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The Enemy Held Near

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Foster and Ruthie Turner and their kids are haunted by past mistakes and present choices. Their future is uncertain. When Ruthie tries to flee the house and Foster decides to stay, the spirits around them start waking up and do everything in their supernatural power to force the living back together. Not only might this haunting drive the family further apart, they may be unable to survive it.

Everything we touch is haunted. Every place we live is populated by ghosts. When we try to run, they follow. If we stay, they may possess us.

Armand Rosamilia and Jay Wilburn crafted a haunting story with a sweeping scope through the worlds of the living and what lies beyond. The story is also intimate, close to home, and disturbingly familiar. The emotion and action will haunt and possess you long after the book is done.

WE ARE ALL HAUNTED

205 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 11, 2016

6 people are currently reading
19 people want to read

About the author

Armand Rosamilia

258 books2,743 followers
Armand Rosamilia is a New Jersey boy currently living in sunny Florida, where he writes when he's not sleeping. He's happily married to a woman who helps his career and is supportive, which is all he ever wanted in life...

He's written over 150 stories that are currently available, including horror, zombies, contemporary fiction, thrillers and more. His goal is to write a good story and not worry about genre labels.

He not only runs two successful podcasts...

Arm Cast: Dead Sexy Horror Podcast - interviewing fellow authors as well as filmmakers, musicians, etc.

The Mando Method Podcast with co-host Chuck Buda - talking about writing and publishing

But he owns the network they're on, too! Project Entertainment Network


He also loves to talk in third person... because he's really that cool.

You can find him at http://armandrosamilia.com for not only his latest releases but interviews and guest posts with other authors he likes!

and e-mail him to talk about zombies, baseball and Metal:

armandrosamilia@gmail.com

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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Profile Image for Frank.
Author 36 books129 followers
September 28, 2016
I was expecting THE ENEMY HELD NEAR to be a ghost story with a lot of bang and it delivered. The book, co-written by two well established independent writers, demonstrated a need to elevate their craft by telling a solid haunted house story. The story is creepy, dark and thrilling.
The story is told, from chapter to chapter, from the view points of the cast of rotating characters. The effect is a a well paced story that keeps you guessing who the protagonist is and who the antagonist is. The fluid shifting of POV helps peel back the layers of the haunting in a way you don't normally experience in this type of story. They narrative is deep and oftentimes quoteable and poetic.
Both Jay Wilburn and Armand Rosamilia are known mostly for their zombie apocalypse fiction. THE ENEMY HELD NEAR proves they are both capable of telling a quality horror story in any trope. You want a solid haunted house book? This is the book you've been looking for.
Profile Image for Kim_reads_it_all.
106 reviews
June 6, 2023
4.5 stars

The overall plot was great. The story was told from multiple perspectives and what I had initially thought in terms of this story being a psychological thriller which I believe it was it definitely had moments of horror. Everyone's role in the story was relevant, descriptive, and realistic meaning it was modern and well written. It was an excellent read but unfortunately I thought the ending could've been better because though ultimately you only had so much to really create a good ending I feel like the last few lines were a but vague or lackluster. It definitely had its twists and turns and unexpected revelations. Once I reached the halfway mark it was truly a nail biting experience for me as I continued flipping the pages. The lengths two people will go for the sake of their children, or to save their family and marriage. It really had some thought provoking moments as well. I very much enjoyed this and will be reading more from both of the authors.

Foster and Ruthie Turner = TOXIC
They were both equally protective and did their best to genuinely care for their children but once the Turner family became involved that's when it all went downhill. Maybe even during Foster's upbringing. This isn't your typical haunted house story either. It really shocked me how great of a read this was for me. A semi quick read and an overall good time.
Profile Image for Christina Eleanor.
225 reviews11 followers
August 9, 2020
Foster and Ruthie Turner met, got married, had a family then struggled to keep it all together. A wedge was driven between Ruthie and Foster with the help of alcohol and drugs. Now fighting to stay sober, Ruthie realizes she must save her kids from the mysterious Turner home they all lived in. The kids have Turner blood in their veins and the house doesn't let its past or present inhabitants leave without consequences. As much as they do not trust or like each other, Ruthie and Foster know the lives and future of their kids is on the line.

The story involves the ghosts of past generations and their fight to keep all of the family together in the home that has been passed from one crop to another. Rosamila and Wilburn do a fantastic job building the characters as the story is told from their point of view. You really get the sense of how dire Ruthie's situation is and her determination to save her kids. I really liked how the house itself was developed into a character and brought into the story to demonstrate the grasp it has and its ability to call the family to it. If you like creepy houses and ghost stories, check out this book!
Profile Image for Lucille Bransfield.
1,059 reviews
May 9, 2024
I love both Armand’s and Jay’s writing styles. I enjoy that I can never tell who wrote what. They blend seamlessly and put together a great story. I enjoyed this book about the afterlife and those that don’t leave us behind. That might not be a good thing. Be careful where you buy a house.
Profile Image for Pheebz.
275 reviews
April 18, 2016
The Enemy Held near by Armand Rosamilia & Jay Wilburn.
4 18 2016
The Enemy held near By Jay Wilburn and Armand Rosamilia was THE best ghost story I have had the pleasure of reading in a very long, long time.
It is a story about the Turner family Foster, his wife Ruthie daughters Maggie & Heather as well as his family’s home , a homage to the generations that have gone before, and still influence the dynamics of daily family life.
Things were ok for a while, yet Ruthie never felt like she belonged there and the manifestations and interferences has left Ruthie wanting to take her family and flee that wretched house and the souls that meddled in the livings affairs. And flee she would with or without Foster.
Foster and his older girls Heather could see the spirits that dwelled in and around the property, they could interact with them if they so pleased. At times the spirits could temporarily control the living to find a means to their wishes and the outcome the Family of past generations required. Some people were easily controlled, while others would need to be inebriated or other wise impaired to be processed. The unfortunate victims did not have to be family and nor were all the spirits confined to the house and yard. A few of the victims are as followed. Melinda Goshen Social Worker from Child Services Dept. The foster father of the safe house Frank who were looking after The Walter kids. Xabda her real name was Sylvia Parker and she was one of Ruthie’s nosy ,pill popping ,alcohol drinking neighbors in the trailer park. That becomes a bigger part of the story.
One of the more prominent and out going ghost is Uncle Duke. Uncle Duke raised Foster after his parents were killed. Sounds like he was a pretty stringent disciplinarian. You go through most of the book wondering if he is a malevolent spirit or if he is trying to protect Foster and his family from the wrath of the others, so he is just trying to head off conflict and help them to keep with the family’s rules.
Armand Rosamilia and Jay Wilburn masterfully orchestrated this collaboration. It reads like an updated “Outter Limits story” with more twist and turns than the beloved show could have ever dreamt of doing . The story line was voluptuous the characters were fascinating and the events were realistic. We have a family struggling with daily life and the supernatural, they love each other and would give their lives for their kids, yet one feels he has to stay and the other can’t stand the thought of staying in that house one more second. No one is right or wrong here. “For every action there is a equal or greater reaction.” Those were the words that played through my mind while reading this book. There is no wrong or right answer, there is only the struggle and action with a consequence, It comes down to what can you live with? Leave or stay you will die eventually the how is the tricky part. Or forsake and denounce your love for the ones you love to hopefully protect them.
Bravo Guy’s! This is an epic story. I urge anyone who likes to peek on the dark side to read it. After reading the book, I had to think of what I wanted to say about it. It was that good!
Profile Image for Kelly Rickard.
496 reviews8 followers
August 10, 2016

This is a read for review.

This is the first audiobook I have listened to that is narrated by Jack Wallen Jr. I really enjoyed his narrator style and he has a very easy voice to listen to.

I read loads of Armand's work and thoroughly enjoy it and I have also enjoyed his collaborations with other authors like Shocker with Frank J Edler (such a funny disgusting read). This is the first time I have read anything by Jay Wilburn.

So this is a haunted house story with the family of the ghosts living there. The Turner family house has many generations living there and as most haunted house stories it all starts well but Ruthie who married into the family has always felt out of place to the point of leaving her husband Foster and trying to take her daughters resulting in child services being involved. There are lots of twists and turns and the main spirit is Uncle Duke, is he a nasty guy or does he protect the family from the other ghosts? There is death along the way and old history clarified read the book/listen to the audiobook to found out if anyone survives.
Profile Image for Joan.
1,138 reviews7 followers
June 18, 2016
I hadn't read a ghost story in quite awhile and I'm really happy I read this one. The Turner family has a dark and secret past that has come back to haunt them using their house. Non stop action with great characters, some you root for and others not so much. Uncle Duke is a do I like him or not character, I ended up liking him. There are some twists and turns in this story that keep you guessing on the outcome of this battle between the family and the house throughout the book. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the paranormal/horror genre.
Profile Image for Tamara.
569 reviews54 followers
April 5, 2016
A ghost story masterpiece.
One of the best and most original haunted house stories I've ever read. Find out what it means to the ghosts of the Turner family to be bound by blood, and to what lengths they will go to secure their long lineage of the past ... and the present ... and future. I read this thrill ride straight through to the eerie end. I'm sure you will too!
Profile Image for Paula Genereau.
3,078 reviews39 followers
July 2, 2016
Wow!!! This book was very good. It kept me in suspense. Ruthie and Foster are very tough and determined people.

I wasn't sure how I'd like this book since I don't care much for ghost stories but wow.... This book rocked
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews

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