Johanna Ebeling and Henning Lambertz run the witch archive at the Ethnological Institute in Hamburg. They are responsible for keeping track of and checking out the various reports of strange occurrences that come into the Institute. Most of the time it is only a mildly interesting sort of job with the hope of a real, authenticated event lurking in the background. The day that they do finally get one of those cases begins like any other day.

The phone rings and Johanna answers it. There is a woman on the other end stating that she is evil and feels she needs to come and talk with them. Johanna gives the woman the hours of the Institute and the connection is abruptly ended by the caller. She and Henning concede that the call was weird, but then dismiss it.

A month or so later, they are visited by a strange woman who takes credit for making the earlier call. She then goes on to tell them her story, or at least part of it, before odd things begin to happen in the office and she tells them that she must go. They cannot stop her from leaving, but she has left them with enough information that they know where to find her.

Once Johanna and Henning set out to investigate this very scary, sad woman and her story, they are drawn into a horror that they would have never imagined existed. Now, they will be lucky if they get out of this with their lives.

THE GIRL IN THE WELL is a deliciously frightening story that captures the reader with the opening sentence and relentlessly pulls you along until the final page. Just the right amount of chills, spookiness, and full-blown terror set the stage for this story of a happy family that is ripped apart by the aftereffects of a horrific deed from centuries ago. As you creep along with the ensuing events, you will find your stomach clenching. You will involuntarily chew your nails from nervousness and worry as the characters travel through an experience like nothing they have ever seen.

At least that is the effect THE GIRL IN THE WELL had on me.

I could see it easily being made into a scary movie on par with any of the great ones. Even though the story is a short one, I cared about the characters. I really wanted them all to come out of their situation fully intact. After all, who doesn't like a happy ending? Of course, this is a horror story so don't let your expectations of everyone living happily ever after get the best of you. In fact, don't try to second guess the ending or predict it. You will be wrong no matter what you think will happen.

Instead, turn on all the lights, pull a cozy blanket around you, and prepare to be frightened by GIRL IN THE WELL.