Caroline

I love wandering around old cemeteries and churchyards, looking at the weather worn headstones, the tombs and vaults, and wondering about the souls who occupy them, the lives they led, and what brought about their demise. 🪦

That's morbid, I hear you cry. Perhaps, but we all have our foibles. 🪦

As soon as I saw the premise for this book I knew I had to read it, and I was not disappointed. Someone is Walking on Your Grave is basically a tour guide of cemeteries that Mariana Enriquez has visited over the years, from Europe to Australia to South America and North America. She's been to Greyfriars in Edinburgh, and Highgate in London. She's been in the catacombs in Paris. She's been in cemeteries in New Orleans and Savannah. 🪦

This isn't just a list of cemeteries and their famous occupants, though. Mariana shares lots of interesting historical background. Stories of love, of war, of body snatching, of repatriation. 🪦

I loved this book. I love that Greyfriars Bobby, the Highgate vampire, the vampire Léstat, and the Sedlec Ossuary were mentioned. And I loved learning that a small area of Patagonia was colonised by..... the Welsh. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🖤🪦

Thanks to Granta Publications and Netgalley for the digital ARC.

This was quite an interesting collection of short stories by Agatha Christie. It could be argued that the tales within this volume are not quite supernatural, but they are extremely sinister and atmospheric. 🗡️

Christie's most famous protagonists, Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, feature in a couple of the stories:

The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb (Poirot)

The Idol House of Astarte (Miss Marple)

The Blue Geranium (Miss Marple)

The Flock of Geryon (Poirot)

These four are crime shorts, but with a sinister slant. 🗡️

Of the remaining stories, my favourite has to be The Dressmaker's Doll. There is nothing creepier than a doll, in my opinion. 🗡️

If you love short stories with a sting in the tail, or haven't yet ventured into the world of Agatha Christie, I highly recommend this collection. 🗡️

I read The Monkey's Paw many years ago when it was featured in a horror omnibus. I didn't know then that its author, W.W. Jacobs, had written a lot of short stories of the horror and mystery sort. I stumbled across this anthology by accident, and decided to buy it. I'm glad I did, because this gave me many hours of reading pleasure. 🕸️

As the title suggests, this anthology contains tales of mystery and the macabre, the first of which, The Monkey's Paw, needs no introduction to horror aficionados. 🕸️

My particular favourites, alongside the above, are The Well, In the Library, The Vigil, and The Castaway. 🕸️

Tales of mystery and the macabre they may be, but there is some humour running through them too. Indeed, the events in The Vigil are somewhat farcical. 🕸️

All in all, this was a fun, enjoyable read and I highly recommend it. 🕸️

Yikes!! Where to begin with this one. Okay, let me just tell you good people that I enjoyed it immensely, even though it was driving me crazy at times. I bet you want to know why it was driving me crazy, don't you? Right, pay attention you lot.

I'm going to assume you've all read the blurb but, if not, here's a short summary: the hosts of a true crime podcast set out to uncover who killed student Daisy Harrington twenty years ago. The person who was jailed for her murder had always maintained his innocence, and took his own life 6 months prior to the events which unfold. 🔨

The podcasters believe that Daisy's former housemates may know more than they have let on, and one of them may be the killer. 🔨

The story is told from the POVs of the former housemates, Georgie, Dan, Lauren, Maddie and Alex, alongside transcripts of interviews with Daisy's mother, and the wife and daughters of the man imprisoned for her murder. 🔨

There were many twists, and sneaky little reveals throughout. It was impossible to guess which one of the housemates was guilty, because they all had something to hide, and they all had a motive. They were a pretty despicable bunch, but the final revelation still took me by surprise. And then there was that ending. 🫢

I have a new favourite heroine peeps. Her name is Miss Decima Stockington. She may be an octogenarian, but boy is she sassy. With a keen interest in science, razor sharp wit, and a foul mouth, Miss Decima takes no prisoners. ☄️

Miss Decima is not just my personal heroine, she is one of the amateur sleuths in The Murder at World's End, the other being Stephen Pike, ex Borstal boy, now recently employed as second footman at Tithe House, home of the Viscount, Conrad Stockington Welt.

The year is 1910. Halley's Comet is passing close to Earth. Many believe that it will bring about a global disaster. It is against this backdrop that murder is committed at Tithe House. The victim is Conrad, Miss Decima's nephew. ☄️

There's no shortage of suspects, but when the Inspector from Scotland Yard proves to be inept, Miss Decima enlists Stephen's help to try to find the murderer. ☄️

This was a fun read, with some really likeable characters. I love a locked room mystery, and this one was perfectly executed, if you'll pardon the pun. ☄️

Our amateur sleuths, Stephen and Miss Decima, are an unlikely pairing, but they make a formidable team. I really hope we will more from them in the future. ☄️

Thanks to Viking Books UK and Netgalley for the digital ARC.

I've been meaning to read The Beresford for quite a while, so when I came across the audio book on BorrowBox, I knew what I wanted to listen to next. 🎧

I've only read one other book by Will Carver, so I wasn't really sure what to expect from The Beresford. Nothing, but nothing, could have prepared me for that building, or it's inhabitants. Peeps, I was definitely not disappointed with my choice of audio book. 🗡️

There's a line in Hotel California that goes "you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave." At The Beresford you can leave, just not voluntarily. 🗡️

I loved this book. Yes, it's a bit of a slow burn, but not so slow that I was losing the will to live. It's quirky, it's sinister, and it's devilishly good. 😈🗡️

If, like me, you saw the title of this book and thought "A ghost hunter solving a murder! Cool!", then allow me to disabuse of that notion. Said title is a little misleading, I'm afraid. There is no ghost hunter, and while there is a murder, there's not much mystery, for the reader, as to whodunnit. 👻

Don't be put off though, for I bring glad tidings. There are spiritualists, and there are séances. There is a spiritualist hotel, where members of the upper class come to attend said séances, in the hopes of communing with their loved ones. 👻

In the midst of all this lurks a German spy, for this book is set during the time of the Great War. 🪖💣

Despite it not being the cosy mystery I had anticipated, I quite enjoyed this book. The characters were likeable; even our traitorous spy, Excalibur, was charming. Spiritualism and espionage make for an entertaining combination. 👻🪖

Thanks to Hodder and Stoughton for the digital ARC.

Konrad is contacted by a woman named Valborg, who hoped that he would help her find the child she had given up for fostering some time in the early 1970's. Konrad declined, as there was very little information for him to work from, and he didn't feel that he could help. Some weeks later, Valborg is found dead in her apartment. She had been murdered. Feeling bad about how he left things with her, Konrad vows to do all he can to find Valborg's child.

The Quiet Mother, book 3 in the Konrad series, is a bit of a slow burn, but it is worth sticking with it. As is often the case, the story of Valborg's child has links to that of Konrad's friend Eygló, and her psychic gifts.

Konrad's investigation into his father's murder continues, though he is no closer to an answer. Eygló too, continues to seek answers, and does not always like what she inevitably learns about her father.

Although quite dark, this was an engaging and enjoyable read.