Author: Caitlin Starling
Started: Sep. 25, 2021
Finished: Oct. 5, 2021
Thanks to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Jane Shoringfield wants a marriage in name only. She hopes to pursue her own purposes while not having to rely on her benefactors. She convinces Dr. Augustine Lawrence that marriage is essentially a business relationship and he agrees to their unorthodox marriage under one condition: she must never visit Lindridge Hall., his decrepit family home. On their wedding night, after an accident strands her there, she begins to see why he doesn't want her there. Jane finds herself exploring a world of ghosts and magic that she never thought existed.
I am new to gothic horror but this cover and the premise immediately grabbed my attention. I loved how each character had such interesting theories on magic and whether they believed it to be real. Also, Lindridge Hall is a character all on its own - just the way in which it is described leads the reader to imagine the darkest and scariest mansion possible. Towards the last 20% of the story, it felt like the author went a little left-field but she managed to bring it all together for an exciting ending. Thanks to Caitlin Starling for introducing me to gothic horror - I will definitely be reading more.