“A darkly personal supernatural psycho-thriller about a small-town mayor who finds himself fighting to save his own soul from the demons spawned during his abusive childhood and now unleashed after the death of his estranged mother. Author Phil Giunta confronts the blurred border between love and hate hidden within the human heart in this promising, ultimately hopeful first novel.” —Howard Weinstein, NYT Bestselling author
Daniel Masenda thought he had made peace with his dark past when he left his home for a better life fourteen years ago. As the mayor of a small, tranquil town along Virginia’s Eastern Shore, Daniel has everything he ever wanted – until a series of haunting visions, coupled with the death of his estranged mother, pits him against two ghostly entities at war with one another. Each has its own agenda as they force Daniel to relive moments from his violent youth and push him to the edge of insanity. As his idyllic life begins to unravel, will he be able to decipher the message behind the hauntings before they destroy not only him, but the soul of someone he left behind?
Cover art by Scott Barnett. Published by Raging Seas Press.
“Testing the Prisoner is so much more brilliant than just a terrific piece of fiction… The character development is masterfully done, with character growth of not only the protagonist, but almost every single character in the story… This is the easiest reading you’ll ever do. Giunta’s seamless writing style allows the reader to slip right into his work like putting on a favorite flannel shirt—it is that comfortable.” —Carson Buckingham, author, editor, and book reviewer at Hellnotes.com
First Place: Pennsylvania Press Club 2024 Communications Contest
Winner: 2024 International Impact Book Award
Winner: PenCraft Summer 2024 Best Book Award (Horror category)
Second Place: The BookFest Spring 2024 Competition – Fiction\Horror – Ghosts & Paranormal
Second Place: National Federation of Press Women Communications Contest
Second Place: PenCraft 2024 Best Book Award (Horror category)
Finalist: Independent Author Network 2024 Book the Year Awards (Horror category)
Finalist: American Book Fest 2023 Best Book Awards
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