R E K. (bigstone) - , reviewed on 8/15/2022 + 1440 more book reviews

A really good ghost tale is delightful to read but hard to find. Eliza Caine, whose cherished father dies after attending a ghost story reading by Charles Dickens, discovers the house she knew as home is a rental. Within a week, she must move and begin to earn a living. Working a teacher to young girls which paid a pittance, she knows she loves children, which fortifies her determination as she applies for a governess position.

It's 1867, she is twenty-one when she moves to Gaudlin Hall, to become governess for two children. The children are Eustace, a charming little boy with a ready smile, and Isabella, more remote exhibiting unusual adult-like behavior. Strangely, no parents appear. Then she discovers that the advertisment was placed by the woman who was governoress before her.

Comments from the children coupled with unusual interactions with the townspeople, she learns that she is the sixth governess of the year. As she begins her new role, she encounters unusual and strange happenings. She cannot open doors that others can, she hears footsteps but no one is there, windows won't open, unusual strong winds buffet her in and out of the mansion. And, oddly, three of the previous governesses died through terrible accidents. Is she dreaming, reacting to grief for her father, or imagining it all? No, she recognizes that a malicious and threatening presence appears to focus not on the children, but on she herself. Does Eliza have the courage to find what is happening and the courage to confront that presence?

A simple Gothic story with a few humorous characters such as Heckling, a grumpy but good natured soul, and Mrs. Livermore, whose comings and goings are almost like magic. This tale keeps one on edge as it unfolds and will appeal to all who like to read a stirring ghost story occasionally.

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