"The house immediately felt cavernous, as if it might swallow me. I listened into its depths, feeling the sudden emptiness, the weight of it almost overwhelming. It was crushing, snatching each breath out of me and claiming me. I felt that however hard and deliberately I tried to breathe fully, I just couldn't manage it. It was as if I couldn't access the deepest parts of myself...
But all the while, I had a deep sense that there was something just behind me.
Following my movements.
Judging, watching, waiting."
I was in a bit of a reading slump over the summer. I tried to read three different fantasy novels that various publishers had sent to me for review and I ended up DNFing all of them, all for the same reason. The pacing was far too slow and boggy, so reading began to feel like a chore, one that I was not enjoying. Needless to say, those books won't be appearing on my blog, as I only post about books that I really love.
I decided to change tactics and genres, looking on my shelves for something that would give me that 'Gothic Summer/Summerween' vibe and I discovered this novel. It was one that I had originally been saving for spooky season, but desperate times called for desperate measures and I just wanted to be completely immersed in a great story. I thought that The Ghosts of Merry Hall might be just the thing to jolt me out of my reading slump and I was not wrong.
I sat in the garden and ripped through this entire novel in a day! I just couldn't stop reading. It had everything that I was looking for, being a fast paced ghost story about a haunted house in the countryside. I do love a good ghost story and this one had me gripped. The chapter hooks are very strong, meaning that you just have to keep turning the pages. It was the perfect book to get me out of my reading slump, plus its set in wintertime, so I got a taste of my favourite snowy season during midsummer, which was a bonus.
The Ghosts of Merry Hall is a duel narrative novel, with a contemporary protagonist, Nell, and a historical one called Dolly, from the 1800s. When Nell's marriage breaks down due to her husband sleeping with her best friend, she and her teenage daughter, Fern, find themselves homeless and desperate. When Nell is offered the chance to be a caretaker of Merry Hall while the owner is away, she jumps at the chance. She and Fern move straight in and that is when all the ghostly goings-on begin.
Meanwhile, back in 1847, Merry Hall is home to a travelling showman and his little band of performers, including Dolly, an albino dancer and singer. The showman promises her the world, but he is nothing if not a bit of an illusionist and Dolly begins to wonder if her dreams of a new life will ever come true.
As the two timelines begin to merge, voices from the past echo around the old walls of Merry Hall and its surrounding area, including the local pub where Nell works, and Fern starts to act strangely, bringing boys as well as books home from the library. Nell tries to get a grip on their new life, but it seems as if everything is set against her.
I loved the creepy atmosphere of this novel. While it doesn't spring many surprises and leans more towards a traditional, even predictable at times, ghost story trope, it is nevertheless very engaging and sweeps you along at a good pace. I really liked Dolly as a character. Her youthful innocence and naivety is as fragile as old lace and it is impossible not to sympathise with her. She is after all, just a child. I didn't much like Nell though. She is an extremely selfish, narcissistic mother, always considering her own wants and needs first, treating her daughter as an afterthought. However, her story arc is quite strong and by the end of the novel, after a couple of rude awakenings, she becomes much more proactive and a stronger mother because of her mistakes, so I liked her better at the end of the story than I did at the beginning. I would say that this novel is akin to The Greatest Showman, only with a much darker, more sinister tone, but it has that same circus freakshow vibe to it.
Overall, I found The Ghosts of Merry Hall to be a very satisfying read. It was the perfect Gothic Summer book for escaping a reading slump, though it would also be a good book to read in autumn or midwinter too. If the idea of being totally cut off and snowed up in a haunted house appeals to you, then you will probably like this novel, with all its deep-winter, spooky Gothic vibes. Happy reading!
Serene Blessings,
Marie x
AD: This book is published by Titan and is available now in all formats.
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