The Third Wife of Faraday House
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“A deliciously chilling gothic mystery with a smart and resourceful heroine . . . What more could fans of Jane Eyre and Rebecca want?” — Carol Goodman, two-time Mary Higgins Clark Award winner Two brides band together to unravel the secrets at the heart of a crumbling island manor in this delicious love letter to gothic fiction from the award-winning author of A Dreadful Splendor 'Til death do us part... November 1816: Restless but naive Emeline Fitzpatrick is desperate to escape her stifling life in foggy Halifax. Her guardian is lining up repugnant suitors, but Emeline has her eyes set on a lieutenant in the British Navy. She just needs to persuade him to propose, or her one chance at happiness will be gone forever. But when Emeline’s hopes end in scandal, she finds herself with only one suitor left: the wealthy and enigmatic Captain Graves. Having already lost two wives to tragic circumstances, the widower is seeking a new companion in his cloistered seaside manor, Faraday House. Or at least that is what Emeline has been told, because when she arrives, she is horrified to discover that the second Mrs. Graves, Georgina, is still alive—though fading fast. Emeline is only certain of two things: something ghastly is afoot at Faraday House, and no one is going to save her. She will have to rely on her own courage, her burgeoning bond with Georgina, and the aid of a handsome reverend with a mysterious past to shed light on a ghostly truth.
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The summary of this book gave me Daphne Du Maurier vibes right off the bat. A gothic mansion secluded when the tide comes in and wives dying under suspicious circumstances? Yes, please! Fearing she's on the verge of a scandal, Emeline is sent away by her guardians to wed the twice-widowed Captain Graves. Though reluctant, she devises a plan to leave Halifax for good to be with her true love Frederick, a lieutenant in the Navy. Captain Graves' private peninsula will be the perfect place to watch and wait for Frederick's ship. To her surprise, she arrives at the mansion to discover that the second Mrs. Graves has not yet passed, nor is she ailing from what she'd been told. She's relieved to have some more time to wait for her rescue but soon grows suspicious of Georgina's illness and wonders if she's in danger herself. The tone of this book lies somewhere between gothic and cozy mystery. Emeline's personality grated on me, though still found her likable. That's pretty much how I feel about the book as a whole. I liked a lot of it and had an enjoyable time reading it, but what I enjoyed didn't fully make up for where it lacked. There was not a lot of characterization, in turn, Emeline's relationships with the other characters fell flat. I was particularly confused by the ending. She sets out a plan for her future in one scene and then abandons it in the next with no further reference. The element of romance also felt forced. The mystery was intriguing enough that love interests did more interrupting than building upon the plot. My issues aside, I did have a good time reading and often lost track of time when I picked it up. I'm not a fan of supernatural elements in books, but for some reason, I didn't mind it so much in the context of this plot. I'm curious to read more from this author. Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for providing me with a free digital ARC of the book!
