A review by bookedbymadeline
The Lodger by Helen Scarlett

emotional hopeful relaxing slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Thank you to Quercus and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions Expressed are my own.

I was loving the mystery at first but that sadly didn’t last long. Nothing really wrong with the writing, I could read it okay and it held my attention, but I just didn’t love it either. Does more telling than showing when presenting clues/new info, which is a reading pet peeve of mine. I think if it had been dual POV and we could discover the secrets from Elizabeth’s perspective rather than being told everything secondhand it could’ve been more intriguing/mysterious. 

The story began to slow down a bit in the middle, making me lose interest 😭 The romance felt almost forced and the mystery waned! The characters involved in the romance barely have any scenes together so it just doesn’t make sense. The murder mystery completely slowed and there’s zero tension, it feels more like a cozy mystery than a gothic novel (which there’s nothing wrong with that but it’s not something I enjoy; I prefer mysteries with tension).

Flat characters-there’s no development or character arcs. It’s always the same things and we don’t learn anything new to add to the characterization of the MC or side characters. The main mystery also disappears for awhile and becomes more of a side plot to the romance and character relationships. 

The book just tries to do too much and falls flat in its premise/execution! The one thing it does well is show Grace’s grief following World War 1 and the aftermath effects of how it affected the country as a whole. Honestly the book would have been much better as a historical romance or general historical novel that focuses on characters’ grief and trying to move on following the war. 

Finally, the ending felt underwhelming and rushed. The novel as a whole felt way too long on the details it did focus on and way too short for the mystery portion. The revealing of secrets and solving of the mystery didn’t pack the punch I hoped for and left me underwhelmed because it took so damn long to reveal anything! Everything was revealed in the last 30 pages (which at that point I started skimming) and I just thought “okay and?” Like I wanted to finish the book to find out what happened but once I did I couldn’t have had less feelings about it all 🙈

If you read this, go in with zero expectations of it being a gothic murder mystery, because it absolutely isn’t 😅 If you enjoy cozy mysteries, with slight dark elements then you may enjoy this! That’s where I began to feel disappointed was because I expected and wanted a gothic mystery novel but didn’t get any of that.
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