An abandoned estate encased in stagnant darkness . . .
A haunting legacy intent on silencing all within reach . . .
In 1890, the ominous tolling of the bell announces that death has come to Traeger Hall, leaving orphaned Waverly Pembrooke to piece together the puzzle behind her uncle's and aunt's murders. Bound by the terms of her uncle's eccentric will, Waverly finds herself alone in a manor shrouded by death and questioning the reasons for her uncle's paranoia. A madness hovers over Traeger Hall, and Waverly--as well as the people of nearby Newton Creek--are ill-prepared for the woe that has descended.
In present day Newton Creek, whispers of a family curse still cling to the century-old, abandoned property of Traeger Hall. When Jennie Phillips takes possession of the estate after her mother's passing, she is intent on solving the mystery of the Traeger murders. Yet a modern cold case suggests that untimely deaths and mysterious occurrences still plague the property. And as thorny truths surface, Jennie realizes the dark legacy threatens not only the town and the Traeger descendants . . . but also, chillingly, Jennie herself.
My review:
I started reading the newest book by the queen of creepy Christian fiction on the porch of a cabin literally in the woods next to a cemetery. I recommend reading it in the comfort of your own home. :)
It took me a couple of chapters to really get into the book, but I thoroughly enjoyed it once I did. In spite of the cemetery next to my cabin.
With the exception of Wright's recent Love Inspired Suspense novels, all of Wright's novels are split time. So it can take a little while to get into the flow of bouncing between the present and the past. But Wright excels at these kind of novels.
When reading a book like this, you have two sets of characters to keep track of, both sets revolving, in this case, around Traeger Hall and the murders of the owner and his wife. I found myself liking both sets of characters, and especially Jennie, Zane, and Zane's autistic boy, Milo of the modern day set of characters......and Waverly and Titus of the past set of characters.
There was a lot happening to keep track of, but the author writes in such a way that I easily kept track of what was happening, to whom, and when. Both sets of timelines were very suspenseful with a lot of mystery...and to my surprise, romance. I don't remember Wright having much, if any, romance in most of her books, but there was romance in both sets of timelines. It wasn't gushy - I cannot imagine this author being gushy 😁 - but it was there, and definitely added to the story.
As with her other books, there were things that happened that seemed like it was ghosts/things not of this world, but Wright has a way of explaining it away that it was humans.
I did read most of the book in one sitting. It is a masterpiece of creepy suspense that kept me glued to the book. I was nearing the end, and was wondering if she was going to reach a good conclusion to both timelines and weave them together in one ending, and she did pull it off. This is truly a great read, and Wright again shows she is the queen of creepy Christian fiction, and dual timeline novels.
Special thanks to the author for an advance copy of this novel. I was under no obligation to provide a review and the thoughts contained herein are my own.
About the author:
Jaime Jo Wright, multi award-winning author--including the Christy and Daphne du Maurier awards--is a coffee-fueled and cat-fancier extraordinaire. She has entwined her life with the legendary Captain Hook, residing serenely in Wisconsin's rural woodlands. Her literary vocation involves penning chilling Gothic tales, a baffling change from that of Austenites, with a strong preference to the master of dark, Edgar Allan Poe. Two mischievous urchins adorn their family, who keep their mother on her toes - providing an exhilarating amount chaos.
Visit her at: JaimeWrightBooks.com .
