Deadlock by Tim Curran

This is the story of Charlie Petty. He is afraid of nothing and no one. Unfortunately, he is also a compulsive gambler, and constantly loses at it. He is summoned to the office of one of the loan sharks he owes money to, Arturo. In return for wiping out his debt of $50,000 he is invited to spend one night on the supposedly haunted Yvonne Addams. He agrees, thinking it will be an easy night. He soon comes to regret that decision however...

I am such a fan of Tim's work. He weaves incredible detail into his novellas, so you feel you are there. In this case, on the boat trapped with Charlie as his paranoia mounts and the hallucinations take their toll. I'm not ashamed to say I read this mostly with the light on, the dank, claustrophobic setting sent shivers down my spine! It was a fast paced and well written story, another great addition to the DarkFuse library and another great story from Tim.