Review Detail

What I Loved:

The historical setting is brought to brilliant life with vivid, sensory details and attention to the kind of unique observations that make a setting feel real to the reader. Every aspect--from Trinity College to Castle Mound and all of the streets in between--felt absolutely authentic. Fans of superbly detailed historicals like Downton Abbey will love it.

The premise is also very intriguing. Use of real historical characters and events serve to make the story feel plausible. There isn't a single false note. From mediums running cons in their sitting rooms to Trinity fellows meeting with like-minded scholars to discuss the untapped potential of the human mind and the possibility of making contact with the spiritual plane, every detail comes together. Readers will be fascinated, with both the murder mystery and the supernatural element that comes into play, from the first page to the last.

The mystery itself is well done. Enough information is given to keep the reader invested in the outcome without making the reader either frustrated because the answers seem too obvious for the characters to miss or frustrated because the clues are too thin to sustain the suspense. Readers who love a good, old-fashioned murder mystery with healthy dash of the supernatural thrown in with really enjoy this story.

What Left Me Wanting More:

The only thing I wanted more of from this book was to be able to connect with the main characters in a way that would make me deeply care about them and their outcome. Perhaps because the narration style felt a bit distant from the characters' emotions or because the conventions of the time necessitated more shallow, formal interactions between the main characters, this reader simply didn't connect fully with the characters. However, I did connect with the book overall and found it to be compulsively readable.

Final Verdict:

Beautifully detailed and absolutely intriguing, THE DARK BETWEEN will keep readers turning pages.