Review - The Widow of Pale Harbour by Hester Fox

    Title: The Widow of Pale Harbor

   Author: Hester Fox

   Publication Date: September 17, 2019

   Synopsis:

   A town gripped by fear. A woman accused of   witchcraft. Who can save  Pale Harbor from itself?

   Maine, 1846. Gabriel Stone is desperate to escape the ghosts that haunt    him in Massachusetts after his wife’s death, so he moves to Maine, taking a    position as a minister in the remote village of Pale Harbor.

But not all is as it seems in the sleepy town. Strange, unsettling things have been happening, and the townspeople claim that only one person can be responsible: Sophronia Carver, a reclusive widow who lives with a spinster maid in the eerie Castle Carver. Sophronia must be a witch, and she almost certainly killed her husband.

As the incidents escalate, one thing becomes clear: they are the work of a twisted person inspired by the wildly popular stories of Mr. Edgar Allan Poe. And Gabriel must find answers, or Pale Harbor will suffer a fate worthy of Poe’s darkest tales.

My Thoughts:

The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox completely enchanted me last year. It was the perfect October read, featuring a haunted mansion and a girl who had just come into her power as a witch. I was looking forward to read the writer's second novel, which had a similar eerie promise.

It wasn't exactly a let-down, but I couldn't say The Widow of Pale Harbor lived up to its predecessor.

Gabriel – a man with a well-guarded secret – arrives to Pale Harbor to act as the minister of the sleepy town. He quickly becomes fascinated with the woman the whole place regards a murderess and a witch, and when strange occurrences disturb the people, he can't help standing up for the lady of his heart.

"Death had cast its sickly pall over the town, and nothing was certain any more."

Most of the readers will be drawn to this book for the reference to Edgar Allan Poe in the blurb. Indeed, the murders and other weird happenings in the novel are pulled from Poe stories and the reader even gets time to guess from which ones before it is revealed. I think it is a pretty awesome game for those who know Poe's tales intimately.

The setting and the whole atmosphere that is created are the strongest features in the book. The gothic vibes are very powerful, starting from the mansion Sophronia lives in, through the foggy streets, to the eerie cemetery and the windy cliffs – the mood is beautifully composed through the chilly descriptions.

I know, so far I've only shared good things – so why wasn't I completely satisfied then? 

The romance I'm afraid blunted my excitement for yet another autumn read. It was too flowery, too sweet for a gothic book. Everything else was so dark, so raw, that I expected the passion to be a bit more down-to-earth, the love a bit less schoolgirlish. I find I don't have much patience for these kind of romances any more. It is sad, but it's the truth. 

Also, I couldn't really understand why Sophronia found Gabriel so intriguing. It turned out they didn't share that many interests after all, he wasn't one for intellectual conversations – as far as male protagonists go he fell a little flat for me.

I'd say it is worth to give The Widow of Pale Harbor a try if you're a Poe fan and like gothic tales. It helps if you're also a romance fan, because then you'll appreciate the parts I didn't, and the story can give you more than what it offered me. It is far from being a bad book, but I couldn't rate it higher because the author's debut novel undoubtedly casts a long shadow on it.

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Review - A Murder of Crows by Annie Kirke

Title: The Murder of Crows (The Ravenscourt Tragedies #1)

Author: Annie Kirke

Release Date: 1 November, 2018

Synopsis:

A dead father.

A missing Spirit.

An ancient manor with way too many locked doors.

But Abigail Crowe won't let locked doors, corsets, or the straight-laced rules of Victorian society get in the way of finding the truth behind her father's death. Of course, where illegal magic is involved, things are rarely as simple as they appear. Screams in the night, an insane gardener, and a murder blamed on her late father are only the beginning. Could her father actually be a murderer? What is Uncle Edward hiding in the attic? And perhaps most importantly—which family secrets are worth keeping locked up?

I received a free ebook copy of this book from Dying Arts Press in exchange for an honest review.

My Thoughts:

I was a lucky girl; 2018 went out with a bang for me reading-wise. A Murder of Crows by Annie Kirke was the last book I read in 2018 and to tell the truth I'm grateful I could finish the year with such a delightful novel.

Abigail Crowe's father died and his spirit disappeared. Not long after, Abigail's mother brought her and her brother to this strange mansion where screams pierce through the walls at night. The uncle they haven't seen since she and William were little, most probably tampers with forbidden magic. The grounds around the house are off limits after sunset. There are closed doors wherever they go and Abigail keeps thinking about how her father couldn't deliver a probably important last message to his family. She suspects foul play. The living members of her family might be in danger too...

I was pleasantly surprised by this lovely gothic detective story. 

Abigail, the young protagonist is hell-bent on finding out who murdered her father. It seems like he passed because of natural causes but she thinks she knows better. His spirit never showed during his resting (where the departing usually say their final goodbyes) and it was enough to raise her suspicion.

I enjoyed the pacing and how the tale was put together – there is real detective work; Abigail and her brother William are fiercely looking for answers and with the help of memorable side-characters (Emily, who Abigail keeps calling "Keeper of the Dead" and Beatrice the gardener who acts crazy most of the time) they soon start getting glimpses at the bigger picture.

The environment in which they investigate is dark and menacing, the mansion holds secrects just like the people who inhabit it. The fantasy/paranormal bits that colour the story (like the magic and the presence of spirits, fey creatures and even zombies) are all nice touches, they definitely make the world of the book engaging. There were quite a few scenes that were playing out in cemeteries and.. well yeah... you can imagine, the mood was set. Loved them!

I kind of knew where the author was leading me (which was not a problem at all, I bore in mind that the book is marketed for a younger audience), but still, the ride was so worth it! A Murder of Crows is a clever execution of a series of clever ideas, and it's only the beginning of a series. I have to say the bar is high, however I'm sure the author can work her magic in the second instalment too. I'm more than willing to join Abigail on another adventure.

 Goodreads | Amazon

Review - The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox

Title: The Witch of Willow Hall

Author: Hester Fox

Publication Date: October 02, 2018

Synopsis:

New Oldbury, 1821

In the wake of a scandal, the Montrose family and their three daughters—Catherine, Lydia and Emeline—flee Boston for their new country home, Willow Hall.

The estate seems sleepy and idyllic. But a subtle menace creeps into the atmosphere, remnants of a dark history that call to Lydia, and to the youngest, Emeline.

All three daughters will be irrevocably changed by what follows, but none more than Lydia, who must draw on a power she never knew she possessed if she wants to protect those she loves. For Willow Hall’s secrets will rise, in the end…

My Thoughts:

Let me start with stating how very lucky I feel for being part of this book tour. I wanted to receive an early copy of The Witch of Willow Hall badly because I was convinced by its synopsis it will please me to no end.

I was not a least bit wrong. This is such a deliciously dark gothic romance, I haven't read anything so powerful in the genre in ages. 

Lydia's, family – her parents and two sisters – move to the countryside from Boston to run away from a scandal that could become the ruin of all three girl's prospects. However, the house they choose as their new home is half-alive with memories and tragedies of another family, and the nights are rarely peaceful there.

When two gentlemen from the neighbourhood start to make visits to the house, Lydia finds herself in bigger animosity with her sister Catherine than ever before, which is all the worse because thanks to that neither of them foresee the calamity that would change both their lives forever.

After disaster strikes Lydia's anger and helplessness makes her realize she is somehow different form the rest of the world; she is in for a journey of self discovery.

The novel seriously had everything I enjoy: regency era, haunted house, romance done well(!), witchery, creepy ghosts, a nasty scandal, a mysterious family tree... and some other things I can't mention here because I don't want to spoil your experience.

This would be the perfect read for all Jane Austen-lovers who also enjoy thriller/horror. I swear I haven't read anything this good on the gothic side since The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield and that must say something, because I LOVED The Thirteenth Tale.

Don't miss out on Hester Fox's amazing debut novel, it is quite a ride believe me.

Goodreads | Amazon

About the Author:

Hester comes to writing from a background in museum work and historical archaeology. She loves the Gothic, the lurid, the dark...so long as the ending is a happy one. She has never seen a ghost, though she remains hopeful. Hester lives outside of Boston with her husband. THE WITCH OF WILLOW HALL is her first novel.

The blog tour was organized by:

Review - We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Title: We Have Always Lived in the Castle

Author: Shirley Jackson

Synopsis:

Living in the Blackwood family home with only her sister Constance and her Uncle Julian for company, Merricat just wants to preserve their delicate way of life. But ever since Constance was acquitted of murdering the rest of the family, the world isn't leaving the Blackwoods alone. And when Cousin Charles arrives, armed with overtures of friendship and a desperate need to get into the safe, Merricat must do everything in her power to protect the remaining family.

 

My Thoughts:

Shirley Jackson's intriguing short novel about a not-just-slightly disfunctioning family sent chills down my spine. This dark and somewhat eerie tale is not so much about a haunted house as the making of one.

The Blackwood family hasn't been whole for a while. Most of its members are dead, simply because they liked sugar on their berries. The ones who live – Constance, Merricat and Uncle Julian – do so in the constant shadow of that unfortunate evening when everything ended... and began.

Being poisoned by arsenic is not a painless way to go they say, but being the talk of the village is not a painless way to live, either. Although the sisters and their uncle are outcasts, they are also the biggest sensation in the village they're trying to stay away from. 

Their dark and scandalous past baffles yet at the same time excites the people. They are local legends of the spooky variation; even children singsong the Blackwoods' sin in the ear of poor Merricat twice a week when she has to do her run in the village to make sure she and her sister won't go hungry up in the house.

Like it wouldn't be enough, one day Charles, their cousin arrives to rekindle old family bonds. He is pushy about matters like their returning into society, and his eagerness to wheedle himself into Constance's confidence unnerves Merricat. He talks too much about the money the sisters keep shut away in a box upstairs. In the end Merricat decides to turn to drastic measures to make Charles disappear from their lives.

The dialogues in the book are brilliant. The information about the fatal dinner comes to the reader in small drops through broken conversations and sentences cut in half. It really is like a jigsaw puzzle that you place together with the turning of the pages.

Shirley Jackson creates a very peculiar atmosphere while describing the three remaining members of the Blackwood family in their isolation. I as reader felt the setting claustrophobic at times, especially towards the end. The deliberate attempt of Ms Jackson to put you in the shoes of the girls works out very well.

I also have to mention the black humour that is sprinkled all over the pages of this quaint story. We Have Always Lived in the Castle is darkly entertaining in its morbidity. The kind of comical quality it represents may not be for everyone, but if you enjoy dark jokes I would definitely give this book a try.

While it only takes a few hours to read the novel, it will stay with you much longer than that. I can only recommend picking it up if the synopsis or what I've just told you about it appeals to you.

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Review – Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

Title: Rebecca

Author: Daphne Du Maurier

Rating: 3/5 

Synopsis:

Working as a lady's companion, the heroine of Rebecca learns her place. Her future looks bleak until, on a trip to the South of France, she meets Max de Winter, a handsome widower whose sudden proposal of marriage takes her by surprise. She accepts, but whisked from glamorous Monte Carlo to the ominous and brooding Manderley, the new Mrs de Winter finds Max a changed man. And the memory of his dead wife Rebecca is forever kept alive by the forbidding housekeeper, Mrs Danvers...

My Thoughts:

Let me just say it straight away: I didn’t care as much for Rebecca as I thought I would. I guess I had pretty high expectations, because everyone seems to adore this novel. Well, now I can say, not me. Certainly, it is a decent story with decent characters, hence I gave it three stars, but I didn’t feel the gothic atmosphere that was supposed to be there, therefore it doesn’t deserve a higher rating in my eyes.

Du Maurier’s writing is highly enjoyable, even the descriptive parts and that was what kept me reading. I also hoped that the ending would make up for what the book was lacking in the first half – I’d heard before there is a twist at the end – but unfortunately I figured out almost everything before the big ’enlightenment’.

The herorine was too naive and – frankly – dumb for my liking and I know it was necessary because of the nature of the storytelling and for plot reasons, but she made me roll my eyes so many times I’m lucky they didn’t start to hurt. She made stupid decisions and many times didn’t use her brain and was extremely timid on top of that.

Of course, she was a young thing and inexperienced, but despite that it’s hard to believe she didn’t have any natural instincts or some kind of inner alarm that would have told her it wasn’t the best idea to marry a man after two weeks of knowing him. I guess she’d never truly been loved, the poor thing.

Anyway, as I mentioned the writing was superb, the story good but not extraordinary and altogether my expectations for an unforgettable gothic novel were unfulfilled. Lesson: Never be sure that an overhyped book will affect you the same way it does everyone else. We are all different.

An additional message to you who are reading this: the fact that I didn’t adore Rebecca doesn’t mean you wouldn’t, so you might as well give it a try. It is a celebrated success after all.

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Review – The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Title: The Shadow of the Wind (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books #1)

Author: Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Rating: 5/5 stars
 

Synopsis: Barcelona, 1945: A city slowly heals in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, and Daniel, an antiquarian book dealer’s son who mourns the loss of his mother, finds solace in a mysterious book entitled The Shadow of the Wind, by one Julián Carax. But when he sets out to find the author’s other works, he makes a shocking discovery: someone has been systematically destroying every copy of every book Carax has written. In fact, Daniel may have the last of Carax’s books in existence. Soon Daniel’s seemingly innocent quest opens a door into one of Barcelona’s darkest secrets--an epic story of murder, madness, and doomed love.

 

My Thoughts:

A boy, a book and a writer – this is the Holy Trinity of The Shadow of the Wind. The boy longs to untangle the yarns of a life that seems to be gone and past. He doesn’t expect to wake Laín Coubert with his meddling. He is none other than the Devil in the beloved book.

I don’t remember ever reading a novel before that was set in Spain, but despite the writer’s clear efforts to enchant me with the enigmatic representation of Barcelona I loved the Shadow of the Wind for something else: the characterization. Now, many would argue that the city itself was a character in this case, but somehow it wasn’t the component that animated the whole book for me. There were people on these pages that could have easily stepped off them. You know those books that you only come across once in a while, in which you find protagonists and secondary characters you feel you have known your entire life? Well, this is one of those pieces of writing. (God, I wish I had a friend like Fermín Romero de Torres).

I admired Zafón’s choice to hide so many parallels between Daniel and Julián in the book. They made me confused, but in a good way, because thanks to them I was dying to get to know the nature of the connection between the youth and the writer.

I was also pleased with the deliciously gothic locations (especially one) Zafón created; although not very original, it gave just the right milieu to parts of the tale. I’m usually easily creeped out by ghost stories and there was one certain part where I got the goosebumps and it was so so good.

What I wasn’t quite happy with, was the ending, because I expected something else, something more mysterious, something more on the magical realism side of things perhaps – and that kind of closure I didn’t get. The only other thing that bugged me about the Shadow of the Wind was that sometimes the narrative just didn’t seem right: you can read recollections of characters of certain events that they couldn’t have possibly witnessed. But well, it’s just a ’technical’ issue I happened to notice, it didn’t really kept me from enjoying the story.

All in all, The Shadow of the Wind is a wonderful novel and is totally worth the time it takes to read it.

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