Affiliate links can be found within this post. If you need additional information, please see the disclaimer.
An ARC copy of this book was provided to me in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts are my own.
Book tour hosted by:
MY REVIEW:
A gripping thriller that throws you into a small Christian town in Iowa in the year 1901. While simultaneously anchoring you to the present day with the current owner of the same property. The ties between the two stories are what is gripping and is also the dark history of the property, is the shadow that the current owner lives within.
The story is placed in a very small town in Shepherd, Iowa where in the opening pages of the first chapter, two sisters witness a horrendous murder at the abandoned home of 322 Predicament Avenue which begins the centuries long ghost stories of the woman murdered there: Isabelle Addington.
Conversely, in the present day, a woman named Norah owns this same home and appears to be experiencing the haunting spirit of Isabelle as one of her guests dies of fright and cardiac arrest. Norah has even further ties to the haunted abode though, as her sister was mysteriously murdered thirteen years prior and no one was ever convicted.
Norah has a guest staying at the property, now converted to a Bed and Breakfast, that is researching the history of Isabelle Addington’s murder, but also inadvertently unearthing the secrets to Norah’s sisters murder.
I had a hard time reading this one at night, as Wright’s story telling made me nervous of every sound in my home as I read. It’s beautifully haunting and classically written. She’s a brilliant writer, transporting you directly into the dual points of view without hesitation.
Both of the main characters, Effie and Norah, were beautiful people with a lot of similarities even across the 100 year time span. They are both family oriented, they both want to help others, and are willing to put themselves into dangerous situations to do the right thing. These are strong women with unwavering morals that are easy to relate with and appreciate.
The underlying messages from this story that I walked away with were the importance of standing up for those that need help, being there for our friends and families when they ask for help, as well as listening to the little voice inside ourselves that guides us all the time.
My Favorite Quotes:
- Effie couldn’t disregard the awful sight of the blood that cursed this room with its stains. Stains that someone had taken the time to hid by rearranging the furniture.
- We’re afraid of death in part because we’re afraid of the grief that follows. Death is momentary, but grief is what’s left behind. The remnants of every memory, every moment, every emotion. Grief is all the unspoken words that will never be said, the lost I-love-you’s, and the emptiness of the shadows they leave behind. Grief is a demon that stalks us.
GET IT HERE:
AMAZON | PUBLISHER | BOOKSHOP | BOOKBUB | GOODREADS
As the walls of the house at Predicament Avenue reveal their hidden truths, two women–generations apart–discover that fear and foreboding are no respecters of time.
In 1910, Effie James is committed to doing anything to save her younger sister, who witnessed a shocking murder, leaving her mute and in danger of the killer’s retribution. Effie must prove what her sister saw, but when a British gentleman arrives, he disrupts Effie’s quest with his attempts to locate his wife, Isabelle Addington, who was last seen at the supposed crime scene in the abandoned house at 322 Predicament Avenue. Just as Effie discovers what she seeks, she finds that the blood staining the walls will forever link her to a scandal she couldn’t imagine, and to a woman whose secrets promise to curse any who would expose them.
A century later, Norah Richman grapples with social anxiety and grief as she runs her late great-aunt’s bed-and-breakfast on Predicament Avenue. But Norah has little affection for the house and is committed only to carrying out her murdered sister’s dreams until crime historian and podcaster Sebastian Blaine arrives to investigate the ghostly legacy of the house’s claim to fame–the murder of Isabelle Addington. When a guest is found dead, the incident is linked to Isabelle’s murder, and Norah and Sebastian must work together to uncover the century-old curse that has wrapped 322 Predicament Avenue in its clutches and threatens far more than death.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jaime Jo Wright
Jaime Jo Wright (JaimeWrightBooks.com) is the author of ten novels, including Christy Award and Daphne du Maurier Award-winner The House on Foster Hill and Carol Award winner The Reckoning at Gossamer Pond. She’s also a two-time Christy Award finalist, as well as the ECPA bestselling author of The Vanishing at Castle Moreau and two Publishers Weekly bestselling novellas. Jaime lives in Wisconsin with her family and felines.
WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | X (TWITTER) | FACEBOOK
Adventures in Literature 
Leave a comment