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The Lady in White: A Tale Set in Rochester, New York
In the fall of 2015, PhD candidate Jason Green made his way to the decrepit Hotel Celeste hoping to conduct an interview of disgraced historian Richard Dawdson, an academic with once unlimited prospects who had disappeared from the tenure track with enough drama to have become an urban legend himself within the department. The conversation that followed would not be cited in any dissertation, but here, for your consideration, is the tale Dr. Dawdson told that evening. This is her story.
310 pages, Paperback
Published March 2, 2023
19 people are currently reading
51 people want to read
About the author
Zachary Finn
7 books21 followersZachary Finn is a lover of all things history and horror. He currently resides in central NY with his dog, Princess Piper, his wife, Natalie, and the memory of his first four-legged companion, Bruce. When he's not working as a research historian or writing, you can typically find him somewhere lost in the woods, wandering through an old cemetery, or trying to improve his jab.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 7, 2023
3.5 stars, rounded up
Within this book are two stories - one, a wonderful retelling of the myth of the Lady in White, a Rochester myth of a mother spending the rest of her days (living, and otherwise) wandering the shores of Lake Ontario searching for her missing daughter. Finn takes liberties with the myth here to a satisfying payoff. Partly a tale of revenge, partly the story of the bond between mother and daughter, Finn's adaptation has a satisfying ending (or, as much of a satisfying end as one can with these sorts of tales.)
The second story is one of PhD student tracking down a disgraced academic whose work on where spirituality and physics meet was inspirational to said student. However, the break in these stories is so long, it's hard to keep track of characters, of what happened at the beginning, and how it relates to the story down the road. The ending to this story is not nearly as satisfying, and instead, I am left wondering if I should care about Green and if his presence was necessary in the book at all.
I think the pacing of the book is disjointed, and I longed for more of the memories Mary had of her mother, for more meat in the story of their relationship. I wanted more to hold on to there because Mary is a very compelling character and her mother is the source of the myth that has lasted however many years. The last 4 sentences, I will say though, are perfect.
On the whole, the myth retelling is good, but I'm not completely sold on the framing device used to tell it.
Thanks very much to the team at Vulpine Press for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Within this book are two stories - one, a wonderful retelling of the myth of the Lady in White, a Rochester myth of a mother spending the rest of her days (living, and otherwise) wandering the shores of Lake Ontario searching for her missing daughter. Finn takes liberties with the myth here to a satisfying payoff. Partly a tale of revenge, partly the story of the bond between mother and daughter, Finn's adaptation has a satisfying ending (or, as much of a satisfying end as one can with these sorts of tales.)
The second story is one of PhD student tracking down a disgraced academic whose work on where spirituality and physics meet was inspirational to said student. However, the break in these stories is so long, it's hard to keep track of characters, of what happened at the beginning, and how it relates to the story down the road. The ending to this story is not nearly as satisfying, and instead, I am left wondering if I should care about Green and if his presence was necessary in the book at all.
I think the pacing of the book is disjointed, and I longed for more of the memories Mary had of her mother, for more meat in the story of their relationship. I wanted more to hold on to there because Mary is a very compelling character and her mother is the source of the myth that has lasted however many years. The last 4 sentences, I will say though, are perfect.
On the whole, the myth retelling is good, but I'm not completely sold on the framing device used to tell it.
Thanks very much to the team at Vulpine Press for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
September 27, 2025
There are moments in this book that are genuinely gripping, with vividly written horror scenes that pull you in and keep you turning the pages. Finn clearly has imagination and a knack for atmosphere.
That said, the novel struggles with balance and pacing. Certain sections drone on with excessive description, slowing the momentum considerably. The “ice burial” sequence in particular felt overly long and mundane, and some similes were used so frequently that they lost their impact.
The biggest distraction, however, was the number of typos and inconsistencies. Names are interchanged (Alfred/Albert, Samuel/Robert, Matthias/Mattias), Livingston and Livingstone appear as different spellings, and the word “save” is noticeably overused. Even the presence of dogs felt oddly misplaced in the narrative.
Overall, the story is interesting and shows promise, but the technical errors make it a frustrating read. With a strong editor or publisher to tighten the prose and catch mistakes, Zachary Finn’s talent could really shine.
That said, the novel struggles with balance and pacing. Certain sections drone on with excessive description, slowing the momentum considerably. The “ice burial” sequence in particular felt overly long and mundane, and some similes were used so frequently that they lost their impact.
The biggest distraction, however, was the number of typos and inconsistencies. Names are interchanged (Alfred/Albert, Samuel/Robert, Matthias/Mattias), Livingston and Livingstone appear as different spellings, and the word “save” is noticeably overused. Even the presence of dogs felt oddly misplaced in the narrative.
Overall, the story is interesting and shows promise, but the technical errors make it a frustrating read. With a strong editor or publisher to tighten the prose and catch mistakes, Zachary Finn’s talent could really shine.
October 13, 2025
3.5 🌟
As a born & raised Rochestarian who grew up a handful of houses into west Irondequoit on the same road as the White Lady's Castle, this book was a must have for me.
It was very much giving Lovecraftian- funny the author mentions that twice in the end when I had picked up the vibe with honestly the very first haunting aspect. Love to see it.
This book probably would have been four stars, but the honest to gods terrible amount of typos, name mix-ups and sometimes poor sentence structure made this one a little slow to get through.
If you're local to this area, I'd recommend this despite that anyways. It was a fun new take on the legend I'm suuuper familiar with and made my inner spooky child/teen and even adult self very happy to read.
As a born & raised Rochestarian who grew up a handful of houses into west Irondequoit on the same road as the White Lady's Castle, this book was a must have for me.
It was very much giving Lovecraftian- funny the author mentions that twice in the end when I had picked up the vibe with honestly the very first haunting aspect. Love to see it.
This book probably would have been four stars, but the honest to gods terrible amount of typos, name mix-ups and sometimes poor sentence structure made this one a little slow to get through.
If you're local to this area, I'd recommend this despite that anyways. It was a fun new take on the legend I'm suuuper familiar with and made my inner spooky child/teen and even adult self very happy to read.
March 8, 2023
Reading this book was an absolute delight! Not only is the story expertly crafted with a captivating plot, but its unique characters make it truly special. Unsurprisingly, I found myself so enraptured by all of these elements - if you're looking for a fun and engaging read, look no further than this delightful tale!
March 26, 2023
I love this story! Local folklore and a scary ghost story that will make you turn on extra lights, what more could you want? The author’s writing keeps the reader engaged throughout and you feel pulled to continue…or is that the pull of The Lady in White? You can decide for yourself.
If you are a lover of ghost stories, historical fiction, or folklore, this one is for you!
If you are a lover of ghost stories, historical fiction, or folklore, this one is for you!
June 3, 2024
I met this author at a Barnes and Noble where he was doing a book signing in November of 2023. I absolutely loved this version of this local lore for Rochester NY and Ontario lake. He brought a different version to this tale and I genuinely enjoyed it and can see the images he created.
October 6, 2023
amazing
This book was amazing. I stayed up all night to finish it I definitely recommend it to anyone who is interested in local folklore
This book was amazing. I stayed up all night to finish it I definitely recommend it to anyone who is interested in local folklore
May 27, 2025
2.5 stars- the whole story felt meh to me
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews