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Malykant Mysteries #4
Ghostspeaker
Konrad Savast is the Malykant: foremost and most secret servant of the God of Death. His job? To track down the foulest of murderers and bring them to The Malykt's Justice. No mercy. No quarter.
A sparkling society ball is held at Bakar House - but its success is overshadowed by the subsequent suicide of one of its guests. There was something strange about Miss Dominka Popov, but when Konrad is sent to investigate, he learns the strangest truth of all: her death was neither suicide, nor murder... but both.
How could this be? When Konrad delves into the victim's past, he uncovers a host of strange family secrets. Assailed by the combined perils of society gossip, an unregistered Ghostspeaker and a host of unquiet spirits, Konrad will need all of his wits - and the help of his closest friends - to discover the truth.
A sparkling society ball is held at Bakar House - but its success is overshadowed by the subsequent suicide of one of its guests. There was something strange about Miss Dominka Popov, but when Konrad is sent to investigate, he learns the strangest truth of all: her death was neither suicide, nor murder... but both.
How could this be? When Konrad delves into the victim's past, he uncovers a host of strange family secrets. Assailed by the combined perils of society gossip, an unregistered Ghostspeaker and a host of unquiet spirits, Konrad will need all of his wits - and the help of his closest friends - to discover the truth.
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First published September 3, 2014
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About the author
Charlotte E. English
76 books352 followersEnglish both by name and nationality, Charlotte hasn’t permitted emigration to the Netherlands to change her essential Britishness. She writes colourful fantasy novels over copious quantities of tea, and rarely misses an opportunity to apologise for something. Spanning the spectrum from light to dark, her works include the Draykon Series, Modern Magick, The Malykant Mysteries and the Tales of Aylfenhame.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
January 2, 2025
Ghostspeaker
By Charlotte E English
This is a terrific supernatural fantasy with great characters and a terrific plot. The murder mystery mixed with ghosts, and in other creatures, suspense, and the God or Overlord of Death and things get real, really fast!
By Charlotte E English
This is a terrific supernatural fantasy with great characters and a terrific plot. The murder mystery mixed with ghosts, and in other creatures, suspense, and the God or Overlord of Death and things get real, really fast!
October 28, 2024
4 – 4.5 Stars
Ghostspeaker is the fourth book in the Malykant Mysteries series by Charlotte E. English. This is a fantastic, atmospheric paranormal mystery with lots of dark and dramatic tones which I loved. It has an historical setting with a Gothic Russian or Eastern European vibe. The world-building is highly original with dark and moody tones that really help to set the ‘atmosphere’ and make the story come to life.
Konrad Savast is The Malykant, the servant of the God of Death. His ‘job’ comes with some supernatural abilities, exceptional detective skills, wealth and standing in the community, as well as two bloodthirsty and macabre ‘familiars’, in the form of spirit serpents who are both prone to some petulant antics at times. It is Konrad’s job to seek ‘justice’ for the souls who have met their death prematurely, by being murdered. He investigates their death/s, using good old detective work coupled with some supernatural skills, and hunts down the killer/killers and ‘sends’ them to his master, The Malykt, the God of Death.
When a wealthy young woman takes her own life, Konrad is sent to investigate. Was it suicide, or murder? Or... both? To discover the truth, Konrad must navigate the combined perils of society gossip, an unregistered Ghostspeaker and a host of unquiet spirits.
With murder investigation, monsters, mayhem, ghosts, tension, secrets, action, adventure, friendship, intensity, suspense, and so much more, this became quite a riveting read.
There are 12 books in this series, or three volumes each with four stories- and I read them all, back-to-back. The individual stories are quite short, being mostly under 100 pages each- which allowed me to devour the entire series quite quickly.
Happy Reading…
Thank you, Charlotte E. English!
Ghostspeaker is the fourth book in the Malykant Mysteries series by Charlotte E. English. This is a fantastic, atmospheric paranormal mystery with lots of dark and dramatic tones which I loved. It has an historical setting with a Gothic Russian or Eastern European vibe. The world-building is highly original with dark and moody tones that really help to set the ‘atmosphere’ and make the story come to life.
Konrad Savast is The Malykant, the servant of the God of Death. His ‘job’ comes with some supernatural abilities, exceptional detective skills, wealth and standing in the community, as well as two bloodthirsty and macabre ‘familiars’, in the form of spirit serpents who are both prone to some petulant antics at times. It is Konrad’s job to seek ‘justice’ for the souls who have met their death prematurely, by being murdered. He investigates their death/s, using good old detective work coupled with some supernatural skills, and hunts down the killer/killers and ‘sends’ them to his master, The Malykt, the God of Death.
When a wealthy young woman takes her own life, Konrad is sent to investigate. Was it suicide, or murder? Or... both? To discover the truth, Konrad must navigate the combined perils of society gossip, an unregistered Ghostspeaker and a host of unquiet spirits.
With murder investigation, monsters, mayhem, ghosts, tension, secrets, action, adventure, friendship, intensity, suspense, and so much more, this became quite a riveting read.
There are 12 books in this series, or three volumes each with four stories- and I read them all, back-to-back. The individual stories are quite short, being mostly under 100 pages each- which allowed me to devour the entire series quite quickly.
Happy Reading…
Thank you, Charlotte E. English!
November 17, 2020
The Malykt is confused; a young woman who attended a ball at Konrad’s home last night is dead and Death says it is both murder and suicide. How is Konrad supposed to dispense justice?
He starts with her strangely non-mourning father, and his reception room ceiling full of decaying crows. Using his spirit vision Konrad can see there are hundreds of them and only a few of them are still alive. His serpent spirit servants deride them as unintelligent although they are bound to remain here in some way, similar to his ghostspeaker ability.
Konrad moves on to question her fiance, and Nandi comes along too, but when she touches the man her touch sense tells her he loves another.
888
Very intriguing, and so creepy.
We learn more about Konrad’s past and why he is the Malykant, and we get more info on Nandi and her secrets, too.
Plus, we meet the leader of the Malyk temple, and she seems very cool.
This magic world is genuinely different to the usual.
4 stars
He starts with her strangely non-mourning father, and his reception room ceiling full of decaying crows. Using his spirit vision Konrad can see there are hundreds of them and only a few of them are still alive. His serpent spirit servants deride them as unintelligent although they are bound to remain here in some way, similar to his ghostspeaker ability.
Konrad moves on to question her fiance, and Nandi comes along too, but when she touches the man her touch sense tells her he loves another.
888
Very intriguing, and so creepy.
We learn more about Konrad’s past and why he is the Malykant, and we get more info on Nandi and her secrets, too.
Plus, we meet the leader of the Malyk temple, and she seems very cool.
This magic world is genuinely different to the usual.
4 stars
April 24, 2024
The fourth book of the Malykant series, this one reveals more about Konrad's past and why Nanda is in his life.
When a woman he has accidentally met during a ball commits suicide, Konrad is wracked with guilt. But when it turns out that it's not a suicide, he has to investigate, an investigation that leads him to discover ghostspeakers who work outside the purview of the Order of the Malykt.
More investigations reveal secrets about the dead woman and her family and forces Konrad to face his own past actions and Nanda reveals some of her secrets to him as well.
I loved the burgeoning humanity of Konrad in this, despite the Malykt's intervention that has stopped him from feeling. Highly recommended for people who like darker shades of fantasy, mysteries and flawed characters.
When a woman he has accidentally met during a ball commits suicide, Konrad is wracked with guilt. But when it turns out that it's not a suicide, he has to investigate, an investigation that leads him to discover ghostspeakers who work outside the purview of the Order of the Malykt.
More investigations reveal secrets about the dead woman and her family and forces Konrad to face his own past actions and Nanda reveals some of her secrets to him as well.
I loved the burgeoning humanity of Konrad in this, despite the Malykt's intervention that has stopped him from feeling. Highly recommended for people who like darker shades of fantasy, mysteries and flawed characters.
May 14, 2021
I enjoy reading these darker stories about a man who works for death by avenging those who’ve been murdered. They are intriguing with characters who have mysterious secrets. The last two, however, have seemed more like novellas than novels. This could be due to the ebook format but the pacing of the story feels shortened too. I’m hoping the next one will be a meatier story, although even feeling shorter, each story has substance. The Malykant in this book must determine whether a recent suicide was really murder which needs to be avenged.
December 5, 2019
This instalment was more creepy than the others and also quite sad.
Nanda's understandably distant to poor Konrad, but I thought she was too harsh towards him.
Nanda's understandably distant to poor Konrad, but I thought she was too harsh towards him.
June 19, 2022
Ok, I liked this book the best so far. Irinanda finally reveals what / who she is, manages to be an amazing friend and you learn that the Malykant has more people to rely on. I really liked this instalment and he was much better with his snakes than in the last one. Excellent!
September 6, 2019
Ghostspeaker
Very good book. I am so glad Nan finally told all of us who she is and what. It seemed it was the best for Korad too.
Very good book. I am so glad Nan finally told all of us who she is and what. It seemed it was the best for Korad too.
January 28, 2020
Excellent
Very good series so far !! Fast read and a page Turner been up late a few nights just to finish :)
Very good series so far !! Fast read and a page Turner been up late a few nights just to finish :)
March 6, 2020
I am really enjoying this urban fantasy/mystery novella series. This book was the best I have read which also has emotional moments.
July 31, 2021
Another good read in the series. Although short, it has more than enough meat on the bone. I find that once I start reading, I cannot.put it down.
August 19, 2021
Secrets revealed
Brilliant stuff, short stories but wonderfully written that anymore would seem too much. Great characters and stories. Can't wait to read more. Very well done.
Brilliant stuff, short stories but wonderfully written that anymore would seem too much. Great characters and stories. Can't wait to read more. Very well done.
October 29, 2021
This was a fun one.
February 4, 2017
3.75 stars for an intense tale and a satisfying conclusion.
Konrad is bewildered and troubled (terrified, in fact) to feel strong emotions returning, beyond his control. And the timing seems bad: a young woman whom he converses with briefly and confusingly (at the ball his social obligations force him to host annually) reminds him painfully of the sister he lost years ago, bringing a wave of grief and guilt even before he learns that she has died in an apparent suicide — a suicide his master the Malykt says both is and is not!
Her household and father seem odd, and he turns out to be an unregistered, untrained Ghostspeaker who has been binding the spirits of crows, for what reason Konrad cannot imagine. And the girl's fiancé is also cryptic — did he love her or not? Did she love him?
During the course of the investigation, Konrad has recourse to information from not only the city's most noted gossip, but also the woman who secretly leasds the Oder of the Malykt.
Before all is settled, in tragedies revealed and forgiven, more secrets will come out, including just who Nanda is, and what happened in Konrad's past to make him the Malykant.
-----------------------------------
Read in my Kindle boded set of novellas 1-4. (It's kind of a cheat to post this final reviewc AND an overview one for the set, because I set a reading challenge this year, and that counts as one extra.)
Konrad is bewildered and troubled (terrified, in fact) to feel strong emotions returning, beyond his control. And the timing seems bad: a young woman whom he converses with briefly and confusingly (at the ball his social obligations force him to host annually) reminds him painfully of the sister he lost years ago, bringing a wave of grief and guilt even before he learns that she has died in an apparent suicide — a suicide his master the Malykt says both is and is not!
Her household and father seem odd, and he turns out to be an unregistered, untrained Ghostspeaker who has been binding the spirits of crows, for what reason Konrad cannot imagine. And the girl's fiancé is also cryptic — did he love her or not? Did she love him?
During the course of the investigation, Konrad has recourse to information from not only the city's most noted gossip, but also the woman who secretly leasds the Oder of the Malykt.
Before all is settled, in tragedies revealed and forgiven, more secrets will come out, including just who Nanda is, and what happened in Konrad's past to make him the Malykant.
-----------------------------------
Read in my Kindle boded set of novellas 1-4. (It's kind of a cheat to post this final reviewc AND an overview one for the set, because I set a reading challenge this year, and that counts as one extra.)
September 15, 2016
Chillingly good.
Read
November 20, 2014I LOVED IT
Yet another fun, entertaining installment of the Malykant Mysteries series. Such fun little books. None have been over a hundred pages and each one has been a great way to escape for a few hours. This one was no different.
I won’t go into too much detail because this far along in the series I’m at risk of giving spoilers. I’ll just say we learn a lot about both Nanda and Konrad in this book. Hearing Konrad’s story has made him even more appealing to me. I do enjoy him and the struggles he faces as the Malykant. Events in this book take it to a new level that I absolutely loved. Great character development!
It isn’t action heavy and seemed a lot more about asking questions with little threat to the main characters. It would have bothered me just a hair if not for all we learn about Konrad and Nanda. It kept me interested without needing action.
Again, the writing is smooth and I easily slipped away for a short time. I’m already looking forward to the next installment.
Overall, I highly recommend this series to those just looking for a quick escape for an hour or so. They are short and immensely entertaining.
You can see this and other reviews on my website: http://booksbylkevans.com
Yet another fun, entertaining installment of the Malykant Mysteries series. Such fun little books. None have been over a hundred pages and each one has been a great way to escape for a few hours. This one was no different.
I won’t go into too much detail because this far along in the series I’m at risk of giving spoilers. I’ll just say we learn a lot about both Nanda and Konrad in this book. Hearing Konrad’s story has made him even more appealing to me. I do enjoy him and the struggles he faces as the Malykant. Events in this book take it to a new level that I absolutely loved. Great character development!
It isn’t action heavy and seemed a lot more about asking questions with little threat to the main characters. It would have bothered me just a hair if not for all we learn about Konrad and Nanda. It kept me interested without needing action.
Again, the writing is smooth and I easily slipped away for a short time. I’m already looking forward to the next installment.
Overall, I highly recommend this series to those just looking for a quick escape for an hour or so. They are short and immensely entertaining.
You can see this and other reviews on my website: http://booksbylkevans.com
February 1, 2024
The mystery case here was sad but we finally found out more about Nanda and how Konrad became the Malykant.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews