I gasped and jerked my hand back, staring at it. Through it, really. Even when I covered my eyes, I could see the furniture on the other side of the a grandfather clock with its hands stopped, a mahogany side table and sofa, and a portrait draped in black. Someone had died. I turned my translucent hand back and forth. Yes. Someone had. Eighteen-year-old Lucy can’t remember how she became a ghost, but the more she discovers about her past, the more she wants to forget. With the help of a servant named Philip, the only living person who can see her, Lucy must find a way to erase the mistakes of her former life before it’s too late. This haunting, romantic mystery takes you back in time to Victorian England. Filled with suspenseful scenes and thrilling twists—it’s an impossible romance you won’t be able to put down.
E.B. Wheeler attended BYU, majoring in history with an English minor, and earned graduate degrees in history and landscape architecture from Utah State University. She's the award-winning author of THE HAUNTING OF SPRINGETT HALL, BORN TO TREASON, and NO PEACE WITH THE DAWN, as well as several short stories, magazine articles, and scripts for educational software programs. She was named the 2016 Writer of the Year by the League of Utah Writers. In addition to writing, she consults about historic preservation and teaches history at USU. She lives in the mountains of Utah with her family, various pets, and as many antique roses as she can cram into her yard. If she had spare time, she would spend it playing harp and hammered dulcimer, gardening, hiking, shooting archery, knitting, and reading.
I love this cover and it fits the story perfectly! It's very intriguing and gorgeous. As mentioned in the description, Lucy is a ghost and a lot of mystery surrounds the reasons why.
I get a little leery of paranormal stories because some of them are really far out there, but this one, even though there's black magic and the occult, was handled in a clever way that didn't leave me feeling icky. I really enjoyed the mystery of it all and the way things unfolded. There's plenty of adventure, magic, and creepiness (especially the rats) mixed in with a great clean romance!
Lucy is a very determined character who has her flaws. Philip, a servant, has issues too, but they way they work together to figure things out is wonderful, leaving the reader with a deeper sense of who they truly are and what they each have to deal with in life.
I don't want to give things away, but I really am impressed with how the story was written and how it all came together, although I felt the ending could have been stronger.
Content: no language; mild, clean romance; mild violence/horror; Clean.
**I received a copy in exchange for an honest review**
The Haunting of Springett Hall A Novel By E.B. Wheeler
She doesn't remember her past, only the blackness. He knows only as far back as two days ago. Something or someone has drawn them to Springett Hall. If only they could remember...
The Haunting of Springett Hall is a story of second chances. A second chance at life. A second chance at love.
Lucy Tregarrick's dissatisfaction with the life she had has lead her to the situation in which she now finds herself. She has failed at something, if only she could remember what she was attempting before she lost her life. Philip Ketley is the only resident of Springett Hall who can see Lucy. Is he the key to helping Lucy overcome her failures?
And what is it about Springett Hall that is so disturbing to all who are in residence at this estate? What evil lurks between the walls and how is this all connected to Lucy?
This is a story of love and loss. A story of redemption. A story that will leave you wondering what will happen next. If you like spooky you need to pick-up The Haunting of Springett Hall and get lost between the pages. Perfect reading right before bed, especially after taking a peek at the moon...
I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for my honest review and tour participation.
I'm an instant gratification type of reader and will only be patient for so long. So when I started reading I was immediately grabbed by the mystery of Lucy's predicament and her plight. I had remembered the reviews on the back of the book and while reading I was struck by how true their reviews were. The twists of plot, the possibility of being the good guy, then the bad guy, then just surviving. I enjoyed the psychological exploration of self, meaning selfish versus selfless. I also liked the play of 'love.' How far does one go for love? And when does it stop being love and enter the realms of obsession? Really enjoyed this book. Couldn't put it down. I even read it at work (which I'm not condoning). Thanks for taking me on this great adventure, E.B. Wheeler!
Got myself a pre-ordered copy of this book from Amazon (the cover and premise look really cool), and I'm so glad I did! Lucy and Philip were flawed yet likable characters (the best kind), and I loved rooting for them. I don't want to spoil anything, but the rats were especially creepy. This is an excellent book for those that want something scary, thrilling and romantic but still clean. I'm expecting great things in the future from E. B. Wheeler. She has a great style, and it really pulled me into the old world setting. Can't wait to get her next book!
This book grabs your attention from the beginning and pulls you along for a great mystery and romance.
Lucy is a ghost who awakens without a memory. She is surprised at her condition, she doesn't remember dying or who she is. The book begins as she is trying to unravel her predicament and discover why she is haunting Springett Hall.
Soon she meets the Assistant Games Keeper. He also is suffering from lack of memory. The two sense from the beginning that they are somehow connected. As they begin to work together memories come and they find they are deeply involved with the mystery of Springett Hall.
The book looks at quite a few things. One of them is a blossoming romance between Lucy and Phillip. As they begin to remember each other, they are stunned to learn they are part of the strange happenings. They were servants for the late master and somehow he used them to his advantage in a plot that is obsessive in nature and steeped in dark magic.
This book is well written. The pacing is excellent. I loved how relationships are built and the story unfolds. This story is a mystery that has paranormal elements.
There are many creepy, crawly things in the book. If you have a hard time with occult and dark magic, you may not do well with the story. I didn't think the book went into detail with the occult, but gave just enough information move the story without creeping me out.
I found this book to be clean with mild kissing and the discussion of dark magic.
This is a light mystery story that ended up having more magical elements than I was expecting based on the cover blurb, so that was fun. It took me several chapters to get into it, but after that it got better as the story progressed, things were discovered, and pieces started fitting together. I think 3.5 stars overall.
The book is very dialogue driven. This was the author's first novel, so perhaps she uses other forms of storytelling more often in her later books, which would help a bit. Very clean and respectful romance. I was hoping things would end a little differently, but sometimes a perfect ending that defies possibilities doesn't feel right either.
This is nitpicky, but about 2/3 of the way into the booker so, Lucy makes a comment or has a thought about her corset restricting her ability to breathe, but that is not how most corsets were historically worn. Tight lacing was just a high fashion trend comparable to other painful and infrequently used fashion trends of today like stilettos. Corsets or stays were worn by everyone from royalty to peasants and functioned first as practical garments that provided support for their bodies and shape/structure to their clothes.
I've been meaning to read this book ever since I designed the cover for it 9 years ago and I'm glad I finally got around to it now. I was even personally thanked by the author and her acknowledgments page, which I didn't realize until I finished, so that was a really nice surprise!
I picked this book up the other night and couldn't put it down. It was such a fun book to read. It was an interesting take on haunting :).
Lucy wakes up one evening and cannot remember who she is or why she is where she is. Her skin seems translucent and she can walk through people. When she realizes that she is dead, she feels lost.
She finally runs into a young man named Phillip and realizes that someone can actually see her. There is more to Phillip than meets the eye. Together they search for the reason Lucy is stuck in the house and in doing so open up the door for other "spirits" to cause problems in the house.
This was such a great book. I couldn't put it down. I had to find out what happened :). I never thought I would root for a ghost and a human. hehe. I love ghost stories, but this was a different take on a ghost story. Lucy is kind and loving. Trying to find the reasons she is bound to earth and to the house. Not many ghosts stories are so sweet. It had it's intense moments as well!
Secret passage, spells, dangerous dreams, and romance. Yes, please :). That is just what you get with this book. I hope you take the opportunity to read this book.
Stayed up till 2 am finishing this. The writing is beautiful, the romance made me tingle, the plot line twists and curves and doesn't leave room for disappointment.
The characters are believable and lovable. Their struggles, weaknesses, and fears make it easy to connect to them and really pull me in to want to see how they overcome them.
Overall, a wonderful book. I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a fun and vivid read.
I've been sick, and reading a bit more than usual since I'm too exhausted to do much else. Read this whole story yesterday, after having my son pick it up from the library. There is mystery, ghosts, hauntings, dark magic, a creepy bad guy, an elaborate Victorian Estate and the blossoming of love.
Great characters, great setting, interesting plot and enough mystery to keep me on my toes. Really enjoyed this debut novel by E.B. Wheeler!
A unique storyline, that kind of reminded me of Ladyhawk, with it's forever together but can't quite touch thing going on.
Well written and clean, this story held my interest.
I don't want to spoil anything, so I will just say that I took off one star just because I, personally, would have liked a different ending, but I would still recommend this book for anyone looking for something a bit different to read.
First of all, I love this cover! Lucy is 18 years old and realizes right away that she's a ghost but has no idea what happened to her. The only person who can see her is Philip, who doesn't remember who he is, either, so he's passing himself off as the assistant gamekeeper. They quickly realize that they were involved with Sir Jason Springett and were with him the night he died but the details are fuzzy.
There's plenty of mystery as Lucy and Philip try to figure out who they were and what happened to them. There are some surprises along the way. Lucy and Philip are likable but flawed and help each other deal with the situation they find themselves in. The house itself plays a big role and it was interesting to see how the mystery unfolded. I had no idea how it would end since it seemed impossible for them to be together.
This book has black magic, mystery, adventure and romance. There are some creepy parts but it's well written and didn't leave me feeling icky. I expected something a bit different but found this to be an interesting read and look forward to reading more from this author in the future!
I received a copy of this book to review. My opinion is 100% my own.
I love a good ghost story. This one has all the best parts, an evil spirit, black magic, freaky rats, and romance (among other things). Lucy and Philip were perfect characters to read about in that they were far from perfect. They had messed up seriously, and we're trying to redeem themselves. The themes of light verses dark filled the story and gave it some excellent weight. The ending was also quite satisfying and sweet.
I recommend this book to anyone who likes a clean supernatural romance. I hope the author continues to publish more entertaining books like this one.
I was so looking forward to reading this book but found myself in want by the end of it. I base all the books I read and the movies I watch on the ending and the ending to this left me wanting. Wanting what? I really don't know. Maybe a better story with less black magic and demons? I've enjoyed other books by this same author but this, in my personal opinion, was lacking.
I liked this book- it has a lot of life questions to ponder as you read it— how do your choices matter, being open and grateful for what you have and noticing life around you, second chances and turning your bad decisions into better ones, fixing things you have done wrong and trying to change for the better, realizing your weaknesses and working to make them strengths, realizing your potential, lots of hidden meanings within her writing that was full of mystery, curses and romance.
I won this book on a good reads giveaway. I wasn't sure if I liked this book at first but was glad I continued reading. I really enjoyed it in the end.
The hidden stone and the curse was so obvious that it was pathetic for the main characters to miss them. The female lead was cowardly and dull, and the story dragged out to twice the length it needed to be. 2 stars because the maids and the new owner and his brother were interesting characters, though they were horribly wasted. The last scenes of destruction were a huge trope from every haunted house movie, and the ending was unsatisfying, especially considering the amount of angst (LOTS of angst) the main characters waded through over their conditions. Did the author change them to make them happy with it, or give them a possible escape? No, but the whole thing ends up as ‘Oh, well, it’s ok, I guess’
I became bored with this book after realizing that I could skip many pages and still miss absolutely nothing in the story line. I finally just went to the last chapter and read that. The book was exhausting. Started out good but I think the author just wrote this to get another book out. Nothing compelling, just round and round, over and over the almost same struggles of the characters. I loved her other book I flew through it it was fantastic but this one not so much. I’d definitely read any new books she publishes.
I was intrigued by this book and excited to pick up a paranormal romance on Halloween but I just didn't love this one. Too many plot holes and too many times that the characters all of a sudden remembered something to help them solve the mystery. There was also so much going on - demons and curses and moonstones and rats that the storyline got too busy. The ending was also definitely not even close to what I was hoping for.
I found myself losing interest and skimming a bit throughout the book. Some of the elements of the story interested me (figuring out who they were and what happened and why), but I couldn't quite make all of the connections between the magic and mystery. The choices of the characters also didn't make a lot of sense at times and there were a few inconsistencies that distracted me from the story.
Oh man. One of the worse books I have ever read. The first chapter starts off well- written from the ghost's perspective. But then all this garbage about black magic, moonstones, rats.... The plot is hard to follow, sometimes the characters just suddenly know things without any prelude or logic. Really a disaster.
A haunting told from the perspective of the hauntress, who slowly pieces together her identity and her complicity in some shady business. When one is a ghost, what can possibly be more scary. But even as a ghost, Lucy is afraid. With some help from Philip, they untangle the mess of littered memories and work to put things to rights again.
Really good book. Lots of mysteries and very intriguing and captivating. I liked reading this book because the love story that is aspiring between Philip and Lucy is just amazing and its sad that shes dead. I haven't finished the book yet but Im still hooked and I have no idea what's gonna happen next.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I read this book through even though it dragged in many places just so I could get to the ending and then it ended like it did. Ugh....stupid, stupid. I wish I had quit while I was ahead.
This was a very detailed story. But I like that in a book. It has a sweet love story that I hope continue in another book. I will definitely read more of this author
This book had an interesting premises, but I didn't love it. The beginning was awkward and I didn't love the ending. Overall, it was interesting, but there was definitely a pacing issue and it was darker than I expected based on past reads from this publishing company.
This is a pretty decent story. It took me a while to get into it. Once I understood what’s going on, I found the story quite intriguing. Some of the actions and descriptions seemed disconnected. But I liked the characters Lucy and Philip. Great overall premise. Clean read.
This is not my normal genre that I read. I found it suspenseful until the end. It was not a horror, which is good. Horror is not my thing. It was a Nancy Drew kind of scary. Think mystery with the characters looking to solve it. All in all, good story with a HEA.