A Dark, Cold Touch: A Gothic Romance

by Megan E. Hart

The position of lady’s companion at the grand, isolated Hemford House was meant to save Estelle Glass from the scandal of her own making. But when she arrived at the mansion and was greeted by the stern, mysterious and intimidating Mrs. Blackwell, Estelle began to see what had been meant as a punishment might possibly become more like a reward…if only she could manage to find her place in the dreary household and the service of Mrs. Virginia Hemford, the childlike beauty Estelle had been sent to serve.

Soon the secrets of Hemford House begin to reveal themselves, one by one, as Estelle tries her best to take care of Ginny and avoid her confusing feelings for the intimidating Mrs. Blackwell. Estelle finds herself caught up in a web of rules designed to keep Ginny “safe”…but safe from what, exactly?

Or from whom?

What accident claimed the life of Ginny’s previous companion? Why does Mr. Hemford avoid his wife’s company, no matter how charmingly she tries, and fails, to seduce him? And who’s reaching to take Estelle’s hand in the night with that dark, cold touch?

Only when Estelle learns the deadly secret everyone at Hemford House has been keeping can she truly understand what it means to take care of Ginny Hemford…or to be cared for by Rachel Blackwell. Can the women of Hemford House escape the hauntings of its ghosts, or will the past consume them all?

Genres: Romance, Historical, Gothic, Horror, LGBT, Fiction

143 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 27, 2023

Reviews

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Esther-turned-Estelle moves from Brooklyn to Colorado to be a lady's companion to a spoiled wife, and to escape from potential scandal in her cloistered Jewish community. But life at Hemford House isn't at all what it seems—her companion, Virginia Hemford, is kept weak and sedated and odd, and there is something wicked and tempting about the housekeeper, the rigid Mrs. Blackwell...

"Are there any kind of victims," Rachel said with a low laugh, "that are willing?"

Don't be alarmed by that low GR rating!

This might be short, the plot might be fast, but this novella/short novel does everything it needs to do with the brief space it has. It nails the Gothic vibes, the slow creepy build and weird relationships, the characters don't feel super cardboardy, and it has enough pulp sensationalism to have me sitting up and adjusting my glasses (and hiding my kindle, since I was reading in animal urgent care—my pet is fine, just a nasty UTI).

Anywho, I really enjoyed this story, and appreciated how it pulled so heavily on lesbian pulps and Gothic romances, while giving its leads a happy ending (well, for some).

Creepiness, murder, mayhem, a semi-erotic use of a hairbrush, and some really nice body positivity for the win!

"Your body ought to be the most pleasing to yourself, not anyone else."

[lauraღ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once more the stern, forbidding and emotionless housekeeper replaced every semblance of the woman she’d been only moments before.
But I had seen the woman she could be, and I knew I would never be able to forget it.

I honestly wanted a bit more out of this sapphic gothic historical, but I'm not disappointed with what we got. If that makes sense. It's just a novella, and with the plot we got, it's probably best suited to be a novella. But I still wanted to see more of these characters. There was great atmosphere, a little mystery and intrigue, lots of gothic vibes, and it was delicious and sexy and a little unhinged.

After a scandal in her Brooklyn community, Esther is sent off to be a companion to a wealthy woman in the countryside. It's the years leading up to WWII, and she has to keep her Jewish identity, as well as her inclinations, secret. She's soon caught up in the whirlwind of the complicated dynamics of the house: the spoiled, flighty, but sweet and beautiful mistress of the house, Ginny; and the cold, stern but deeply alluring housekeeper, Mrs. Blackwell. This book flew by in a blink, but it was always tense and propulsive and atmospheric. I loved the twisty relationship dynamics, and the slow burn mystery behind the history of the house. Admittedly, when that mystery was revealed... eh, not my favourite. But the overall story, even though it didn't have that many surprises, was a little weird in an appealing way. Unhinged sapphics, hell yeah.

"Surprise, Ginny killed her siblings when she was a child" was kind of weak as a reveal to me. I wish it had been... idk, something more connected with the characters and the house. Or that we'd had more insight into Ginny's life and past before we got that reveal. Also, Ginny being all manipulative and jealous at the end... again, not the most interesting thing to me. BUT I did kind of like it, because it did put a different spin on the discipline and spanking, knowing that she used to deliberately seek out punishment from Rachel. Girl... LMAO. Kinda sad that she died, but let's be real, it wouldn't have been a gothic novel if she didn't.

The romance between Esther and Rachel/Mrs. Blackwell didn't get as much page time as I'd have liked, but I really enjoyed it nonetheless. Love a little age gap. Kinda wish they'd had more opportunities to connect over their shared faith/culture.

Listened to the audiobook as read by Avery Caris; REALLY liked her voice and her rendition of the characters. This was a really solid read; I'm kinda itching for more books exactly like it.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has a bad rating on goodreads I just finished it and read it and man was it good!

The mc is a Jewish girl sent away because her mother didn’t like what she had done in the past so she ran away to work as a lady’s companion for a isolated home in the moors called Hemford House. This book screams gothic all the way. It’s got the vibes and the descriptions you can imagine in your mind as you read, there she meets the lady of the house and like the one that’s in charge so there’s a woman who’s like married but her husband doesn’t care for her who’s looking for a lady’s companion.

Mc is named Estelle and she meets like the woman in charge of the house mrs blackwell who becomes intimidating to a Estelle. She works to be the lady’s companion to Virginia Hemford. She ends up falling in love with both but more for mrs blackwell. She ends up in like a web of rules and does things with both women.

There are ghostly encounters within the house she sees someone or feels someone touch her at night. She ends up learning deadly secrets about everyone in the house.

This book is sapphic so if you like it I would suggest to read this. It’s got spice, love. A hea in a way that it’s got good and bad in the end.

I loved it and I read it so fast. It was good!!

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has promise but needed like, 30 more pages and another look through from an editor. Just needed more depth from the characters.

[J Kuria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Protag was tewww horny.

Felt very much like YA but with the characters aged up, in name only, to facilitate said horniness.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this while randomly looking for a new audiobook to listen to on Everand. I wasn't sure what to expect going in, and I came out pleasantly surprised.

While I wasn't particularly moved by the atmosphere this book tries to set up, I loved reading about Esther/Estelle's relationship with Ginny. In my opinion, it was the best part of the book.

I wish this book were a little longer, as the ending wrapped up much too quickly, but I'm not terribly bothered by it.

I wouldn't go into this book expecting the best of the best gothic romance, but it's still a fun read and worth it if you're looking for a sapphic, gothic book.

[SplatterGunk · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book. This book could even have been a bit more solid with some better pacing and a bit more character and plot development focused on the second part on the novel. A 200 page book with more dedication to character development, character relationships, and to the actual mystery of what was going would have been much more beneficial than writing 143 pages and rushing to finish an unbaked plot in the final ten pages of the book.

It kind of reads like someone was trying to write a V.C. Andrews long fic and then got tired 2/3rds of the way through and rushed the ending instead of taking a hiatus.

[Melanie Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sapphic gothic romance???
I need more of these, please.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice read that kept your interest in it.

[Mariah Wamby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stumbled across this by chance and I’m glad I did! A good choice when you’re in the mood for a quick historical romance that is queer af and a little messed up.

[Hannah Marosi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read for a couple hours. Not super deep but entertaining.

[JenniferJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kept me engaged and wanting to know what happened until the end! Listened in one sitting! Loved the audio!

[Moni O.P · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Inaffablejames · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had creeps from that girl from the first page. It's not a happy book keep that in mind