Family Secrets, Cold Cues, and a Mysterious Manuscript Shape the Final Chapter of the Moorhouse Trilogy
Los Angeles, California Nov 6, 2025 (Issuewire.com) - With wit, emotional depth, and a touch of cold-case intrigue, Mic Lowther brings the Moorhouse Trilogy to a compelling conclusion in What Mom & Dad Never Told Us. In this final installment, siblings Caroline, David, and Juliana uncover secrets hidden within their familys pastsecrets that have lain dormant since their parents deaths decades earlier.
Their father, a brilliant but enigmatic financial wizard, leaves behind a manuscript of strange modern fairy tales. Their mother, long presumed to have died in a tragic car crash, may have had an entirely different lifecomplete with a secret job and unspoken fears. As the siblings examine the oddities tucked away in old journals and legal records, they find that nothing about their parents story is quite what it seemed.
Reviewer Mark Heisey of The US Review of Books praises Lowthers craft, stating: Lowthers writing shows the clear signs of an author who has practiced his craft [and] each of the books has multiple smaller narratives appealing to a wider audience. The review highlights how Lowther seamlessly blends intergenerational themes with cold-case suspense, evoking literary comparisons to Gabriel García Márquez and Mary Higgins Clark.
Beyond the mystery, "What Mom & Dad Never Told Us invites readers to reflect on how families evolve, how stories are passed down, and how truth can surface long after the questions were first asked.
Published as the third book in the Moorhouse Trilogy, this novel showcases Lowthers signature balance of insight, curiosity, and storytelling finesse.
Acclaimed horror novelist and U.S. Army veteran Vanessa M. Chattman returns with a chilling new supernatural tale that promises to haunt readers long after the final page. Her latest novel, BENEATH THE OAK, delivers a gripping blend of psychological terror, hidden family secrets, and ghostly suspensecementing Vanessa M. Chattmans reputation as one of the most compelling voices in modern horror.
Set in the quiet isolation of rural America, BENEATH THE OAK follows Alyssa Ward, a grieving woman forced to confront the shadows of her past when she returns to her childhood home after her mothers sudden death. What she expects to be a simple homecoming becomes a descent into a generational nightmare. The massive oak tree looming behind the houseonce a symbol of comfortnow pulses with an eerie, oppressive presence. At night, whispers seep from its roots, and ghostly silhouettes gather beneath its branches, watching, waiting.
As Alyssa sorts through her mothers belongings, she discovers a series of journals revealing a dark family curse tied to the ancient tree. For generations, the Ward family has been tormented by a spirit bound to the oakone that selects a single family member to keep beneath its roots. When Alyssa begins experiencing visions of a young girl calling her name, begging for release, she realizes the curse is awakening once more.
The deeper Alyssa digs into her familys past, the more the veil between the living and the dead unravels. The spirit beneath the oak soon reveals its true identitysomeone Alyssa once knew, someone she unknowingly abandoned. To break the curse, Alyssa must confront buried memories, longforgotten guilt, and a supernatural force determined to claim her as its next offering. The battle becomes not only for her life, but for her soul.
Vanessa M. Chattmans signature styleatmospheric, emotionally charged, and rooted in psychological horrorshines throughout BENEATH THE OAK. Known for her ability to blend haunting imagery with human vulnerability, Chattman crafts a narrative that is both terrifying and profoundly intimate. Her exploration of grief, memory, and generational trauma elevates the novel beyond traditional horror, offering readers a story that is as thoughtprovoking as it is chilling.
With a growing body of acclaimed work spanning supernatural fiction, psychological thrillers, and cinematic screenplays, Vanessa M. Chattman continues to push the boundaries of the genre. BENEATH THE OAK stands as one of her most powerful works to datea haunting reminder that the past never truly stays buried, and some spirits refuse to be forgotten.
BENEATH THE OAK is now available through major retailers and online platforms. Readers seeking a gripping, atmospheric, and emotionally resonant supernatural horror experience will find themselves captivatedand hauntedby Vanessa M. Chattmans latest masterpiece.
