October 2022 – Fortunately, the book

Title: The lost ones

Author: Anita Frank

Genre: historical fiction – Mystery – Paranormal

Pages: 464

Goodreads rating: 4.01/5

My rating: 5/5

Synopsys:

Some houses are never at peace.

England, 1917

Reeling from the death of her fiancé, Stella Marcham welcomes the opportunity to stay with her pregnant sister, Madeleine, at her imposing country mansion, Greyswick – but she arrives to discover a house of unease and her sister gripped by fear and suspicion.

Before long, strange incidents begin to trouble Stella – sobbing in the night, little footsteps on the stairs – and as events escalate, she finds herself drawn to the tragic history of the house.

Aided by a wounded war veteran, Stella sets about uncovering Greyswick’s dark and terrible secrets – secrets the dead whisper from the other side…

Review:

I won a copy of this book through the author’s Instagram profile, which has not influenced my opinion. I’m pleased to had the opportunity to read such a great book!

I love reading stories about ghosts or/and haunted houses, I think it is my fave genre, best if it’s also historical.

The lost ones can seem very long with nearly 500 pages, but I was completely drawn by it, even if sometimes the plot was a little predictable. The style of the author’s writing and the revelation of the past of Greyswick mansion is captivating, and I love Stella, the main character, alongside her maid, and a secondary character I can’t reveal for spoilers. The entire plot has reminded me a little of In the shadow of blackbirds by Cat Winters, one of my fave books of all time. The lost ones have quickly become one of them too.

I recommend it to the lovers of gothic historical fiction with a touch of the supernatural.

meme, wrap up

Wrap up: July 2022

13 October 2022 Diana @fortunatelythebook

I know, I’m a little late with the wrap up of July, I’m sorry. You can find the wrap up of August here.

During July I read a total of 11 books, but be prepared, a lot of them were 1 star only.

5 stars:

Granny’s got a gun is a funny cozy mystery featuring a Granny that is also a retired CIA agent. The lost ones is an outstanding gothic historical fiction and you can read the review here on the blog the next week.

3 stars:

First in a historical vampire fiction, As vital as blood is really good, as it’s Spirits of the storm, about a mall haunted by children’s spirits. I can’t say that I enjoyed the short story that gave the collection its name, but there are other stories really good in La banconota da un milione di sterline.

2 stars:

The cat of Amontillado is a “retelling” of the tale written by Allan Poe, but the title is the only thing they have in common. Miss Marple nei Caraibi (a Caribbean mystery) is great for the setting, but it’s also racist.

1 star:

And this was my reading recap for July, I forgot to write the one about September too, shame on me.

meme

Goodreads Monday #8

10 October 202210 October 2022 Diana @fortunatelythebook

GoodReads Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Budget Tales Book Blog. To participate, choose a random book from your TBR and show it off.

Moody sixteen-year-old barista Devin Mulwray is doing his best to ignore bizarre manifestations at his job in the chilly Northern California town of Arcata. Already teased about his recurrent ‘phase-outs’, the last thing he needs is to get pegged as a guy who sees ghosts. It doesn’t help his state of mind that his boss is a sarcastic slacker, his single dad is always on the road with clients and local occult fan girl Nayra is spreading ‘ghost boy’ rumors about him online.

But when violent paranormal activity badly spooks teens at an abandoned estate, Devin’s pushed into investigating by his eccentric friends Clive, a budding composer, and Rex, a tech head excited by ghost hunting gadgetry. At first reluctant to get involved, Devin’s encouraged when Emily, one of the more empathetic girls at Grey Bluff High, is impressed with his daring.

Together the friends explore the creepy Rousten manor. But as the only person able to perceive the manifestations, Devin soon finds himself going one-on-one against a powerful spirit who attacks the locals and infiltrates Devin’s own dreams.

Devin must face his fear of confronting the spirit world and get to the bottom of the hauntings before the specter unleashes more havoc on him and his friends.