Watcher

Watcher

"Let me walk with you."

Daniel Roth can "walk" in other people's skins - sharing all their senses, while remaining undetected. This unnatural ability - forged in a painful childhood, at the hands of his fervently religious Ma - inadvertently leads Daniel to a covert career with British intelligence. There he meets Agent Duncan Burke - a man willing to risk everything for the greater good - and Rebecca Pendleton, an analyst with an equally troubled relationship with faith.

It's 1999, and Daniel faces his greatest and most dangerous challenge when he is brought out of retirement to infiltrate a cult in the Forest of Dean. They worship Enochian angels and are seemingly on the verge of an apocalyptic plan. Daniel is the only one who can get close enough to stop them.

When he walks among them, Daniel will learn everything about his strange power and find something more terrifying than the devil himself.

Reviews of Watcher

"Watcher is an intriguing and intensely enjoyable story with all the right elements - a fascinating main character and a twisting and turning plot that's part spy novel, part supernatural thriller, steeped in religious mysticism. I read it in one sitting, I couldn't put it down!'

Suzanne Craig-Whytock, Editor-in-Chief of Dark Winter Lit and Author of Charybdis

"When MI5 brings 'skin-walker' Daniel Roth back into the fold for one last cult-related surveillance job, he's aware that the process might kill his body, but the danger to his soul may be far greater than that. In this collaborative novella, Relph and Gostelow weave a tight, speculative tapestry as compelling as any modern thriller; Watcher deftly explores one man's ability to slip inside other people's minds while struggling to fully comprehend his own true nature."

Lindz McLeod, Author of 'Turducken' and 'Sunbathers'

The angels in "Watcher" are less be not afraid and more likely to make you be afraid. Relph and Gostelow propel you into a world of contradictions where nothing is as it seems, not even your own body. The character of Daniel and his unique power elevates the mythos of body-hopping to a new level of risk and intrigue. His journey confronts you with questions like what would you do to know the truth of who you are, but more importantly, do you know that once you look behind the curtain you can never face the audience again?

Elena Sichrovsky, Author of 'Eating Out Anne Sexton'



Author Bios

JP Relph (she/her) is a writer from the Northwest of England, hindered by four cats. Tea helps, milk first. She writes about apocalypses a lot (despite not having the knees for one) and her collection of post-apoc short fiction was published in 2023. She recently got a zombie story onto the Wigleaf longlist, which may be the best thing ever.

Talking about writing and cats on Twitter @RelphJp and at Bluesky @therelphian

Mathew Gostelow (he/him) is a dad, husband, and writer living in Birmingham, England. Some days he wakes early and scribbles strange tales. If you catch him staring into space, he is either thinking about Twin Peaks or cooked breakfasts. Mat has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and Best Microfiction.

You can find him on Twitter and Bluesky @MatGost

AN EXCLUSIVE FOR WATCHER READERS:

Stories from each of the author's collections are in this book. Enjoy more of their words after finishing the novella.

Consumed by JP Relph, from Know That We Held

Zebra Finch by Mathew Gostelow from See my Breath Dance Ghostly

Both collections available to buy on Amazon