THE RHYMNEY SHADOWS

From Cork, Ireland, to the darkest corners of the world, paranormal investigator Benedict Black specializes in cases the police won't touch-places where the veil between the living and the dead grows thin, and ancient evils lurk just below the surface. After facing horrors on the Appalachian Trail and in the abandoned streets of Dudley Town, he thinks he's seen it all. Then he gets an email from a terrified couple in Newport, South Wales.

Megan and David Pritchard's children are gone. The police say they ran away, but the parents know better: strange marks cover their kids' skin, taps run with thick black liquid, and a voice in the walls-The Man with the Coal-Dust Eyes-sings in Welsh of "bringing back the ones who belong to the dark." The old stone cottage they bought cheap sits on land tied to the disused Rhymney Deep Colliery, where twelve miners vanished forty-five years ago, never to be found.

As Benedict digs into the town's past, he uncovers a web of darkness stretching across South Wales-from abandoned mines to old hospitals, all connected by hidden tunnels and carved spiral symbols. What began as a search for two missing children leads him to face Yr Hen Dŵr-the Old Water-a being that has slept beneath the land for millennia, woken by greed and forgotten bargains. With the help of a local historian and a brave night nurse, Benedict must strike a new deal with the deep before all of South Wales is claimed by the shadows.

A chilling tale of ancient magic, industrial horror, and the power of respect for the earth we call home-perfect for fans of Stephen King and atmospheric paranormal thrillers.