The Book of Beloved by Carolyn Haines

The Book of Beloved by Carolyn Haines
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As a young woman widowed by World War I, Raissa James is no stranger to ghosts. But when an invitation arrives from Caoin House, her uncle’s estate in Mobile, Alabama, she’s finally ready to cast off the shadows of her past. And what better way to do so than with a grand party in her honor? An aspiring authoress, Raissa’s eager to soak up more of life—and immerse herself in the dark history that haunts the estate.

But the revelries come to an abrupt end when one of her uncle’s guests takes a deadly plunge. And when a ghost from the property’s past, a Confederate soldier, reveals himself to Raissa, she’s more determined than ever to get to the heart of the mysterious deaths that plague Caoin House. Enlisting the help of Reginald Proctor, a self-proclaimed medium, she holds a séance to shed light on old secrets. But she discovers that some secrets, even those long dead, still have a startling hold on the living…

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I was hooked from the first page. And, being an adventure reader did I start this book without reading the blurb before. Sure, I've read the blurb it before, but when I pick an Ebook to read do I not always read what the book is about to refreshing my memory. Much more fun that way, the less you know the better is what I feel when it comes to books.

The Book of Beloved turned out to be quite a nice book. This is the first book I have read by Carolyn Haines and I will definitely try to find more books by her to read. I have a great love for haunted houses, and that together with placing the setting in Mobile, Alabama just a couple of years after WW1 made me really enjoy the book. Haines really made the story come to life, it was like being transported back in time. A plus is that I really like Raissa James, she is such a wonderful character, well developed and interesting with a tragic past.

Storywise was the book good, I enjoyed the mystery of the house and how slowly the secrets of the house was revealed. I was surprised when the death occurred in the beginning of the book, especially since I thought the person in question was going to have a bigger part in the book. And, here with the death comes the one thing that bothered me throughout the book. The question was if the person had been pushed or not, and I had a feeling that it was not an accident and that the one characters I really liked were the one behind it all. And, I kept that feeling all through the book and it didn't help when my app did a weird thing and jumped ahead and almost revealed the ending. So, was I right? Well, perhaps I was, or perhaps I wasn't. You have to read the book to find out. All, I want to say is that I did not expect the part the Book of Beloved would play in in the story. I was really surprised about that twist to the story.  

So, despite, some predictable events did I quite enjoy the book. And, it ended with a very tantalizing cliffhanger. Or rather, this story ended, but it's just the beginning for Raissa James adventures and I'm looking forward to reading the next book! 

I want to thank Thomas & Mercer for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review!