Scan barcode
A review by psellars11
A Dreadful Splendor by B.R. Myers
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is one of the best books I have read all year! It’s set in 1850s England. The protagonist, Genevieve Timmons, is one that is meant to arouse conflicting emotions / feelings. You feel sorry for her but she is cunning and resourceful and always finds a way out of trouble. I like an ambiguous characters. That’s the main pro of this book- you don’t know what characters you can and can’t trust and it keeps you on your toes the entire time.
Basically she is caught for doing fake seances across London. She is imprisoned and brought to Somerset to work for the Duke of Somorset. She steals a candle stick and is caught by the Duke. She tries to figure out who to trust. It’s hard. He is convinced that his former wife, Lady Audra was killed or foul play was at work the night she disappeared. He wants her to do a seance to try to find something out about her death and or to coerce the guilty party into coming forward.
She creeps around the estate, finding out more information including hiding in the conservatory and eavesdropping. She also cleverly befriends a servant named Daisy who gives her lots of info, they spend time together, and daisy even helps her get dressed and works as a maid for her. The home seems haunted and people keep claiming they are seeing Lady Audra. So you have to determine if this is actually a supernatural occurrence, faked, or if there is something more sinister at play.
I won’t spoil the ending but ahh this book was great. I also enjoyed a sprinkling of the diary entries written by Audra too, so it made it a compelling back and forth story. I looked forward to reading it every day and after halfway through the book, I couldn’t put it down! Definitely pick this up and give it a read if you like gothic literature, mysteries, or anything with a creepy feel!
Basically she is caught for doing fake seances across London. She is imprisoned and brought to Somerset to work for the Duke of Somorset. She steals a candle stick and is caught by the Duke. She tries to figure out who to trust. It’s hard. He is convinced that his former wife, Lady Audra was killed or foul play was at work the night she disappeared. He wants her to do a seance to try to find something out about her death and or to coerce the guilty party into coming forward.
She creeps around the estate, finding out more information including hiding in the conservatory and eavesdropping. She also cleverly befriends a servant named Daisy who gives her lots of info, they spend time together, and daisy even helps her get dressed and works as a maid for her. The home seems haunted and people keep claiming they are seeing Lady Audra. So you have to determine if this is actually a supernatural occurrence, faked, or if there is something more sinister at play.
I won’t spoil the ending but ahh this book was great. I also enjoyed a sprinkling of the diary entries written by Audra too, so it made it a compelling back and forth story. I looked forward to reading it every day and after halfway through the book, I couldn’t put it down! Definitely pick this up and give it a read if you like gothic literature, mysteries, or anything with a creepy feel!