CHRIS HARRISON

Secrets always dwell in the darkest shadows…

In the heart of a derelict, once-infamous hotel, believed to be one of Britain’s most haunted places, lies a chilling mystery that defies the understanding of the local police. Crooked House, buried deep in the woods of a sleepy village harbouring a chilling secret, with its dark history of unsolved murders and spectral whispers, becomes the stage for a group of unlikely heroes.

Wannabe influencer Kane Jackson and his best friend JJ saw the mysterious Crooked House as the perfect opportunity to capture the attention of their online audience and make a name for themselves. Little do they know that the shadows harboring tortured spirits are just the beginning. Kane’s strong-willed kid brother Zach, headstrong Meridia Wilson, and child prodigy Izzy Di Salvo are reluctantly dragged into the venture with them.

As the group delves deeper into the haunted halls, a malevolent force awaits, hungry for their fears and vulnerabilities. With every step, the secrets of Crooked House unravel, revealing a darkness that goes beyond their darkest nightmares.

Can this unlikely team unlock the harrowing secrets and survive the malevolent forces that threaten to consume them?

In this edgy and dark young adult supernatural horror novel, survival comes at a harrowing cost, and the echoes of Crooked House linger long after the final chapter.

⭐️ REVIEWS ⭐️

“I loved this book it isn’t my usual genre to read but I couldn’t put it down. This is a paranormal horror about a group of kids who go to investigate a haunted house. They find much more than they bargained for. This is a fast paced tense, gripping, bloody story with great character development. Fantastic read 5⭐️”

“This book brought me back to the innocence and excitement of my childhood but quickly elevated to a level of terror that I'm glad I never had to experience.
The world that Harrison builds is not only supernatural but also supernormal, incorporating elements of alternate dimensions and the power of the mind.
Wrap that up with a little biblical prophecy, and you've got one hell of a story!”

“I must say I didn’t really know what to expect from this book, but from the first chapter it had me hooked. Love the characters & how the story was weaved together. Can’t wait to read more from this very talented author. You have a new fan 👍👍”

“This book immediately pulls you in with beautiful, vivid details you won’t be able to shake off. The more you learn about crooked house, the more you must know what happened there and what is happening now. You will be left on the edge of your seat wondering if our little group of brave explorers will survive. Then survival becomes a question of if they make it out alive, will losing their minds still count as survival. Definitely delivers suspense.”

“A frenetic, non-stop horror novel that starts with an interesting premise—a hotel with various different rooms haunted in different ways—that eventually evolves into so much more. Very much a teen-oriented story, it does a great job of setting up the rest of the story to come, yet still offering up an ending that's both satisfying as well as open-ended enough to leave room for more.”

“I've been reading the authors stories on his IG page and I was very excited for his YA horror novel to get released. He definitely lived up to my expectations!

The beginning disorients you just enough as we get a good background on the haunted B&B known as the Crooked House. As we meet our main characters, a group of teens set out to catch truly chilling footage of the now infamous Crooked House where various people have gone missing. Trying to catching something big and become internet stars, this group of friends head into the dark and decaying labyrinth of the house where they quickly realize their "fun adventure" has turned into a cold nightmare. The Crooked House is hungry and it will not let you go once you've stepped in.

For me the Crooked House really took on a character of its own and the evil that resides inside chilled me. Truly a never ending maze of hell. Especially for a YA horror, I was really impressed with the creep factor. Just know once's you enter no one is safe 🏚️🔦👹. As the story developes a more horrific reality is revealed which thickens the plot and sets up for the next to come.”

“The Rising by Chris Harrison has everything that I love in an epic horror/thriller story. The characters are relatable, heartwarming, and brave. I can't wait to see how they develop throughout the series. The plot keeps you perched in anticipation and has fantastic twists and turns. There was enough mystery to keep me turning pages, just the right amount of gore that it didn't overshadow the plotline, a few creepy bugs, and heart wrenching death scenes.
In the Crooked House and the town of Cold Christmas, Harrison has created a darkly supernatural world that sends true shivers up my spine and I cannot wait to return to it in the next installment.”

“I am normally not one one to like this kind of genre but I found it quite entertaining. I loved the beginning and kept me hooked. The middle part with the group in investigating the Crooked House was fantastic and all the different rooms that were unique and fun in their own right were some of the best parts. Without giving anything away I want to say the best part was middle section on Archie. It was tragic and I did not see it coming. It hit me like a ton of bricks. Definitely go out and read it. I am interested to see where this goes next and will be wanting to read the best one in the series. Can’t wait. Worth the buy. A+++++”

“Loved the characters, how the story developed. Kept you on your toes. Creatures all had great development and you really felt for the group of kids and what they were going through. Great book!”

“I want to start off by saying a big thanks to Chris and @wickedinkpublishing for an arc of this book. This is my honest thoughts on the book! I’ve not read a ya horror story in a hot minute and this is exactly what I needed, it has many spine chilling moments. The characters are very relatable! One thing I loved was how we got to see Helen’s prospective that was a very cool addition! It added to the story a lot. It gave the story more depth, the characters we meet in the story are all fantastic. The story is very detailed and very well written.

It starts off with Helen the owner of a now closed b&b experiencing a scary situation where she’s being threatened by the ghosts that reside inside the haunted b&b. The cops don’t believe her and people are starting to think she’s crazy, her husband had disappeared a few years earlier and she’s always hoped he’d return, after the scary situation with the ghosts she plans to leave the hotel behind but theirs a storm rolling in so she has to stay one more night. to help her feel secure she’s goes around the hotel making sure no one is inside other than herself, I won’t spoil what happens next but just know I audibly gasped. The story then continues 4 months later where a young group of teens/children decides to go check out the creepy abandoned hotel. This group consists of Kane (our horror obsessed YouTuber), next is JJ he’s Kane’s best friend and the camera man, we have Zach kanes little brother, and two of their friends Meridia Wilson and Izzy Di Salvo. Kane has a YouTube channel where he posts horror content so he decides to film their whole experience at the haunted hotel in hopes it blows up. What the teens experience is super creepy, they see all sorts of things you would only see in movies. The further they go into crooked house the more they discover there is a malevolent spirit that wants to terrify the group. Crooked house has dark secrets and this group is set to uncover it!!

The ending of this book has me so anxious it was absolutely fantastic I thoroughly enjoyed this story it was creepy and very well written it had plenty of depth to it!! I highly recommend this creepy story to anyone who wants a story that will keep you on the edge guessing till the end! 5/5 ✨✨✨✨✨”

“4.75 stars rounded up. This is such a well-paced story that is full of atmosphere and tension. It reminded me of all the adventure books I loved as a kid, but with the horror, creepiness and darkness ramped up all the way. These 5 kids are way braver than I will ever be!

The book follows Kane, JJ, Zach, Meridia, and Izzy as they explore the haunted Crooked House Hotel. As soon as they set foot inside, things go from bad to worse. Although aimed at young adults, the author did not hold back on the horror or tension, and it was a page turner for sure. I feel most adult horror fans can find something to love in this book.

The group of kids was likeable, and I was really rooting for them throughout. I love how the author sets things up for the next book in the series. It is nicely written, the characters are believable, and the Crooked House is suitably horrifying!

I will definitely keep up with the rest of the series! Thanks to Chris Harrison for an advanced reader copy. This is my honest review, which I'm leaving voluntarily.”

“👻 The Rising by Chris Harrison 👻 Thank you to wicked ink for the ARC copy and as usual all opinions are mine and mine alone. The Rising centres on a once famous hotel and is known ever so affectionately as the Crooked House. An influencer named Kane decides to head to Crooked House and make a splash on the online world along with their friends. Harrison is able to deliver a young adult horror novel which is able to focus on an entertaining story and at times a scary experience. There were times throughout the novel though where the dialogue which was taking place felt a little off as in I had a hard time believing this was how people would speak to one another during the books events. This doesn’t carry on throughout the entirety of the book though which makes the flow easier. I am interested to see what Harrison is able to craft next in the future.”

“Ten souls are taken on sacred ground as an offering to ‘death’. When the tenth soul is taken, the world descends into darkness and night takes over.”
If you enjoy Thirteen Ghosts Movie and ghoulish dark forces taking over a house, you will love this! PLUS if you like Goosebumps, Well……this is like Goosebumps but in adult version.
Almost forgot to make my review on this. First & foremost thank you Wicked Ink Publishing for this ARC! This if the first installment of Chris’s “Crooked Tales” series! & it was an absolute pleasure of reading.

Trigger Warnings: gore, death, dread feeling, death of a parent, alcoholic parents

I cannot say enough how I really enjoyed all the different twists and little elements that us readers face when we read a book. This story is unique from anything else that I have read. This story is fast paced and really took a turn in so many ways. The small details within the items of the haunted hotel, I truly enjoyed reading about. A story about young teen kids facing death and horrors of a house is such a typical plot, BUT AND I MEAN BUT! Like I said earlier, it challenged so many elements of horror writing and the author was able to clearly make it work. I am forever grateful for this early copy of the book and do hope to read the second one in the future.”

“I really enjoyed the mix of styles and the nightmarish descriptions of the monsters and the sinister happenings at the Crooked House. I'm not fully sold on the apocalyptic turn of things. I'd much prefer this as a standalone that ends in a bittersweet half win.”

“You know when you're given the opportunity to read one of your most anticipated reads of the year and it holds your expectations?
Well, this is one of those occasions! Everything in this book worked for me, from the main characters to the storyline, the supernatural elements, and the twists. Not to mention the very immersive writing demonstrated by Chris Harrison, so much so that I had a visual and auditory cinematic experience in my head as I was reading! Also, some of the unsettling scenes are enhanced by the varied pace of the story and the change in reality, helping the reader synchronise their state of mind with those of the characters.

Although the main characters are all young teenagers, I felt a connection and was reminded of that same excitement of having a close group of friends to share experiences with. Only that a seemingly innocent visit to a famous haunted hotel trying to capture some cool videos becomes the beginning of the end, not just for them but for humanity! It is implicit that I'm looking forward to the sequel as I have to know what happens next!!

Another thing I very much appreciated is the variation on the supernatural theme with dystopian and science fiction elements, albeit remaining a YA horror. As I mentioned, I'm looking forward to the next book and the whole series as I want to experience the full horrors of Crooked House. And I'm sure you want to as well!

Thanks to the author and Wicked House Publishing for a copy and this is my honest opinion.”

“The rising is a fantastic horror novel. A group of friends are drawn into a battle with supernatural forces. Brilliantly written and a roller coaster read it is highly recommended for fans of Supernatural horror and haunted house fiction.”

“Chris Harrison's 'The Rising,' the first in a five-book series of middle grade horror, checks all the right boxes for young adult, adventure, supernatural horror. It starts with a haunting, but the author takes the horror house trope into entirely different directions, embedding it into a wider story of large-scale temporal and spatial vistas. There are many heart-breaking moments, several scenes of teen friendship, instances of regret and loss, but also many challenging situations of great supernatural suspense. Though the writing is a bit rough, and the pacing suffers a a bit in the middle whereas goes way too fast in the beginning, as a debut novel it stands many levels higher than what's already available in relation to intricacy of plot, character development, twists and unexpected revelations, and, well, the sheer magnitude of the author's imagination. I was prepared to pick a favorite character, but I realized soon enough that this is not that kind of story; the ending sure invites the reader to stick with the book and see what's next, as long as one is not averse to intelligent, complex writing and some unsettling plot twists.”

I give The Rising 4/5 stars. I have so many thoughts about The Rising that I’m trying to make them coherent enough for a review.
The Rising is such a wild ride. From the very beginning, the pace takes off whether you’re ready or not. I was so mad because life was making it hard for me to just sit and binge through this book because I just didn’t want to put it down. I kept being reminded of the kids and their friendships in The Goonies and It a lot. I really enjoyed each of their personalities and the fact that they read like actual kids. Some novels the kids will say and do things that I just couldn’t picture actual kids doing, but this wasn’t the case for this novel.The house itself had so much going on and I loved that each room had its own individual ghost and its own story. It reminded me a lot of Thirteen Ghosts (which is one of my favorite horror movies just for the ghosts alone). I will say the pacing kind of slowed when the kids made it back from Crooked House and we learned more about each individual, but it picked back up quick enough. I felt like the ending might have been a little rushed? But I am thrilled this is part of a five book series and I can’t wait to see where the next one will go. Thank you so much Wicked Ink Publishing and Chris Harrison. I received an advanced reader copy, an ARC, in return for an honest review.

“I don't usually enjoy books with a paranormal element, but I stepped outside of my comfort zone to read this one, and I wasn't disappointed.
It's not your typical haunted house story, I feel it kind of touched a little into sci-fi territory. I loved the idea of each room in the hotel having its own story.
I've given this one 4* purely because of the pacing of the story. The beginning started with a bang and drew me in straight away. The first 40% of the book was filled with scary moments, that just didn't stop coming. But then, it started to flag a little. The pace slowed right down, and I worried that it wouldn't pick up again. Towards the end, there was one scene that came back with the same energy as earlier, and I was glad about that. I've seen that this is the first in a series, with more books to come so I look forward to seeing what happens next.”

“In my adulthood, horror books and movies were not on my shopping list. Indeed, fiction/fantasy is my usual taste. To keep some balance in my life, I find myself sampling the different writing genres. When I had the opportunity to read the ARC to Chris Harrison’s first novel of his “Crooked Tales Series: The Rising.” I happily volunteered.
Living through the 1960’s, I was exposed to the old Monster Movies, you know with vampires, mummies, werewolves, which haunted my days and nights, and as a kid I loved them. In my adult years, the creepy, scary stuff just gives me bad dreams. Not to mention the mechanical dorky characters that always did the wrong thing at the wrong time, became boring to me.
I am pleased to say that Mr. Harrison brought back to me the thrill of the unknown of what may lie around the corner or in the closet. My wife and I have lived in an 1897ish home for forty years. Lots and lots of creeks and groans can be heard almost any time in this house but lately for whatever reason I am hearing a lot more of them at night while I am trying to sleep. Thank you, Mr. Harrison…
The story of The Rising starts with an interesting (terrifying) prologue that was scary enough for me. I could not imagine what the main story could be about. I am pleased to say the story encircled the Jackson brothers Kane and Zach and a photographer JJ and two lovely young ladies one named Meridia and the other named Izzy. The group went to Crooked House with the intention of making their next horror movie and found more than they could have ever imagined.
Sure, we all have heard a story or two about haunted houses and things that go bump in the night. Nevertheless, the characters I found likeable and believable. The story is fresh and exciting, leaving the reader wanting more.
To conclude, The Rising is simply Wicked for YA. Thank you, Chris Harrison, for sharing a glimpse into your mind. I look forward to sharing my pre-ordered copy with my wife.”

"We've been waiting for you...
When a group of adventurous young kids decide to go explore an abandoned, notorious B&B called "Crooked House", known to be steeped in mystery and hauntings, they find more than they were expecting. Only wanting to see if the hotel was simply haunted by ghosts and capture it on camera, they discover what's inside is much more malevolent and sinister. Trapped within, they all must fight to find their way out or be lost to the darkness forever. After what they have experienced, they continue to try to understand what is happening and why their lives are now entangled to the mystery and what lies waiting to consume their lives. As they each continue to experience a sinister being, they gather together to continue to try to discover and stop what is happening. From the start, we are given a look into some of the history that enshrouds the hotel, the previous owners, and the reasons for the abandonment. Advancing forward to the present, we learn about the kids and the dynamics of their lives, giving us that connection to each of the characters. Each of them having their own endearments and troubles. The atmosphere is very foreboding as we are taken inside to experience the sinister forces that lie within. Feeling just as trapped and anxious as the group of kids. Wondering how they are possibly going to escape. It was like stepping through time and entering into a labyrinth of dreams, especially as more and more of the story unfolded. I really liked the inclusion of being taken back in time and learning the truth of the hotel and the reveal of what the sinister forces actually were. I felt it was a very interesting concept. There were some things that were revealed that were surprising and the ending was unexpected, as well. This will be an ongoing series and I can only imagine the horrors that are planned to continue the adventure. A very well written debut novel that will surely appeal to YA readers as well as anyone who enjoys horror.
**My appreciation to Wicked Ink Publishing and Chris Harrison for the complimentary e-ARC.”

“The Crooked House is believed to be one of the most haunted places in Britain and a couple of young friends, wanna be ghost hunter, explorers, hear about it and decide to investigate along with three of their friends. The now closed down and run down hotel, where each room is haunted by a different entity and harbouring some dark secrets and unsolved murders is the start of their journey. Harrison did not disappoint with this YA horror and there were enough twists, turns and blood and gore to keep me turning the pages. I am not a big reader of this genre but I was thoroughly engrossed and will be looking for more epic tales like this in the future. The characters are very brave and relatable and I can't wait to see how they develop throughout the series. We get a lot of interesting back story too, which sets us up ready for the next book, which i cannot wait for and I believe is due out around October, the perfect time for these spooky tales.
Thank you to Chris Harrison for letting me read an ARC copy of his debut novel of Crooked Tales : The Rising. I thoroughly enjoyed it.”

“A fantastic haunted house story, I loved that each of the hotel rooms had a story of their own. I was immediately gripped from the first chapter. I also loved that the author has set the story ready to jump into book 2 which I'm so looking forward to reading. Likeable characters and the story was gripping. Will definitely read the rest of the series.”

“Brilliant YA horror! Fast paced, amazingly chilling descriptions. I loved the whole group of kids and it kept me rooting for them! I adore a haunted house setting and I do like a dip into YA. This was right up my street. Thank you to Chris for the ARC cannot wait to grab a copy of my own!”

“The rising is one of if not the best horror novel I have read this year. Struggling to get views on there horror themed you tube Zach and his friend JJ decide to visit a reportedly haunted local hotel.
What they find there puts them in a race for survival against forces desperate to reek havoc. Christopher weaves a fantastic talk about friendship and horror I really look forward to reading more.”