A review by joecam79
Strange Fascination by Syd Moore

3.0

3.5*

Strange Fascination brings to a close Syd Moore’s“Essex Witch Museum” trilogy. The overarching story which links the three novels features as protagonist Rosie Strange, a sceptical, feisty benefit fraud inspector who unexpectedly inherits from her grandfather Septimus the eponymous witch museum in the small village of Adders Fork. This strange (ahem) legacy will lead Rosie to discover long-buried secrets related to her family and to rethink her ideas about the supernatural. Each of the instalments in the trilogy also sees Rosie and the museum's curator Sam Stone ending up embroiled in a criminal investigation with occult overtones. In "Strange Fascination", the 'mystery' revolves around the Blackly Be boulder, said to mark the final resting place of a notorious witch. Against the villagers' better judgment, developers try to move the boulder, leading to a flurry of otherworldly phenomena. And a very real murder.

I had enjoyed reading [b:Strange Sight|33376822|Strange Sight (Essex Witches, #2)|Syd Moore|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1489119429s/33376822.jpg|54117884] - the trilogy's second volume - and had particularly liked the well-judged balance between ingredients of supernatural fiction and the "whodunnit". In comparison, I found this instalment rather disappointing. I felt that the action took rather longer to take off, and whilst Rosie's narrative voice is as witty and endearing as ever, the constant attempt at humour drains the tension out of what could have been genuinely scary episodes. This was less evident in the previous novel, whose emphasis was more on the "crime" than on the "supernatural" element.

On the other hand, this novel cannot be fairly considered on its own, but is best assessed in the light of its predecessors. In this regard, Strange Fascination is undoubtedly effective. It teases out the secrets and enigmas of Rosie's ancestors and, thanks to some imaginative plotting, ties up all the loose ends and red herrings planted in the previous novels. Lovers of history and folklore will also enjoy the references to history of witchcraft and folk beliefs, subtly woven into plot.