Historical Fiction – BeautifullyDark

The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner

A spellbinding tale about two daring women who hunt for truth and justice in the perilous art of conjuring the dead.

1873. At an abandoned château on the outskirts of Paris, a dark séance is about to take place, led by acclaimed spiritualist Vaudeline D’Allaire. Known worldwide for her talent in conjuring the spirits of murder victims to ascertain the identities of the people who killed them, she is highly sought after by widows and investigators alike.

Lenna Wickes has come to Paris to find answers about her sister’s death, but to do so, she must embrace the unknown and overcome her own logic-driven bias against the occult. When Vaudeline is beckoned to England to solve a high-profile murder, Lenna accompanies her as an understudy. But as the women team up with the powerful men of London’s exclusive Séance Society to solve the mystery, they begin to suspect that they are not merely out to solve a crime, but perhaps entangled in one themselves…

A Lullaby for Witches by Hester Fox

      Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this e-arc. All opinions are my own.
      When I first saw this title, I was pretty excited to request it. I had enjoyed “The Pale Orphan of Cemetery Hill”. Matter of fact, it had broken me from a reading slump. So when I was approved for this one, I made it the next book on my tbr.
      I didn’t like it.
      I couldn’t care less for the characters. This story is told in two separate timeliness, 1880’s and present day. Margaret lives in the 1880’s and is the wild child of a prosperous New England family. She is also a witch who falls in love and becomes pregnant. I couldn’t stand her character and found her to be an annoying know it all.
      Then there’s Augusta. A flat, boring character that was written as we should pity her, but I found her insufferable. She goes on for chapters about how she is just staying with her boyfriend because it was convenient, but after she finally decides to go, tells the new crush how much of a manipulator he was. It was all talk and no show for her character.
      There was nothing spooky about this book.

Published by: Harlequin Trade
Publication Date: 01 Feb 2022
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 320
Source: NetGalley
Date Read: 22 Sep 2021

The Haunting of Beatrix Greene

Around 100 pages, this little book packs a nice scary punch. The story telling is centered around Beatrix a phony medium, Harry her oldest friend, James the disbeliever, Amanda Reynolds, and Stanhope. James hires Beatrix to spend one night in Ashbury Manor, a home infamous for the killings that occurred there.

I enjoyed this book, but a few things that were jarring were the three separate authors. I hadn’t noticed it at first, but then when I noticed the author under each new chapter, it put me in mind of a new story. The anger between the two main characters and then them falling in love felt forced. If this book were a little longer and the story a little more developed, I would have liked it more.

Published by: Serial Box
Publication Date: 28 Oct 2020
Genre: Historical Fiction | Horror | Romance
Pages: 100
Date Read: 25 Sep 2020