Heartrendingly tragic and wonderfully beautiful all at the same time.
Eliza goes to Maybrook after her reputation is damaged by the man she refused to marry. While there she get's involved in a mystery of a young woman's death and the spirit that cries out for peace. Also, during that time, she meets the young woman's now grown son and it becomes the story about the struggle to find peace from turmoil and finding love with the right person before it's too late.
I've always had a thing about ghosts and history and when both were brought together in this book, I knew that I was going to end up enjoying this book. And, I was right, I did. I haven't read many books based in Puritan times, but this book made my heart bleed at the narrow-minded unfairness of it all. For a group of people who lived their lives religiously, they didn't show an ounce of kindness - at all. Poor, poor Helena and her poor son, Jon. Still, as sad as her death was, it was what started this journey into finding a killer and for two people finding love - the right kind of love - not the superficial, political version of it.
There was something amusing and frustrating about how the two main characters kept missing each other. One, who didn't want to get married to the wrong person, the other only too willing to in this weird belief that he didn't want to end up like his father. I couldn't help feeling that he continued with his actions, he would have been worse.
I loved how the conflicts were resolved in this book and how it all came out in an ending I adored. There were surprises and I had a theory at the beginning of the book which was totally on the wrong path. I was seeing conspiracies that weren't there. I love it when books can do that to me.
The characters were something special to me too. Each had their own pasts which was behind the choices they made. I felt connected to both of them, but especially Eliza. I couldn't help, but identify myself in her - some of her beliefs echoing mine. There was a good 'feel' vibe to the book which the characters helped to create. And the secondary characters only built on that too. Gus and Ruth. Both very complex secondary characters.
The only thing that I could mention that was even remotely negative was that near the very end of the book there is a description of a gravestone for Helena that was wrong. If the dates had been right, Helena would have been seven or eight when she had Jon. But considering it was a proof of the book I was given to review, it can be very easily overlooked.I would recommend this to anyone who likes historical fiction and mystery.
Now for my rating:- four out of five stars.
