House of Strange Gods: The Temple House Archive I

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The Temple House was founded in 1586 in England during the reign of Elizabeth I as an off-shoot of Sir Francis Walsingham’s recently created intelligence service, inaugurated to investigate the growing popularity of esoteric learning that was occupying the interests of the Elizabethan intelligentsia. For this he recruited the descendents of the Knights Templar who had remained in England following the destruction of their Order. The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , or more commonly known as the Knights Templar, were formed in 1118 and ‘destroyed’ in 1307 by royal decree when King Phillipe of France moved to have all Templars arrested and their assets seized.

The Order has remained surrounded by myth and legend ever since - from searching and reputedly finding the Holy Grail; the Ark of the Covenant; sacred Gnostic texts even more dangerous than those found by the Dead Sea, or at Nag Hammadi in Egypt; to the timely disappearance of their naval fleet from La Rochelle and their treasure from the Paris Temple. Drawing on this veritable mine of esoteric knowledge and experience of international intrigue, the Temple House was established to combat ‘evil forces’ of a human or supernatural agency, and those who would use occult power for destructive purposes.

The current members of the Temple House, or ‘the Nine’ as they are referred to in memory of the original nine founder members of the Order, are all specialists and magical practitioners in the diverse fields of occultism and its relevant histories. When journalist Michael Gilmour discovered a small filler in a tabloid newspaper about the ‘witch busters’ of Temple House, he believed they were the right people to help him discover the reason behind his father’s disappearance back in the 1970s following an investigation into the desecration of a rural church. What he discovered was even stranger than anything he could ever have imagined in his wildest flights of imagination, which almost results in his own death in an act of premature burial from which he is rescued in the nick of time.

“A brilliant read. Love the writing. A real chiller-thriller. The author has all the skills needed to write a cracking good novel. She also has a vast occult knowledge that really shows and writes on the subject with ease. As usual with Melusine there is a subtle humorous element running through that works really well. Best of all there is a volume two underway. I think this would make a great TV series
Maria Moloney, Axis Mundi Books

“A cracking read. An excellent story, the characters are three dimensional, the dialogue reads naturally and the pacing is fine. There is tension and plenty of conflict as well as some nice touches of humour. There is also a sense of truth that only someone who is familiar with the occult can provide in this genre.
Krystina Kellingley, Cosmic Egg Books