‘The Tale of Halcyon Crane’ by Wendy Webb

“It all sounds quite Gothic,” he said. “A huge old house, stuck on an island in bad weather, an unsolved murder, mysterious encounters with ghosts and rude townspeople, even the eerie old maid.”

Hallie James was raised by her father, being told, as a child, that her mother had died in a fire. Naturally, she’s shocked to receive a letter years later stating that her mother just died recently. Anxious to know what really happened, Hallie travels to a beautiful but remote island in the Great Lakes where her mother lived. Hallie isn’t exactly embraced warmly by the locals, and she realizes the secrets to her past are likely to be revealed on this mysterious and strange island.

A nice spine tingling romantic ghost story for a windy night curled up in front of the fire with a steaming cup of tea. But not so scary that you can’t let your husband go up to bed early, leaving you alone. I liked the creative premise and felt intrigued by the journey Hallie takes to find out who she really is. It reminded me of The Secrets Between Us by Louise Douglas, which I also really enjoyed. Although I believe in the spirit world, I’ve never encountered any ghosts, so that keeps me always looking for and preferring reasonable living explanations for the naughty souls long passed who keep doing weird things and just won’t go away!

A light contemporary spooky read that is also warm and fuzzy and kept my attention throughout! I think I have found a new author to return to for horror-lite!