Review: The Whitechapel Full Moon Society by Elizabeth DeLozier

The Whitechapel Full Moon SocietyThe Whitechapel Full Moon Society by Elizabeth DeLozier
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Whitechapel Full Moon Society follows Caroline Foster as she travels to London in search of her brother, Charlie. Caroline grew up in a wealthy family, but unfortunately that family unit has crumbled to nothing.

After the recent death of her father, Caroline has been left alone and the family estate sold off. Caroline’s deepest connection in the world now is with Charlie, who she’s only spent sporadic time with over the course of her life.

Following clues from his correspondence, Caroline ends up at the Whitechapel Full Moon Society, a dilapidated building currently serving as a gentleman’s boarding house.

After an appeal to the landlady, Caroline, under slightly false pretenses, is hired on as the Full Moon’s maid in exchange for room and board. She’s hoping locating Charlie after this will be easy, but we all know, nothing is ever easy.

There are very strict rules at the Full Moon, at least for Caroline. She’s not to ask the residents personal questions, or to enter the iron-barred room on the second-floor, and oh yeah, she must remain locked in her bedroom from sundown to sunup on full moon nights.

Even though to most of us, these rules may be suspicious as heck, it doesn’t phase Caroline in the slightest. When she finds no signs of Charlie though, and when she finds out that the previous maid was brutally murdered, she starts to suspect the Full Moon may be more than your average boarding house.

This novel is set in Victorian London during the time of the Jack the Ripper slayings, and those historical crimes, as well as the corresponding fear that permeated the city, play a large role in this story.

I loved the inclusion of that, and how the author wove in those historical elements, it made the story feel that much more realistic. The atmosphere was oozing off the page, and as an atmosphere girlie, that was something I truly appreciated. I could picture everything perfectly.

I was actually surprised how immersed I became in this novel. This is far from my typical read, but I was swept up into it. She’s a slow burn, it’s true, but just such an enjoyable read nevertheless.

DeLozier’s writing is very pleasing and engaging. It’s straight-forward and accessible for Readers who don’t read a lot of historical fiction, like myself. I was drawn to this because of the cover and the inclusion of the Jack the Ripper slayings, but ended up really impressed by the full package.

Thank you to the publisher, Dutton, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’d definitely be interested in pick up DeLozier’s future works!

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Review: And the Sea Gave Up the Dead by William Friend

And the Sea Gave Up the DeadAnd the Sea Gave Up the Dead by William Friend
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

And the Sea Gave Up the Dead follows a woman, Morwenna, and her family, as they travel to France to visit her Aunt Bethan on holiday.

Morwenna has been putting off visiting Aunt Bethan for way too long, and she’s starting to feel really guilty about it. Her aging Aunt just seems to be wasting away in the family chateau by the French seaside. Ever since her Uncle mysteriously disappeared, Bethan has lost her spark.

Packing up her new husband, Christian, and two sons, Jamie and Louis, the family heads out. It’ll be good for them, and it’ll be good for Morwenna to get eyes on Bethan, to assess her mental and physical health.

We follow the family as they arrive at the chateau and the boys get to meet their eccentric Great Aunt and tour the property. From the very start, Friend does an incredible job building up the atmosphere and uncertainty at this chateau.

Morwenna is an interesting character. She’s had a lot of personal loss, and she also had a difficult time helping her own Mom through dementia. Because of that, she’s extra sensitive to Bethan’s every move, which is relatable.

This fact though also makes you wonder how much you can trust Morwenna’s perspective. Is she overly sensitive? Is she seeing issues where there aren’t any?

I liked that. Unreliable narrators are something I do tend to enjoy, and though I wouldn’t classify her as a full-on unreliable narrator, there’s an air about her, that makes your mind go, really, Morwenna? Are you sure?

I also loved how Friend kept me guessing. As I was reading, I had no idea what direction we were heading in. Was it a haunted house, or maybe a possession situation?

In a way, Friend’s writing feels heavy. There’s an ominous feeling drenching every moment. In addition to Morwenna’s perspective, we also get the perspectives of her two young sons, Jamie and Louis. I thought Friend did a fantastic job showing the fear these boys experienced in this house.

The descriptions, and their thought-processes through these nail-biting moments, felt so realistic to me. Even though there is a lot of creepiness in this story however, you do need to have patience with it, not gonna lie.

At times it felt like it was taking forever to get anywhere, but at the same time, I was really eating up the building suspense and unpredictability.

As the conclusion approached, I actually felt fear for this family. I feel like because we’d taken our time getting there, I felt like I knew them, and I did start to care for them. Especially the boys.

This is one of those books where my first thoughts upon completion was, what the frick did I just read? My brain hurt (in a good way). That last 20%, what in actual…

I really liked it though. It was unexpected. There was so much going on, and all the moving pieces, I felt like Friend was pulling off some major slight of hand. I’d be looking one way, and something would happen just outside my peripheral vision to knock me off-center.

It was unsettling, and I think I’m going to be scratching my head about this conclusion for quite some time to come. I would recommend this for Horror Readers who don’t mind a slow burn, and who love an unsettling atmosphere.

Thank you to the publisher, Poisoned Pen Press, for providing me with a copy to read and review. A fantastic Sophomore Showing from William Friend.

I look forward to more!

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Review: Dark Is When the Devil Comes by Daisy Pearce

Dark Is When the Devil ComesDark Is When the Devil Comes by Daisy Pearce
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

Dark Is When the Devil Comes is a story of estranged sisters, Hazel and Cathy. The two had a falling out years ago over an incident that occurred at Hazel’s wedding.

Years later, and recently divorced, Hazel returns to her small hometown of Idless, in the English countryside, to lick her wounds and hopefully recover.

Her parents are heading out on a 5-week holiday, so she offers to stay at theirs and sit for her Mom’s beloved Persian cats. It feels strange, but it is home and she can think of no better place to hide out and get her life back in order.

Cathy has mixed feelings about Hazel’s return, but agrees to meet up with her. Perhaps reconciliation is possible. But on the day they’ve selected to meet, Hazel doesn’t show.

Though Cathy didn’t expect everything to be glossed over right away, she certainly didn’t expect Hazel to ghost her. If she’s honest about it though, that type of behavior is out of character for Hazel. Something is off.

Along with another local woman, Suzi, who was childhood friends with Hazel, Cathy begins a relentless search for her sister. Even though they haven’t been close in recent years, she’s still family and Cathy cannot give up on her.

The desperation is palpable.

I’m a huge Daisy Pearce fan. What can I say? This was so freaking fun for me, made all the more compelling by the stellar audiobook narration.

I know her books aren’t for everyone, but they definitely work for me. I first fell in love with her writing in Something in the Walls. I felt that story to be chilling and gripping. I read it so quickly and couldn’t wait for more from Pearce.

This novel, though I rated it the same at 4.5-stars, I actually think I enjoyed even more.

In addition to following Cathy in her hunt for Hazel, we also get Hazel’s perspective. So, as the Reader, you know where she is, in a sense, and you know what’s happening to her.

I loved the back-and-forth. Both perspectives were intense, with both women being forced to face very trying circumstances. I also really enjoyed the inclusion of Suzi. I think she made the story so much more engaging than had it just been Cathy investigating by herself.

I don’t know how else to adequately explain why I enjoy Pearce’s writing so much, it’s just something about the plotting mixed with the darker, unsettling atmospheres that really does it for me.

The atmosphere, as well as the way the tension continues to build throughout, reminds me of Jennifer McMahon or Sarah Pinborough, two of my go-to authors.

I think if you’ve enjoyed their books, you should check out Daisy Pearce, if you haven’t already. I would also highly recommend the audiobook, as the narration by Catrin Walker-Booth is excellent. Her voice felt so genuine and true to the story. It was very enjoyable.

Thank you to the publisher, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. I cannot wait for whatever Daisy Pearce releases next.

You better believe I’ll be first in line!

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Review: The Ghost Women by Jennifer Murphy

The Ghost WomenThe Ghost Women by Jennifer Murphy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Ghost Women is an atmospheric blend of Dark Academia, Police Procedural and Occult Horror, all in a believable historical setting. I had no idea what to expect going into this, having never read from Jennifer Murphy before, and man, was I impressed.

Our story kicks off on a hot Summer morning in 1972, when the body of Abel Montague, a wealthy student at St. Luke’s Institute for the Arts, is found hanging upside down from a tree in the forest abutting the school.

In his back pocket, a tarot card, and you guessed it, it’s The Hanged Man. Upon examination, it’s clear that his body has been arranged in the exact pose as the man on the card.

Detective Lola Germany is the investigator in charge of Abel’s murder and we do get her perspective throughout the novel. She’s originally from the area, and ended up being my favorite character.

As she starts her investigation, interviewing students and the school administration, Lola meets Abel’s live-in girlfriend, Pearl. It’s clear Pearl is not just upset about Abel’s death, she’s hiding something.

Lola’s digging takes her further into Pearl and Abel’s world, and brings her into contact with Pearl’s group of girlfriends. They’re all a little quirky and do consider themselves a coven of witches.

They’ve also openly been using the tarot. Could the coven be involved in Abel’s murder? Perhaps helping Pearl, if Abel has crossed her in some way?

But soon more people are found dead. Again, their bodies arranged to match a tarot card left at the scene. Lola realizes these ritualistic killings could be connected to something much larger, and older, than she’d initially expected.

I ended up enjoying this story so much. More than I thought I would, actually. I loved the 1972-setting and the location being in the Lowcountry of South Carolina.

It does have Dark Academia vibes, being set at a secluded private art school, and that’s not always my jam, but having the perspective of Detective Lola looking into the mysterious murders definitely helped for my personal tastes.

I thought the mystery was also very intriguing. The incorporation of the tarot cards into the murders was fun and only added to the atmosphere. I liked the occult feel it brought to the story.

Additionally, Murphy’s writing was just great. It was so fluid and compelling. I’m surprised more people aren’t talking about this one. I need more people to read it.

My only minor issues were some of the perspectives, of the young ladies at the school, I did have a little bit of trouble differentiating amongst them. That could have been totally the headspace I was in at the time of reading it though. So take that with a grain of salt.

Thank you to the publisher, Dutton, for providing me a copy to read and review. I’m very happy to have been introduced to this author; looking forward to more!

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Review: A Penance for Crows by Shannon Morgan

A Penance for CrowsA Penance for Crows by Shannon Morgan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

A Penance for Crows is a modern Gothic Horror novel that feels like it’s been torn from the past. The novel takes place on the Irish island of Beanna Dubh, set off the Southern tip of the Beara Peninsula. The community is quite insular. They like to keep to themselves.

In fact, there are many on the island who have never even been to the mainland. Untouched by modern technology, the islanders live under strict rule of the church.

As a people, they adhere to many superstitions. The island is also home to thousands of crows, so that fact only enhances those creepy vibes, with the islanders believing the crows are harbingers of coming disaster.

Our MC, Grizela, fled to the island 40-years ago, leaving her native-Glasgow, and her unsettling past well behind her. Though Grizela has been on the island for decades, she’s still considered an outsider by many.

She has been able to forge some strong connections with the young folks on the island though, who she treats as her own. Many of them confide in her things they wouldn’t trust telling their parents, or other elders.

Our action kicks off when Grizela discovers the dead body of the island’s young priest with a diabolical symbol drawn on his chest. Crows darken the sky, and Grizela fears there’s a different kind of darkness now among them.

As the mysterious symbols continue popping up randomly, and more residents meet terrible ends, the islanders’ suspicious fall on Grizela. She’s the outsider, after all.

Mass hysteria quickly takes over and Grizela is scrambling to prove her innocence. During her investigations into these disturbing happenings, she begins to learn new, and startling, information about a group of young women she has previously taken under her wings.

If you follow my reviews at all, you may know that I’m an Atmosphere Girlie through and through. I read to escape, and I particularly love remote settings with an overriding ominous air about them. IMO, this novel delivered that to me exactly as I wanted.

I was so invested in A Penance for Crows. This Occult Horror novel with strong Gothic atmosphere swept me up in the drama of the small island of Beanna Dubh.

I loved the MC, Grizela, who is in her early-60s, which in and of itself was refreshing. I also related to her experience on the island, as far as ‘being from away’ and no matter how long she’s there, she’s still considered an outsider. As an island girl myself, I get it.

Morgan created a great cast of characters in this noveal and the intrigue is excellent. Things keep happening and there’s an awesome feeling of ‘is it supernatural, is it not supernatural’ about it that I always appreciate it.

There were so many twists and turns, and as soon as I thought I knew who, or what, was behind all the mysterious happenings on the island, something new would occur that would blow my theory out of the water.

I loved the Occult elements that Morgan included. I feel like those made the novel so much more beguiling. That type of element rarely gets executed like it was here, in a fully believable, non-cheesy, way and I was living for it.

I highly recommend this to any Gothic, or Atmosphere, Girlies in the crowd. If you’re looking for that atmosphere, this is absolutely going to deliver it to you.

Thank you to the publisher, Kensington, for providing me a copy to read and review. I’m so impressed by this and cannot wait to read more from Shannon Morgan. I really hope she stays in this lane, because it’s fabulous!

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Review: The Season of Sinking by Daphne Woolsoncroft

The Season of SinkingThe Season of Sinking by Daphne Woolsoncroft
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

The Season of Sinking is the latest release from Daphne Woolsoncroft, author of the gripping 2025-Thriller, Night Watcher. This novel features one of my favorite tropes, where an MC returns to their hometown after a long time away and ends up investigating some sort of mystery.

In this story, we’re actually following twin sisters, Imogen and Amelia. The women return to their small hometown of Blair, Washington, after their mother suddenly passes.

They return to pack up her house and settle the estate, but Imogen is bothered by the circumstances of her death, and believes foul play could be possible.

The details of the night her mother died, they just don’t make sense to Imogen, and she can’t quite let it rest. Additionally, strange things start happening around the house, and that along with her Mom’s mysterious death, having Imogen’s spidey senses pinging off like crazy.

With the help of the cute boy next door, Rory, Imogen begins digging deeper into what happened to her Mom. There are also some other black spots in Imogen’s memory regarding her past, and she starts digging around there too.

We do get Amelia’s perspective as well, but Imogen is definitely the driving force behind this narrative. She’s unsettled by everything going on, and definitely takes a very active role trying to clear up her questions.

As many of us know, sometimes it’s best to leave the past in the past, but also, sometimes it comes to get you whether you’re ready or not. Imogen may get her answers, but at what costs?

After really enjoying Woolsoncroft’s last novel, Night Watcher, I was excited to get to this one, and though it wasn’t quite as successful for me as her 1st-novel was, I still feel it was quite entertaining and well-written.

Night Watcher played into some of my own personal fears, and I did love the podcast element of that one. This one though was still intriguing. I like how Woolsoncroft builds up the tension in her stories, and the way she reveals different layers to her mysteries.

I also loved the Pacific Northwest setting. This one is set on a lake, and the landscape and place felt like such a pivotal part to the story. It was easy to envision and I felt like the mood of the place was a good match for the story being told.

Overall, though this wasn’t the strongest fit for me as far as the content went, I still think it’s a great read. The characters are fantastic, particularly Imogen, and the writing is fluid and engaging.

I would definitely recommend this to Mystery Thriller fans, particularly if you like atmospheric stories with characters digging into their own pasts. I think this is a great pick for Summer reading as well; easily consumable in a weekend, or while you’re on vacation.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Grand Central Publishing, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’m excited to see what Woolsoncroft writes next!

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Review: The Someday Garden by Ashley Poston

The Someday GardenThe Someday Garden by Ashley Poston
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Someday Garden follows Sophie Drear, who gets hired for the Summer to be the new Head Gardner at the captivating Lilymoor House. This enchanting property on the coast of Maine is one Sophie has been familiar with for years.

When Sophie’s job at the New York Botanical Garden starts to feel stale, and she’s offered the chance to work at Lilymoor for the Summer, she feels compelled to accept.

Lilymoor is just as lush and enchanting as she remembered, but the grounds are also in need of some TLC. It’s not just her staying at the property either, there’s a couple other staff members and the vibrant older woman who owns it.

As Sophie settles in, she feels renewed by the magical property. She can breath again, and she starts to really care about the future of Lilymoor and all who reside there.

The most fascinating aspect for Sophie is the door that appears, seemingly at random, allowing her to enter a secret garden. Within the secret garden is a handsome and mysterious man, seemingly trapped within its walls.

I don’t feel like I’m doing a great job summarizing what you’ll find within these pages, but honestly, it’s a difficult one to try and describe. What I can tell you is how magical and emotional this story is. Poston certainly knows how to squeeze your heart to within an inch of its life.

Poston is the only author who consistently makes me cry, and I love her for it. The way she examines different kinds of love, not just romantic love, feels so special to me.

This is such a gorgeous novel. I was swept away to the Coast of Maine, an area I’m very familiar with, and absolutely came to adore everything about Lilymoor House and its quirky group of residents.

The Someday Garden has many different aspects to enjoy, but for me the emotional progression Sophie experiences during her time at Lilymoor truly stands out.

Prior to her arrival, she’s suffered a terrible personal loss, and I feel like we got to see all aspects of her grief and self-discovery. The way Poston explored such a sensitive and relatable experience as grief, I cannot praise it enough. There’s such care and grace in the way she tackles these types of topics. No one does it better.

I also feel like Poston has such a unique and magical sense of Contemporary storytelling. The tone she sets and the ability to pull a Reader in, it gets me every time. On the surface, this might not seem like my kind of book, but it certainly turned out to be. This now lives in my heart rent free.

I would definitely recommend this to Contemporary Romance Readers, particularly those who enjoy Magical Realism within their stories, or anyone who has enjoyed Ashley Poston’s work in the past. This is right up there with The Dead Romantics and The Seven Year Slip for me.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with copy to read and review. I cannot wait to see what Poston comes up with next. Her creativity knows no bounds!

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Review: The Hive by Ronald Malfi

The HiveThe Hive by Ronald Malfi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Towers, and dragons, and wheels, oh my!

A town collectively losing their mind, mentally telepathy and more. This novel felt like an ode to all things King, but also felt like quintessential Ronald Malfi.

This novel is a monster, coming in at over 600-pages, it fully classifies as a tome. We’re following basically the entire town of Mariner’s Cove in the aftermath of a terrible storm.

Residents of the town begin acting strangely, becoming obsessed with seemingly random objects. There seems to be a different item for each person, and each person becomes fixated on finding and collecting their particular object.

There’s also a young boy in town who has a certain, let’s call it, extrasensory power, that helps him to see all these events a little differently than everyone else, but it also draws the others attentions to him.

Yeah, I don’t know what else to say about the plot. I feel like that’s all you really need to know. The scope is large, the concepts are larger and it takes some wild turns.

To me, this was giving heavy The Tommyknockers meets Needful Things and I was into it. There’s so much to keep track of, but even if you miss some finer details, the larger picture is still fairly easy to track, so don’t be scared.

The audiobook is great, so I would recommend that format as a way to help you make it through this epic story. I read both my e-copy and the audio over the course of a week, and I actually feel like I felt more connected to it when I was listening to the audio version.

While this isn’t my favorite of Malfi’s stories, I still really enjoyed it and am so impressed that he pulled this off. There’s so much content here and I’d love to hear him speak to what his inspirations were for writing this.

I’m a huge Ronald Malfi fan. IMO, he’s one of the best voices writing in Horror Fiction today. I’ve had so much fun with so many of his books and will continue to pick them up as long as he keeps writing them.

If you’ve never read from Ronald Malfi before, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend starting here, but for regular Malfi Readers, it’s a must. With this being said though, this is definitely worth reading, especially if you want something a little out of the box.

Thank you to the publisher, Titan Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I can’t wait to see what Malfi comes up with next!

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Review: Night Shoot by David Sodergren

Night ShootNight Shoot by David Sodergren
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Night Shoot was independently published back in 2019, and I’ve owned a paperback copy ever since. For some reason unknown to man, I’ve yet to pick it up though.

When I saw that Tantor, aka. RB Media, was releasing an audio copy, it’s first time in audiobook format, I was elated. It was finally time to pick up this stunning Horror novel that’s been haunting my shelves for almost a decade.

In this story, we follow a group of student filmmakers trying to complete a project for Uni. The setting of the film will be the remote Crawford Manor estate, which is owned by the Uncle of one of the students.

They’re given rules at the start. Certain places within the home that are off limits and a strict directive to depart by 8 p.m., but after their lead actress quits, throwing off their schedule, they feel like they’ve accomplished nothing by the time they’re supposed to be wrapping up. Nevertheless, they do leave the premises; for now.

After leaving, the group has a deep chat and decides an impromptu night shoot is a must if they’re to have any hope of completing the project. Thus, they proceed to break back into the property to continue filming. Who in the crowd thinks that’s a smart decision?

As one would imagine, things start going to pot pretty quickly. It’s clear they’re not alone within the Manor, but they could never imagine how brutal and twisted their night would become.

Y’all, this was so fun. It’s like the ghastly Horror movies of my youth. I loved how Sodergren channeled all those f*ed up vibes here. This felt like a film brought to life on the page. I could picture everything, it had all the classic stereotypical characters and compelling set-up.

I thought the audiobook was great as well. The narrator successfully brought great energy to the characters as the intensity continued to build. It got fairly disgusting towards the end, NGL. My toes are still curling. I had a blast!

This is not for the weak-stomached, anyone unaccustomed to gore, or anyone wanting to try Horror for the first time. Maybe you want to dip your toes into that Horror pool, but trust me, Sodergren is looking to shove you in the deep end.

For anyone who loves Horror films though, particularly those released in the 70s and 80s, this is a must read. You’ll feel like you’ve been transported back to your younger days. The days of copious blood, guts and final girls.

Thank you so much to the publisher of the new audiobook, Tantor Media, for providing me with a copy to listen to. This was great and I can’t wait to read more from D. Sodergren!

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Review: Spoiled Milk by Avery Curran

Spoiled MilkSpoiled Milk by Avery Curran
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Spoiled Milk is a engaging Gothic Horror novel set in 1928 at the Briarley School for Girls. Our MC is Emily, and we follow her and a group of her friends after one of them, Violet, plunges to her death following her birthday celebration.

Emily and her rival, Evelyn, are in agreement that Violet’s death was no accident. They believe she was pushed purposefully and they have a particular suspect in mind.

They believe the French Schoolmistress, to whom Violet had recently become quite attached, is the one to blame, but how can they prove it?

Violet was the sun in Emily’s sky, she would do anything for her, living or dead. No matter what it takes, she’s going to prove Emily was done dirty. Let the investigation begin.

This isn’t your standard murder mystery, however, as the ladies turn to more unconventional methods to get the answers they seek. They turn to spiritualism, and even invoke the help of local medium to assist them.

To their great surprise, they’re actually able to summon Violet’s spirit, who chooses Evelyn as her host to convey her important message: the danger has just begun.

An evil presence is infecting Briarley and its grounds. It starts with simple things like rotten apples and spoiled milk, but soon escalates to much more dangerous levels.

As the body count rises, and students begin to get plucked from the school by worried parents, Emily, Evelyn, and their friends, must double-down their efforts if they wish to defeat that which haunts them.

I was so pleasantly surprised by Spoiled Milk. I loved all the occult elements and the overall tone of this private school story. Even though I have a hard copy, I ended up listening to the audiobook and highly recommend that format.

The narration by Charlotte Ryder fit the story perfectly. Her accent and delivery sold me on Emily’s character and made the story feel believable and realistic.

I always tend to love private school stories, and this had just the right amount of school elements to help build out that backdrop. The young women we follow are on the cusp of adulthood, and this does focus a bit on that as they explore things like identity and sexuality.

It definitely went deeper into the occult and supernatural than I was expecting and I loved it all within the historical context. I’m hoping Avery Curran stays in this lane. I’d love more stories like this.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys lush, historically-set Horror novels, or stories with seances and the like. Additionally, those seeking Sapphic representation could enjoy this as well. I’m looking forward to more from this author.

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