Call of the Penon
The novel is an interweaving story of two periods of time in Calpe in Spain. The first around the 1980s when a couple, Mike and Juliana, travel to Calpe for a first holiday. The second period is in 2023 when they revisit the same area to unwind what happened during their first visit. The visit to Calpe is inspired by Maria, who works with Juliana.
A relationship between Maria and Mike develops early in the manuscript but we discover that there is a tension in Stephen (Maria’s girlfriend) which amounts to a possessive jealousy. It leads to a viciousness but one that Maria cannot resist.
On their first visit Mike has an affair with Maria, but they are caught out by Maria’s boyfriend, Stephen. A confrontation develops on the top of the iconic Calpe feature – the Penon de Ifach.
In 2023 Juliana wants to revisit Calpe apparently to just enjoy a second holiday there, but it becomes apparent that she is wanting to understand more about what happened 40 years earlier.
Juliana has been approached by a woman called Phil who is Maria’s daughter. Maria has died, and she wants to know about her mother, and the father, Stephen, that she never knew. She has discovered papers left by her mother, and has also received other papers but does not know where from.
Mike feels that Juliana is returning to Calpe for a specific reason but he feels forced to go along with it though it is a part of his life he wants to forget. Unknown to Juliana, Mike finds a correspondence which shows that Juliana has a motive for the visit which she has not admitted.
During the visit Juliana has clues to the fact that Maria’s lover was Mike, but she is uncertain.
But a new character arrives on the scene who has only been hinted at in the text so far; Purdey, a sister of Maria who wants revenge for the death of Maria. It turns out that she has been in an asylum most of her life.
At the top of the Penon, Purdey meets with Phil and Mike leading to the shocking conclusion.
About the author
John Spencer has had published around 30 books in two genres; the paranormal, and a range of business books. Subjects within the former include: Ghosts, Poltergeists, Mind Powers, Stigmata, UFOs, Alien Contact, Alien Abduction, Global Mysteries and Sacred Sites. Within the latter are Team Building, Management of Change and self-help books for small businesses.
Several books from both genres have been translated into many languages including German, Polish, Spanish, and Japanese. Many were also released in the United States.
The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits (written with John’s wife Anne, published by Hodder Headline) was ‘Bookclub Book of the Month’ for two months running and sold over 250,000 copies in hardback before its paperback editions.
UFOs – The Definitive Casebook (Hamlyn) was also a ‘Bookclub Book of the Month’, and in translations had a high profile release across Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Spain and the Spanish speaking countries.
Overall, John’s books at that time sold nearly three-quarters of a million copies.
John is a shameless self-publicist in the media; including local and national newspapers, radio and TV, as well as live debates and 'phone-ins' to Hong Kong, the Falklands, Cyprus, Japan, the former Soviet bloc, the United States and many European countries. John has been a consultant and writer for several projects on the paranormal including two Carlton TV productions and a major multimedia project which outsold all previous titles in its first month of release. He was also principal author and series editor of a book series written in conjunction with the Sci-Fi Channel.
In recent years John has concentrated on fiction, winning several short story competitions (including ‘Hertfordshire Life’).
John is also President of the prestigious 70 year old ‘Verulam Writers Circle’