A brother to dragons, and other old-time tales

In this modest volume a turn‑of‑the‑century voice weaves three self‑contained tales that feel both timeless and oddly intimate. The opening story drops listeners into the year 1586, where a newly‑married husband, Butter, narrates the strange quarrel between his lady wife Marian and the lord of Amhurste over a haunting in a blue‑walled chamber. Their domestic world—full of embroidered gowns, iron presses, and a blood‑hound named Herne—quickly becomes a stage for whispered superstitions and stifled tempers.

What makes the tale compelling is the clash between Butter’s rational doubts and Marian’s vivid, almost theatrical, encounters with the specter—an apparition described in livid blue flame and a red banner that flickers like lightning. As the couple argues over whether the ghost is a real menace or a trick of imagination, the narrative teems with period details that anchor the uncanny in everyday life, from a spilled broth bowl to a frantic iron press. Listeners are drawn into a suspenseful first act that promises further revelations about the castle’s secret history.