A review by chardavidson
The Animals at Lockwood Manor by Jane Healey

mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

I liked parts of this book. Certainly the exposition is entertaining, and the given circumstances are creepy. But I think the author relies on these things too much, focusing on what we already know is there, like the little beady eyes of the animals in the manor. Little beady eyes can only go so far, when you’ve mentioned them over and over. They lose their creepiness after that... and the book loses it’s subtlety. To me, this book tries too hard to be a ghost story or a gothic novel when I often felt the author leaning towards love. That’s not a surprise, as she mentions in the description a narrative of love, but with it is her promise of a gothic novel. I think she would have done better to write what she really wanted to write, some gorgeous LGBTQ+ historical fiction.
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