The Factory, by Mark West

Twenty years ago at college, Martin, Paul, Jane and Gwen were members of the GLUE Club - the Gaffney Legendary Urban Explorers - run by the charismatic Tom.  Now, following his mysterious death, they agree to meet up again and undertake one final exploration to honour his name.

Aside from Paul who never left, none of them has been back to Gaffney since and the reunion is awkward, re-opening old wounds.  As they begin to explore the long-abandoned Pocock Factory, it seems they might be intruding on something better left alone.  As they succumb, one by one, to the spirits in the darkness, it quickly becomes a battle to see who will survive the night...
The Factory is published by Hersham Horror Books

"[A] skilful, gradual escalation of detail, a suggestiveness reminiscent of Ramsey Campbell."
- Gary Fry, at his website (the full review can be read here)

"There are so many elements of suspense, of dread, of sensory overload.  That feeling of being watched, that little sensation of being touched... you begin to feel the characters’ unease which soon becomes terror as you read on."
- Paula Limbaugh, Horror Novel Reviews (the full review can be read here)

"A cracking, thrilling journey through the darkness. Abandoned buildings are creepy – hence their appeal, all shifting shadows, uncovered memories and strange unexplained noises [and] Mark pulls out all the stops here."
- Anthony Watson, Dark Musings (the full review can be read here)

"Beautifully, darkly written."
- Charlotte Bond, Gingers Nuts Of Horror (the full review can be read here)

"The ending packed one heck of a punch. Usually stories of hauntings fall short for me at the denouement, but not this one. It did not flinch away from what needed to be done and faced it head on. Bravo!"
- Charlene Cocrane, Char's Horror Corner (the full review can be read here)

"The Factory is a quick but gripping and heart racing read."
- Neats Wilson, The Haphazardous Hippo (the full review can be read here)

"Everything I look for in a great horror novella; well-developed characters that you care what happens to them, a wonderfully evoked setting and masterfully crafted scenes of horror."
- Ross Warren, Amazon review (the full review can be read here)

"It was a pretty intense story and I loved the old factory setting. I thought the parallel story line that was presented through the supernatural elements, about the factory workers and its owner, was also done very well."
- Empress Reece, Hooked On Books (the full review can be read here)

* * *
In their 2016 annual round-ups, The Factory cracked the Top 10 of Jim Mcleod's "Top 20 Reads Of 2016" and Paula Limbaugh's "Top 10 List" at Horror Novel Reviews.com, which was very pleasing.

The real-life inspiration for Pocock's, the long-since abandoned factory on Rushton Road, Rothwell
At the HHB novella launch (from left - Phil Sloman, Stephen Bacon, me, James Everington), 
FantasyCon-by-the-sea, Scarborough, 24th September 2016
The novella is available through Amazon

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