Whitstable is the new novella from Spectral Press and Ghostwatch scribe Stephen Volk. Written as a touching and heartfelt tribute to the last Peter Cushing in his centenary year. Peter Cushing had a massive influence on the horror genre as a whole, Stephen Volk and Simon Marshall-Jones have teamed up to produce a poignant, tender and evocative celebration of the great man.

Expertly mixing fact and fiction Volk tells the story of a grieving Peter Cushing, bereft following the death of his wife, as he is brought into the classic and age old battle of good versus evil with consequences far more real and terrifying than anything he has faced on the silver screen. Whitstable has gained widespread acclaim for both its depth of research and the quality of its fiction. Stephen Volk pays a wonderfully measured tribute to the man who started his obsession with the horror genre.

Whitstable is available for pre-order from Spectral Press directly in both limited edition hardback for £17.50 (exclusive of P&P) and unlimited paperback. The book will be published on 26 May 2013, Peter Cushing’s birthday. All pre-orders can be made now at the Spectral Press website.

Check out the synopsis as way of a teaser:

1971. A middle-aged man, wracked with grief, walks along the beach at Whitstable in Kent.

A boy walks approaches him and, taking him for the famous vampire-hunter Doctor Van Helsing from the Hammer movies, asks for his help. Because he believes his stepfather really is a vampire…

DAN HOWARTH