SECRETS OF THE FORSAKEN: Audiobook

INTO THE DEPTHS OF DREAD | Listen to a Sample Story

EDS. J. Hobson, L. Shyba, J. Tailfeathers
Audiobook release, February 2025

"What lies beyond our senses is not meant to inspire fear, but awe; yet fear arises because it disrupts the comfort of the known, challenging our place in the world." — Florence Farr (1860–1917) Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn

Secrets of the Forsaken is an audiobook for those drawn to the dark and unexplained. Enter a world of ghostly encounters, hidden desires, and supernatural mysteries that blur the line between the living and the dead. This collection combines ghost stories, dark fantasies, and occult tales, weaving together chilling stories from Indigenous and other timeless traditions. With a mix of retold classics and original works, *Secrets of the Forsaken* offers an immersive listening experience that explores the eerie connections binding our world to the unknown. Venture to the edge of the unknown.

The Secrets audiobook is a Durvile & UpRoute experiment in publishing a bespoke audiobook, without a physical book...at least for now. Some stories are original compositions, some stories are classic tales, but thematically, emphasis is on imagination and dark fantasy, with the classic stories corresponding to the authors’ original stories. Narration is blended with music, sound effects, and illustrations, animations, and author interviews will be available on the Secrets webpages. Many of the authors narrate their own stories and the corresponding classic tales.

Authors of original stories include: Julian Hobson, Lorene Shyba, Jared Tailfeathers, Alex Soop, Laurier Tiernan, Uchechukwu Umezurike, James R. Parker, John L.Hill, Jessica Theroux, Raymond Yakeleya, Maeve Wills, Lynda Partridge and Cary Cody Thomas. Alongside the authors’ works, the collection also features classic tales of dark fantasy from Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, Ambrose Bierce, Virginia Woolf, and others.

How to Listen: Distribution of the audiobook will be through Spotify, Audible, Apple, Kobo, and other audiobook vendors.

Accompanying this audiobook is a collection of illustrations as a richmedia pdf.

DOWNLOAD the INFORMATION RELEASE

Excerpt from "The Knock of Damnation"
By Julian Hobson

In the year of our Lord 1850, the town of Ashwood lay nestled in a valley often shrouded in a mist so thick, it seemed as if the heavens themselves wished to conceal it from the world. Ashwood was not unlike any other sleepy English village, save for one peculiar tradition: the knocker-uppers. These early risers, equipped with long poles and a keen sense of duty, went from house to house, tapping on windows and rousing the villagers from their slumber.

Among them was a man by the name of Thomas Wychwood. Thomas was diligent, never once shirking his responsibility. He was a man of average stature and modest means, but in his heart there was a weight that grew with each passing day. Married to Margaret, a gentle woman of quiet grace, and father to two sprightly children, Mary and John, Thomas should have been content. Yet, as the years passed, he felt as though a shadow hovered over him, growing darker with each passing dawn.

Every morning, without fail, Thomas awoke and began his rounds. The tapping of his stick on the glass became a part of the town's rhythm, a beat that synchronized with the daily grind of life. But there was something peculiar about Thomas’s own mornings—something that gnawed at the back of his mind. He could not recall ever waking of his own accord. Each day began in a haze, his limbs moving as if compelled by a force he could not name. His nights, too, were plagued by dreams of fire and shadow, though the details were always lost upon waking.

One foggy evening, as the moon hung low and pale over Ashwood, Thomas completed his rounds and found himself standing at the edge of town. The air had grown unnaturally cold, and the silence was so profound that even the nocturnal creatures dared not stir. It was then that Thomas noticed a figure standing beneath the twisted branches of a great oak tree, cloaked in shadows so deep they seemed to swallow the light

Illustrations on this page, Julian Hobson

SECRETS OF THE FORSAKEN: Audiobook

INTO THE DEPTHS OF DREAD | Listen to a Sample Story

EDS. J. Hobson, L. Shyba, J. Tailfeathers Audiobook release, February 2025

EDS. J. Hobson, L. Shyba, J. Tailfeathers
Audiobook release, February 2025