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Look and Find® Elmo on Sesame Street

Games and Book

6.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

App

This is an interactive games app, which will help teach your child observation and memory skills in...

Fingerprint No. 2: The Evolution of Handmade Elements in Graphic Design

Chen Design Associates

10.0 (1 Ratings) Rate It

Book

For many designers, creating things by hand is a reaction to too much computer-based design. Since...

ClareR (5996 KP) rated The Ghost of Hollow House in Books

Jun 9, 2019 (Updated Jun 9, 2019)

The Ghost of Hollow House

Linda Stratmann | 2019 | Mystery, Paranormal

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

A Victorian ghostly mystery.

This is a mystery set in Victorian England (1872), a time when women were the weaker sex and unable to tolerate anything vaguely ‘upsetting’. Mina Scarletti clearly hasn’t seen the memo about this. She’s intelligent, witty and brave - she’s also 4 feet 8 inches tall, and she has what appears to be a severe scoliosis. So those who don’t know her are surprised by her outlook on life and her independence. Mina is a great character, as are Dr Hamid, who is her physician and travels with her, and Nellie, her friend.

Nellie is invited to stay with an old friend, Kitty, from her stage days, and her wealthy husband. They have a large house in the country and it appears to be haunted. The maids won’t stay overnight, and Mrs Honeyacre (Kitty) is beside herself. Her husband is a big follower of spiritualism and the occult(it was very fashionable at this time), but just not in his house.

It’s a slow burner, but when the action gets going, it really does go for it. I’m no expert on Victorians, but the attitudes and daily routines rang true, and the characters were all interesting and on the whole, likeable - especially Mina. I loved how she consistently surprised the male characters: they expected a meek and mild, sickly girl, and got an outspoken and independent woman instead.

I hadn’t realised when I began to read this, that it was the fourth in a series. I didn’t feel that I missed anything by not reading the first three, and it definitely could be read as a stand-alone. However, based on this novel, I would think that books 1-3 will be going on to my ‘to read’ pile!

If you like Victorians, mysteries and possibly ghosts, then this is a book that you’ll enjoy. I did!

Many thanks to Sapere books for my copy of this to read and honestly review.