectfully ask forgiveness from those who know better.
The Americos Building is pure fiction, although my descriptions of its surroundings in Chicago’s Loop are based upon my experience working and living in that area.
Why do you use bird themes and symbols in your novels?
The use of birds is not only a Hitchcockian theme element, it’s also something I enjoy. Unlike Alfred’s films, however, I’ve featured birds as positive symbols in my novels mainly because they remind me of my late father. My dad was an Eagle Scout who had earned a Bird Study Merit Badge. His love of birds stayed with him throughout his life, and he inspired a fondness for them in me. He regularly fed and treated as pets the wild birds in the backyard of our North Augusta, SC home, although the thought of caging them was abhorrent to him. If he were ever late in feeding his “pets,” numerous sets of cardinals would gather just outside the windows looking for him. And he’s the only person I’ve ever seen who could pick up and hold a wild duck that came to him.
Is The Secrets of Bears Repeating manuscript, mentioned in this novel, something that is written?
In part, yes. Like my character Henrietta, I started compiling my list of “ancient universal truths worth repeating” as I wrote The Soul Retrieval. Also, like Henrietta, my intention is to publish it one day…when it’s ready.
What is your background?
I have a B.A. in journalism from the University of South Carolina and twenty-five years’ experience as a copywriter in advertising and public relations agencies, both in Chicago and South Carolina. My debut novel, The Soul Retrieval, received four literary awards, the highest score by Writer’s Digest Awards and an exciting number of positive reviews. I have two adult sons and currently live in Arizona, with my husband, our boxer dog and boxer mix rescue.
How might book clubs and readers connect with you?
I’d love to hear from readers through my website and social media. I also welcome the opportunity to speak with book clubs online or in person. There’s a contact form, especially for book clubs, on my website. My book news, including details about my upcoming in-store Barnes & Noble event, and links to my current social media pages also can be found on my website, which is ANNWJARVIE.COM.
AUTHOR Bio and Links: Ann W. Jarvie has a B.A. in journalism and twenty-five years’ experience as a writer in advertising and public relations agencies, in Chicago and South Carolina. Although it stands completely on its own, The Woods of Hitchcock is an indirect sequel to Jarvie’s award-winning debut novel, The Soul Retrieval, which received four literary awards, the highest score by Writer’s Digest e-Book Awards’ judges (5 out of 5 on all points) as well as myriad positive reviews. Jarvie currently lives in Paradise Valley, Arizona with her husband, their boxer dog and boxer mix rescue.
Website and Social Media:
The Woods of Hitchcock, A Thriller by Ann W. Jarvie, is available online everywhere, including:
Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-woods-of-hitchcock-ann-w-jarvie/1139765258
Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Woods-Hitchcock-Thriller-Henrietta/dp/0578932008/ref=sr_1_1
Giveaway: Ann W. Jarvie will be awarding a $75 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
