Reviews tagging 'War'

The Woman in the Castello by Kelsey James

1 review

bookedbymadeline's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington books for the eARC of The Woman in the Castello by Kelsey James! This title will be published July 25 🎉 (in time for a fantastic beach read or your spooky autumn TBR)! The following opinions are my own.

I was immediately pulled in and the descriptions made me feel like I was there walking through Italy! Loved the writing style, I was gripped the entire time and didn’t want to put it down. I especially loved the ghost stories/spooky vibes but wish there was more of the ghostly vibes throughout, they kind of end in the second half and it becomes more mystery/psychological thriller focused rather than gothic mystery.

The characters were complex and well written with some great character development by the end. I was super happy to discover my predictions weren’t right! I was completely surprised by the twists, and they were done really well. 

The ending felt slightly rushed and some things were sort of left unexplained/up to the reader to decide, which is more of a personal preference. I think the things could’ve been explained in a brief epilogue sort of chapter to wrap it up and feel more complete but based on some info I think I have an idea what the explanation was but I want to just be told sometimes 😂

Overall a fantastic read that I’ll be thinking about and recommending for foreseeable future. Definitely a favorite for the month and can’t wait to add a physical copy to my shelves at some point! Highly recommend for mystery lovers, horror movie fans, old Hollywood fans, historical fiction bookworms, or readers who enjoy dark family secrets! 
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