Who are you feeding?
Leech by Gabriel Ryves
Available now in Paperback & eBook
“A queer gothic horror novel that keeps you guessing, Leech was one of the best books I have read this year.” – Library of Lisa
The castle’s owners don’t know about the man in their walls. But Jasper does.
New York, 1899: Working class nobody Jasper is whisked away to a castle in the mountains by his wealthy lover Leo. It’s supposed to be a romantic escape, even if Jasper is officially there as a servant. But his dreams are soon dashed as he’s worked to the bone and demeaned by Leo’s callous, conservative family. Trapped in the isolated castle, with even his lover against him, Jasper sees no choice but to accept his rotten treatment. That is, until he makes an unlikely friend: the man in the walls.
Chained in a hidden room, the man won’t say who imprisoned him or why. He demands to be kept a secret, and for Jasper to bring him a steady supply of his favorite meal: leeches. Bizarre, but it becomes easier to swallow when the man promises great rewards for Jasper’s help: money, power, revenge.
Jasper doesn’t see anything wrong with taking the deal. He believes his hard times will soon be over—until he’s forced to confront the monster he’s been feeding.
About the author
Gabriel Ryves
Gabriel Ryves is a writer and occultist who’s always been fascinated by what lurks behind locked doors. He lives in New York. Leech is his first novel.
What readers said
★★★★★
I found myself hooked and the last Act in particular had me flying through the pages alongside Jasper… By turns funny, thought-provoking, gruesome, nerve-jangling, brutal and satisfying- ‘Leech’ is 100% a book you should read (unless you’re squeamish- but then read it anyway).
★★★★★
The horror plot is full of little twists and turns with elements of a traditional haunting and gothic horror. The very end of the book was perfectly fitting (and, in ways, surprising).
★★★★★
[Leech] sounded like all the aesthetics I enjoy in thriller books – something creeping around, rich jerks getting haunted, a little bit of gross imagery, claustrophobia, you get what I’m saying. And I’m happy to say it delivered on all fronts.
23 Ghosts 