Haunted houses are both fascinating and scary (depending on who you speak to).
The Widow of Rose House, by Diana Biller, was published in 2019. In 1872, Alva Webster created a scandal on both sides of the Atlantic by leaving her abusive husband. After three years of getting comments and criticism, she returns to the States as a widow.
After purchasing a long-shuttered and supposedly haunted mansion in Hyde Park, NY, she hopes to rebuild both the house and her reputation. Despite hearing stories from multiple sources about the property’s spirit residents, she refuses to believe them.
When Professor Samuel Moore offers his services to solve the mystery, she turns him down. Alva ignores her attraction to him, not wanting to add another thing to her proverbial plate. But it soon becomes apparent that she will need Sam’s help to answer the questions that won’t go away. It doesn’t hurt that he is the scion of a well-respected scientific family.
Sam has two goals. The first is to figure out if the rumors are true. The second is for Alva to return his love.
I wanted to like this book. Both the narrative and the characters were intriguing. The problem is the lack of chemistry between Alva and Sam and that hook was lacking that made me put it down.
Do I recommend it? No.
The Widow of Rose House is available wherever books are sold.
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