The Ruby Locket

Belrose Abbey Mystery #1

by Anita Higman, Hillary McMullen

When Anne’s mother agrees to marry a wealthy, mysterious man, she expects a nice mansion in the hills. But their new home, Belrose Abbey, is more like a castle—imposing, cold, and full of shadows. The more Anne explores the corridors and vacant rooms and dusty crannies, the more she discovers about the abbey’s master—her soon-to-be stepfather—Ivan Helsburg. As her mother’s wedding draws closer, Anne begins to harbor a creeping suspicion that all is not well at Belrose Abbey.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Audiobook, Gothic, Young Adult

143 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 2016

About the author

Best-selling and award-winning author, Anita Higman, has over forty books published. She’s been a Barnes & Noble “Author of the Month” for Houston and has a BA in the combined fields of speech communication, psychology, and art.
A few of Anita’s favorite things are good movies, fairytales, traveling, gardening, exotic teas, and brunch with her friends.
Feel free to drop by Anita’s website at anitahigman.com or connect with her on her Facebook Reader Page at https://www.facebook.com/AuthorAnitaH.... She would love to hear from you!

Reviews

[Tom Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is on the audiobook.

This is a new genre for me, did I like it? “no”, did I love it? “Yes”, Very well written, even the description in the car journey at the beginning keeps you interested and wondering what’s going on, are they going to a haunted house?
The story flows well and I find it very easy to imagine exactly the interaction of the characters of all times.
The narrator I found to be very clear and done a good voice of the male characters which can be hard to do.
Good first book and look forward to book two.

[Nadine Keels]

I got two thirds of the way through this novella. I was in the mood for a fairly quick mystery and became more interested in this one as I went along.

Yet, the story is built on so much denial and deliberate silence that after a while, it feels like a contrived way to prolong the suspense. Anne and Dauphine repeatedly minimize or keep hushed up about most of the obviously creepy and questionable stuff going on with Ivan and Belrose Abbey.

I mean, Dauphine isn't considering going out for coffee with a man. She's about to marry him. If there's any time for a mother and daughter to speak up and be forthright with each other about their mounting concerns and suspicions, that time is yesterday.

Yeah, people do sidestep warning signs to "go with the flow" in real life, but when it keeps happening in a book, and the characters don't have convincing or sharp reasons for all of the continued sidestepping, it wears out the plot, especially a mystery plot, and the characters appear weak—particularly a mother who not only has her own safety she should be thinking about but that of her daughter as well.

It could be that I'm taking this read more seriously than it's meant to be taken. I won't be finishing the series, but there are at least a couple more books by Higman I plan to try, since I've enjoyed some of her Middlebury stories before.

[Lis Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Anne's mother accepts a proposal of marriage from a somewhat mysterious, wealthy gentleman, Anne is happy to see her mother finding love and happiness again. Yet something seems a little off. Things get stranger when they arrive at Ivan Helsburg's home, Belrose Abbey, for the first time. It's a looming, old castle, hard to reach and easily cut off from the town by bad weather, and cold and dark. The housekeeper seems oddly hostile to them, as if she'd rather drive them away.

There's also Ivan's stepson from his previous marriage, which Anne's mother hadn't known about, and which seems to have been remarkably brief, and ended in the lady's apparent suicide.

Strange events keep happening, including Anne's discovery of a sealed-off room in the cellar that seems to have been used to imprison someone. Creepy event after creepy event encourages Anne to think her mother would be better off leaving.

Then she overhears Ivan's moving declaration of love for her mom, which soothes her worries until she finds his letter proposing to his previous wife--using almost exactly the same words.

What's going on here, and why?

The atmosphere is quite effectively creepy, as Anne and the reader get more confused, more alarmed, more uncertain who if anyone she should trust. This is an excellent audio novella, and Michelle Babb as usual does an excellent job of narration.

Recommended.

I received a free copy of this audiobook, and am reviewing it voluntarily.

[Deon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this on #KindleUnlimited

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Ruby Locket: The Belrose Abbey Mystery Series:
Anita Higman, Hillary McMullen

A gothic romance set in modern time at an abbey of a wealthy man engaged to a widow with a teen daughter. Lots of dark spooky places, strange characters, and enough suspense to keep the listener involved. I look forward to the next book in the series.


The narration was well done.The characters were well portrayed. Michelle Babb's performance gives the story just enough of a creep factor without scaring the listener to death.


"I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator."

[Jasmine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Danger lurks in the shadows...

I've been a fan of Gothic fiction for several years now. There is just something so delightful about the often chilling, often romantic, over-the-top genre. And I'm a fan of Anita Higman's, so when you put both together you have a book I just gotta read. The Ruby Locket has all the necessary ingredients: a creepy castle with hidden passageways, possible murder, old secrets, scary servants, an enigmatic master of the house, and an innocent woman and her daughter...

The Ruby Locket has a great YA feel to it but will appeal to adult readers as well. In fact, one of my favorite things about this story is that it is told in the first person POV...of two characters! Anita Higman & Hillary McMullen use the viewpoints of Anne and Dauphine to carefully construct each scene, much like the individual threads are woven together to form a tapestry.

The Ruby Locket is a quick and fun read sure to hook readers on the talented duo of Anita Higman & Hillary McMullen.

(I received a copy of this e-book from the author in exchange for my review. All opinions are my own.)

[Bailey Baxter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read a Gothic romance in years. But I'm so glad I picked up this one! It had all the elements you would expect in this type of book: Creepy abbey, complete with catacombs and secret passageways... suspicious characters... and likeable heroines. Yes, two heroines in this case. Mother and daughter.

When Mom Dauphine becomes engaged to the wealthy Ivan, she came to his abbey home with teenage daughter Anne, hoping to make a fresh start. But Anne quickly begins to expect that Ivan might not be all he seems. With the help of Ivan's teenage stepson, Wyatt, she looks for answers to what's bother her about her step-dad-to-be, even braving the dark catacombs and secret passageways in her quest for the truth. Is her mistrust unfounded? Or, does Ivan really mean to do her mother harm?

Written from the viewpoint of both mother and daughter, "The Ruby Locket" was hard to put down. And, it showed impressive restraint when it came to bad language and sex scenes (none) and violence (little). I highly recommend it. In fact, this is one book I'll be reading again!

[Elena Alvarez Dosil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review originally published at: http://www.lomeraniel.com/audiobookre...

Some time after her husband’s death, Dauphine has decided to remarry. The groom, Ivan Helsburg, is an old fashioned Hungarian who is stinking rich and lives in Belrose Abbey, a great mansion in the middle of nowhere. Dauphine and her daughter Anne move to the Abbey some days before the wedding, just to find a dark and somber place with mysterious servants and secret passages. Soon after their arrival mother and daughter find out that there was a previous Mrs. Helsburg, but what happened to her?

I always love a good cozy mystery to rest from other harder listens. This one is quite short, ideal to listen from beginning to end on the same day. I felt something unnatural in all the mystery surrounding Ivan and the Abbey. Paranormal is not my favorite genre, but the story trapped me in a way that I could not stop listening. The atmosphere of the Abbey is very well described, and the feelings of the characters seem so real that I was almost able to smell the dusty passages they had to traverse.

Chapters are narrated from the point of view of either Dauphine or Anne. To make things clear, each is preceded by the name in question. I found this made the story easy to follow. Somehow, even despite the age difference, I found myself connecting to the teenage daughter more thsn to Dauphine. Anne is clever and resolute, and the heroin in this book; while Dauphine is severely damaged by her past and weak to the point that I wanted to shake her and tell her to open her eyes.

I found the setting and events really intriguing, and the characters very well pictured. The characters feel like real people, and each one of them is very well defined.

I had the impression that the story had a paranormal touch, but in the end it did not show up. I am not sure if it will be like this on future books, I am curious to find out.

There is a long build up, reveling pieces of the mystery. This kept me interested and intrigued, but I felt the end a bit rushed and anticlimactic. It could be that I expected something more due to that paranormal touch, and the end eliminated any possibility of supernatural forces behind the Abby mysteries. Still, I think there are still a lot of unrevealed mysteries that will show up in future installments.

My main reason for listening to this book was that it is narrated by Michelle Babb. Apart from Cozy Mystery is also considered YA, and with this genre I tend to tread carefully, since they do not always fulfill my expectations. With Michelle Babb narrating this book I decided to give it a chance, and I am glad that I did, since it was a much better book than I expected. Michelle Babb’s abilities to narrate Cozy Mysteries are unique, giving the story a special rhythm, and interpreting the characters in a way that brings them to life. There is no boring listening with Michelle, and I am sure I would even enjoy her reading the phone book.

I am looking forward to the next book, see how Dauphine and Anne get acclimated to the Abbey, and discover what mysteries are still awaiting them.

I received a copy of this book in audio format from the narrator in exchange for an honest review.

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened via Audible, this story is just under 3.5 hours long in audiobook format. The Ruby Locket is part 1 (of 2) of the Belrose series, and stars teenager Anne and her mother Dauphine, who have been invited to live in the eponymous abbey where Dauphine is due to marry the owner onsite in the next few days. Straight away we have almost haunting-like moments where they see and hear strange occurrences in the surrounding woodlands to set the tone. The story tries to evoke an almost Poe feeling of dread at times, and the author (among other horror and mystery writers) are name dropped throughout the story.

The abbey is a great place in that it has a lot of secrets, and I do like the exploration of such. I'd have enjoyed to see even more, but hope that is what part 2 will reveal. My favourite moments were the dark journeys through Belrose and the evidence of past misdeeds which have occurred. The author wrote these really well, and the feeling of isolation helps to set in both in these moments and around the abbey grounds. There is something hiding in the woods, a supposed staff member is seen stealing, another is rude and odd, and the husband-to-be also has a deserving level of suspicion about him whilst also having what appears to be a loving and romantic side which is further explored as the characters dig deeper.

The cast of characters is smaller than I expected, but this does fit the shorter length of the story. If you disregard the nameless background people I can recall about 8 people who are given names. The book is easy to follow, and at no point did I misplace any of the characters or forget who they were.

I only have 2 criticisms. The first are a scant few sentences. At one point we get "gilded in gold", but the word gilded means to be coated in gold, so it's essentially like saying "covered in gold in gold". I also didn't enjoy the ending that much. Trying to be vague to not spoil it I think the reveal of the nastiness near the end was too swift of a personality change in the characters, and the motives involved. There are great moments leading up to it though.

The narrator was Michelle Babb, whom I have listened to before this story. Their narration is great, and they perform a lovely range of emotions for the characters and their predicaments. The audio recording/editing quality itself was also very nice to the experience.
I enjoyed this, I look forward to re-entering Belrose Abbey again in part 2.

Disclaimer: Book was given to me, though I was not requested to write any review. I choose to do this however as thanks to them.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Ruby Locket (A Belrose Abbey Mystery Book 1) by Anita Higman and Hillary McMullen and Narrated by Michelle Babb.

A teenage girl, Anne, and her widowed mother are moving into a very old castle after Anne’s mother has agreed to marry it’s mysterious owner Ivan. Anne can’t seem to shake the feeling that something is off with Ivan. He is a very wealthy man who seems nice but there is just something about him and about how fast the relationship between him and her mother has gone from meeting one another to marriage. Can Anne find out what is making her uneasy about Ivan before her mother marries him?

This is an enjoyable story, well developed characters. I really enjoyed Anne, even though she a teenager she is not going to believe everything she is told; especially when something feels wrong and her mother could be endanger. Although this is a novella this story is well developed, great pace, includes enough twist and turns to keep you interested in the mystery. This book is in the YA mystery genre so there is no graphic language, sex, or violence. For the romance fans there seems to be a little bit of something developing between Anne and Wyatt.

I listened to the audiobook version which was narrated by Michelle Babb. Mrs Babb is a natural storyteller. She does a great job with her voice; you can have no trouble telling which character is speaking at any time. She has great pace and timing, she never rushes the story. She brings the words on the page to life.

I would definitely recommend this book either print or audio version to Young Adult, mystery, or romance alike.

[Melodie · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a fun read The Ruby Locket: The Belrose Abbey Mystery Series, Book 1 by Hilary McMullen and Anita Higman is! It is quite short—more a long novella—but diverting and full of atmosphere. The set up is intriguing—mother, Dauphine, and her daughter, Anne, are moving to Belrose Abbey, a huge, isolated abbey, more a castle, in the middle of nowhere. Dauphine, widowed several months earlier and struggling on many levels, accepts the proposal of Ivan Helsburg partially in hopes of giving Anne a better life. When they arrive at Belrose, Ivan is nowhere to be seen, but Anne spots some sort of creepy animal on the grounds and the reception from the housekeeper is anything but welcoming. Intrigue on many levels. Anne’s imagination runs wild and, as the book is told from the points of view of both Anne and Dauphine, the reader is well aware of what is running through their minds. Anne engages with the one other young person on the grounds, Wyatt, and they team up to discover some of the secrets lurking at Belrose Abbey and with Ivan. 

Michelle Babb does a nice job with the narration. I especially appreciated her voicing of Anne, whose inner thoughts frequently trade off between snarky, worry over her mother and her concerns about the secrets held by Belrose Abbey.

I recommend this book for someone wanting a lightweight, easy listen. It is rich in atmosphere and the creepy factor is just right. Three and a half stars.

I was given a free copy of this book on Audible in exchange for an honest review. I was not compensated nor was I required to write a positive review. The opinions stated are my own. 

[Norma · Rating 4 out of 5]

( Format : Audiobook )
"A woman in a wedding dress."
A dark Gothic novella which is fun and quick to read, the Ruby Locket tells of the experiences of Anna and her mother when they move to Melrose Abbey. Dauphine, the mother, had been desolate following her husband's death just eight months before, until she met the suave and wealthy Ivan and accepted his marriage proposal one week later. Mother and daughter move to the Abbey expecting a large house in the country but instead find something more akin to a castle staffed by loyal retainers, and that they are virtual prisoners. Told mostly in the first person from Anna's point of view some chapters are also related from the mother's perspective giving a slightly more rounded view of the happenings. Despite this, the characters of the main protagonists remain insubstantial, just slightly more solid shadows in a blissfully of them.

There is a decidedly chilly atmosphere, one of danger (and stupidity!) permeating the whole story, with the desire for the reader to call out something like "look behind you", pantomime style. And, !like a pantomime, it is ridiculously enjoyable. This feeling of shuddering well-being is enhanced by Michelle Babb's narration, always clear, well paced and with separate voices for each of the protagonists. Her reading definitely enhances the enjoyment of the story.

Overall, an enjoyable, silly read, atmospheric from the beginning and perfect for something light and easy to fill a boring evening. If you like chilly thrills unrelated to real life, this is the book for you.

[Julie Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book by this author I have read or listened. Even though I wouldn't place it in the modern detective category or judging from the picture would it be a book I would choose, I did enjoy it. It was very different and kept me guessing the whole way through. The story starts each chapter telling you who the main character is and gives you there perspective of what is going on building up the suspense. As the tension builds so does your curiosity and you soon find you have finished the book before you know it. Off to start the next book.
After the death of her father Anne is just happy to see her mother smile again, even if it means moving to spooky old castle and her mother getting married to a man she barely knows. That is until the weirdness starts to feel menacing. The spooky old castle with its hidden doors and passageways was fun to explore at first but as she discovers more the more she fears her mother is making a big mistake.
The narrator was the main reason I gave this book a chance. She is such a great reader that I knew I was going to enjoy it and she doesn't disappoint this time either. She really builds up the tension, so make sure you don't listen to this book in the dark.

[Jennifer Nanek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I received this audio book at no charge in exchange for an honest review.

This is a book in the style of Northanger Abbey and Rebecca. This woman and her daughter go to live at a creepy Abby with plans for the woman to marry the single wealthy owner. The story switches between the mother and the daughter's point of view.

The overall point of this book is that money isn't everything.

The daughter begins to explore the large mansion and finds all these secret places and finds how disturbing the owner is. The real story though is the growing relationship between the teenage daughter and the teenage stepson. That part was the best part really. Their growing friendship and partnership is what makes the book really interesting. I I wish some of the secrets though had been a bit more interesting rather than what they found. That should have been delved into a lot more.

I listened to the audio version of this book and the narrator Michelle Babb does a very good job with the various voices and infusing the right amount of creep factor.

[Mary Dean · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great mystery with an eerie feeling to it. I loved it! And Michelle Babb did a great job telling the story. Her voice enhanced the feeling of this story. Anne and her mother move to a large estate not too long after her father has died. Her mother has met a man and agreed to marry him. It's not a marriage of love, but survival. The man seems nice enough. But Anne doesn't trust him or his home. As we learn more about him, his staff, and the estate it shows that you should never ignore that gut feeling. What a great mystery! I am not giving details on purpose. From the start to the end I was on the edge of my seat. I was hit with surprise after surprise. I started to feel like I was on this adventure with Anne. This is a must read/listen for mystery fans. Especially if you like a little haunting feel to it.

[Rebekah Crain · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to the audio of this, but feel I would have enjoyed it more if I'd read it myself. I didn't really feel the narrator was a good fit, and I felt she distracted me from the story. (This is not a negative reflection on the narrator in general. I've heard her do a nice job on other titles. This style book just didn't work for her, imo.) The book itself was decent. It was a light read, nothing too involved. I'll admit, I mistook the mystery for being one thing when it was another, but it was still fun. 3.5-4 stars

Thanks to the narrator for providing me this review copy.

[Deedra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Annes mother decides to marray a stranger 8 months after the death of her husband.She takes her daughter to move into a cottage on his property where there is no way to contact anyone outside the house.For a teenager,this is awful and leads to snooping around the castle.She befriends a boy there and learns secrets she doean't want to know.I was provided this book by the author,narrator or publisher for review.

[Suzan · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great read. Gothic novels are not what I usually read but I really enjoyed this one. Set in an Abby with secret passageways and even catacombs. This is the first book in this series. I can't wait to see what the next book will bring. The narrator for this book is Michelle Babb she does a wonderful job bringing the story to life. Michelle made a good book even better.
"I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."

[Diana · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay. Not great, not terrible. I did find myself wanting to find out what happened in the next part, so the suspense was there. However I am disappointed in the end. The writer led us to believe that there was a vampire aspect to the book, but there was nothing about it by the end. There were also a lot of clichés and the dialogue, particularly in the part of the mom, was hard to believe.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chapters are narrated from the point of view of either Dauphine (widowed 8 months ago) or Anne (her 16 y/o daughter). A creepy old stone mansion, a chatelaine worthy of a gothic novel, a worrisome new stepfather, the new husband's stepson as a friend, and even more mysteries. But no bad language or erotica.
It is a good read made even better by having Michelle Babb to bring the characters to life with her narration.

[Caroline 'relaxing with my rescue dogs' · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this is a completely different genre for me but it worked and it turned into a listen which I had to finish in one go - helped by the fact that it was a short read and the brilliant narration.

The story is a young adult but it worked for me and I can see it appealing to my teenage daughter who is really into this genre.

I was given a free copy by the narrator but the review is entirely my own.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book (and the Abbey where the characters live) was quite dark. Dark mystery, dark atmosphere, dark intentions. It was full of twists and turns and kept leading me off in directions that weren't where the story actually went. It was a good YA mystery.
Michelle Babb's narration speed and the pauses in the paces added to the drama of the book.

[Jocelyne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book in The Belrose Abbey Mystery Series, a Ghotic Story. I loved it! The story is suspenseful, filled with mystery, and secrets. The characters are great and interesting. Looking forward to listen to The Bloodstone Vial, the next book in the series. Michelle Babb did a fantastic job with the narration. I enjoyed it.

[Ronald Glaser]

The ruby locket, is an intriguing and exciting book; and, and her mom along with Wyatt, found many different things out about their past, and of the murder that was taken place in Belrose Abbey, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a great read the narrator of this book has done a perfect job, portraying all characters, in a way that draws you in in more ways than one!

[Ashley Hedden · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ruby Locket by Anita Higman and Hillary McMullen was a great read. Anne's mother agrees to marry a man that she doesn't know very well. Anne starts to explore their new home and unveils many suspicious things. I loved reading this book, it was a great read.

[Georgia Tumbleweed McNabb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Purchased and listened to on Audible books.
This Gothic style tale needed more depth, but was a good read overall. I felt that the story was Way to predictable and because of that it removed all the Mystery.

[Reggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Teenage Anne and her mother are spending some time with her mother’s fiancé at his huge castle-like home. It appears that not everything is as it seems. This quick mystery holds your interest to the end.

[One Sentence Audio Critic · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good light mystery with a mysterious lead man, spooky Abbey and secret passages, where a teen daughter and recently widowed mom must unravel the clues. In the audiobook, I could have used more distinctly different voices to differentiate the characters, but still a professional job of narration.

[Vintage Lady · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel that the story line was great but the narrator was horrible. There was no emotion or depth in the narrator’s voice. When doing audio books authors should find someone who will put their all into reading the book.

[Alona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting

Good book, kept turning pages just not what I expected. That being said, I'm curious enough to read the next in series!