Published by Sapere Books,
22 February 2018.
ISBN: 978-1912546077 (PB)
22 February 2018.
ISBN: 978-1912546077 (PB)
It
is winter 1871 and, for long periods of time, Mina Scarletti is confined to her
house in Brighton. Mina suffers from scoliosis and the bleak weather makes
outings too foolhardy, apart from her weekly visits to receive Dr Hamid’s
medicated herbal steam baths. At home, Mina occupies herself by writing horror
stories that have become very popular, although only her publisher knows the
nature of her stories and most people believe that she writes stories for
children. Mina has seen the damage that false mediums can do when they leech
onto vulnerable, bereaved people and rob them of vast sums of money, and she
has been responsible for revealing the truth about these fraudsters and even
for sending some of them to prison.
Mina knows that she has become famous
for unmasking fraudulent mediums, but she is surprised when George Fernwood and
his cousin, Mary Clifton, approach her to ask her to help them to find an
honest medium, who can truly receive communications from the dead. George and
Mary wish to marry, but, twenty years previously, their grandfather died,
indicating with his last coherent word that he had been poisoned. Unfortunately,
he died before he could name his murderer. George and Mary tell Mina that they
fear to marry when they do not know if their grandfather was indeed murdered
and, if so, which member of their family was responsible. They wish to contact
their grandfather’s ghost to ask him to tell them the truth.
Mina is intrigued by this problem and
visits two purported mediums, accompanied by George and Mary. The first is Miss
Athene Brendell, who lives with her mother in elegant rented accommodation in
one of Bath’s more select areas. As a medium, Miss Brendell is unusual, as
neither she nor her mother charge for her services. Miss Brendell is an
ethereal, fragile young woman, and Mina does not think that she is deliberately
deceiving her visitors, but suspects that her ill-health might be affecting her
mind. This leads Mina into some fascinating discussions with Dr Hamid and his
colleagues about how illness can influence a person’s perception of the world.
Mina is dismayed when she realises that it is possible that her own tales of horror
might encourage belief in the supernatural and in the powers of mediums.
Mina thinks that the second medium
should be easier to discredit. He is a man who claims that spirits write the
answers to questions on slates when it seems impossible for a human to have
done so. Mina has been trained by her brother’s former mistress, who before her
prosperous marriage was on the stage and knows all about conjurors’ tricks, and
she is sure that the slate writing is a fake. However, this medium passes
Mina’s most stringent tests and she is faced with the fact that he might have
unearthly powers and that ghosts may actually exist.
This is the third in the series
featuring Mina Scarletti. It is a fascinating series and this book excellent.
Mina is an unusual and delightful protagonist, a young woman who will not be
beaten, either by her own frail body or by outside detractors. She is
determined to live her own life to its full potential and accepts her
limitations with good sense, not giving up on her objectives but using her band
of helpers to do the things that she physically cannot manage. The plot is
interesting and the background information about spiritualism is fascinating.
This is an author whose research is always impeccable and who threads the
information through the story with great skill. An Unquiet Ghost is a page turner which I wholeheartedly recommend.
------
Linda Stratmann was born in Leicester in 1948 and first started
scribbling stories and poems at the age of six. She became interested in true
crime when watching Edgar Lustgarten on TV in the 1950s. Linda attended
Wyggeston Girls Grammar School, trained to be a chemist’s dispenser, and later
studied at Newcastle University where she obtained a first in Psychology. She
then spent 27 years in the civil service before leaving to devote her time to
writing. Linda loves spending time in libraries and archives and really enjoys
giving talks on her subject.
Carol Westron is a successful short story writer and a Creative
Writing teacher. She is the moderator
for the cosy/historical crime panel,
The Deadly Dames. Her crime novels are set both in contemporary and Victorian times. The Terminal Velocity of Cats the first in her Scene of Crimes novels, was published July 2013. Carol recently gave an interview to Mystery People. To read the interview click on the link below.
The Deadly Dames. Her crime novels are set both in contemporary and Victorian times. The Terminal Velocity of Cats the first in her Scene of Crimes novels, was published July 2013. Carol recently gave an interview to Mystery People. To read the interview click on the link below.
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