Week 7 Review: The Curse of Penryth Hall

From Goodreads:

An atmospheric gothic mystery that beautifully brings the ancient Cornish countryside to life, Armstrong introduces heroine Ruby Vaughn in her Minotaur Books & Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award-winning debut, The Curse of Penryth Hall.

After the Great War, American heiress Ruby Vaughn made a life for herself running a rare bookstore alongside her octogenarian employer and house mate in Exeter. She's always avoided dwelling on the past, even before the war, but it always has a way of finding her. When Ruby is forced to deliver a box of books to a folk healer living deep in the Cornish countryside, she is brought back to the one place she swore she'd never return. A more sensible soul would have delivered the package and left without rehashing old wounds. But no one has ever accused Ruby of being sensible. Thus begins her visit to Penryth Hall.

A foreboding fortress, Penryth Hall is home to Ruby's once dearest friend, Tamsyn, and her husband, Sir Edward Chenowyth. It's an unsettling place, and after a more unsettling evening, Ruby is eager to depart. But her plans change when Penryth's bells ring for the first time in thirty years. Edward is dead; he met a gruesome end in the orchard, and with his death brings whispers of a returned curse. It also brings Ruan Kivell, the person whose books brought her to Cornwall, the one the locals call a Pellar, the man they believe can break the curse. Ruby doesn't believe in curses—or Pellars—but this is Cornwall and to these villagers the curse is anything but lore, and they believe it will soon claim its next victim: Tamsyn.

To protect her friend, Ruby must work alongside the Pellar to find out what really happened in the orchard that night.

My Review:
I had such a great time reading this book! This story that's historical, and a mystery, with maybe a bit of paranormal, as well as romance? Yeah, this book had a lot going on, and I couldn't get enough! And Ruby was such a great narrator! 

Ruby is something of a wild child, at least, for her time. I don't know if they stated her age, but her family has passed (not before she had a big scandal with what turned out to be a married man) and she served in the war, driving back and forth to ferry the injured. And she is logical, she doesn't believe in magic. So encountering the Pellar really shakes things up for her! 

This whole mystery, of the man who married her friend-but didn't treat her right, was really engaging. There were so many suspects, because he was a powerful man who abused his position and those under him. Plus there was the family curse. So she had a lot to sift through, and I loved watching her and Ruan put the pieces together! That ending though? Totally unexpected, but used everything that we'd been given so well! 

That whole thing where she and Ruan were linked at birth? Yeah, that's an interesting thought, and I hope that we explore that, and their abilities (her dreams have to be an ability), in the future books, because it does sound like he's going to be in the sequel, yeah! 

Loved reading this book and I can't wait for more! That the start of the set up was the end of this book was perfect! 

Author: Jess Armstrong  
Series: Ruby Vaughn #1
Read: February 13th, 2024
Source: NetGalley 
Reason Why: Sounded really good, and it's a DAC Book, Historical Fiction 2024 Book and a Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2024 Book! 
Publisher: Dreamscape Media
Published: December 5th 2023 

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars